Don't
just sit on your duffs doing 12-ounce elbow bends — the Russians are buying out
Pabst Blue Ribbon.
 |
| Keep your paws off my local brew! |
OK, that’s it. No more Mr. Nice Guy. The avarice of corporate
power is getting personal.
I’m talking about beer, the nourishing nectar of a civilized
society. Since my teen years, I’ve done extensive consumer research on the
brewer’s art, from the full array of ales to the most substantial of stouts.
I weathered the depressing era when national bland beer labels
like Budweiser and Miller drove a diversity of livelier regional breweries out
of business. More recently, I’ve rejoiced as a flowering of craft and micro
brews has spread from city to city. This trend delivered an abundance of real
gusto and local flavor from coast to coast.
But beware, ye who love local beer. Don’t just sit on your duffs
doing 12-ounce elbow bends, for here come the big brew bastards again. And
they’re bigger and more menacing than ever.
Meanwhile Anheuser-Busch, now owned by a Belgian-Brazilian
monopolist called InBev, wants to buy SABMiller. That merger would create a
single behemoth that would control a third of all beer sales in the world.
Back in the USA, the monopolization is worse, with InBev and
SABMiller effectively controlling three-fourths of our beer market. If InBev
swallows SABMiller, we’re looking at higher prices, lower quality, and fewer
choices.
And the red-white-and-blue icon of American beer — Pabst Blue
Ribbon, which dates back to 1844 and itself is a merged conglomerate that owns
Colt 45, Old Milwaukee, and Schlitz — is being bought by a Russian brewer.
Where are Teddy Roosevelt and his trustbusters when we really
need them?
OtherWords columnist Jim Hightower is
a radio commentator, writer, and public speaker. He’s also editor of the
populist newsletter, The Hightower
Lowdown. OtherWords.org