Is America for sale?

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Lizi

Lizi

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Nov 28, 2007
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Matthews
www.matthewsflowerboutique.com
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I was fixing a cup of coffee this morning when I heard this on tv. Goodmorning American newcaster said "Budwiser was considering a 800 billion dollar offer from a foreign company (I think from Italy) as a buy out. Employees are outraged."

The newscaster had Lou Dobbs on the air and he said that America is for sale to the highest bidder. The Flatiron building had already been sold, and the Chrysler building is being looked at by foreign investors. Budwiser is the oldest and largest brewery in the USA, this speaks volumes about the economy. The dollars is at an all time low. Foreign money is worth more. A dollar is not even worth a dollar anymore.

Dobbs stated that the USA borrows 3 millon dollars a day to offset the deficit. Imports are at an all time high and exports drop every day. He stated that our deficit has been growning for the last 32 years and at the rate it is going the US of A is going to bankrupt itself.

Dobbs said our world will change as we know it and our children and grandchildren are the ones who will suffer. Our goverment needs to wake up and smell the coffee.

Where does that leave us? The Chinese and Japanese are already buying every piece of nationally important property in the USA. I scares me to think that we could be bought out by a foreign interest. Have foreigners running our country. Maybe not even a demoracy any more. It could be a republic of the Foreign United States of Chijaprusitairaexio.( Mixture of foreign interest)

America needs to wake up.

I watch a lot of ETV and I saw a show a few week back about the demise of Rome. The simularities are uncanny. The once and powerful Rome with its advances in medicine, one of the first to have clean running water with undergound sewers, one of the richest countries in the world, with the most powerful army in the world just disappeared. Sure there were lots of things that lead up to their demise, and it happened over a period of time. But it happened.


What can we do? I'm not sure, but the American goverment needs to wake up and do something before there is no American goverment.

The facts about America being for sale are true. America and Rome's simularities are my opinion. And thats the way I see it.

What do you think?
 
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As Dorothy said "I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore"

It's a different world. The U.S. will play a different role in the future. The politicians (from both parties) that lead this country seem to have no clue.

Let's hope they wake up before it's too late.
 
I am not so sure it starts at the top! Most elected officials have had their interests bought long ago.

Perhaps if we as american citizens took responsibility for what we buy and consume, the tide would turn. If we leave it up to the govenrment to change, we will die holding our breath. Afterall, there are not nearly as many of them as there of us!

We can do our best to STOP buying crap from China. We can stop letting the price of something be the most important factor in our decision to buy/use it! This is both as retail business owners and as consumers.

Afterall, fair trade should be fair to all parties involved.
 
wildflowerschicago said:
I am not so sure it starts at the top! Most elected officials have had their interests bought long ago.

Perhaps if we as american citizens took responsibility for what we buy and consume, the tide would turn. If we leave it up to the govenrment to change, we will die holding our breath. Afterall, there are not nearly as many of them as there of us!

We can do our best to STOP buying crap from China. We can stop letting the price of something be the most important factor in our decision to buy/use it! This is both as retail business owners and as consumers.

Afterall, fair trade should be fair to all parties involved.
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I really make an effort to buy American. When Wal-Mart first open, if you remember that, their moto was we sell American made products. I don't think you can even find anything made in America there now.

I don't buy stuff from China for myself personally, but it is so hard to find silks and containers not made in china for the shop. Just look at the white paper made in china tags all over them. There are some items I buy that are made in the USA and I try to do that whenever possible.

Most citizens don't even look to see where something is made. If its cheap they just buy it.

I just know that as a country we need to make some changes.
 
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I feel the same way about this as well. I know I posted in another thread somewhere a link to American made products from american companies. It really is a fascinating site. Off to find it.....
 
Interesting read:

Robert Reich, Supercapitalism

its all about the money. There are tons of companies that are no longer owned by Americans. Drug, food, investment companies and the list is long.

As for Americans??? just ask them where they get their information on relevant topics??? Scary.
 
Actually it's a German company. They also own Labatt's.

Everything is for sale (except for the Hudson Bay Company and the Canadarm) and has been for a very long time. Foreign ownership isn't just for the companies buying in North America... it involves us too. There is NA ownership all over the planet. Being isolationist is long past.

V
 
Sorry but I don't necessarily buy American - I buy quality.

My motorcycle is a Honda (built in the USA however) not a Harley.

My van is a Toyota.

When America can come close to those kinds of quality - I'll buy American.

Tho I strongly doubt I will ever buy another American made vehicle. The last one I had (Dodge van) was nothing but shoddy. I fixed the transmission count them - 7 times.

Oh yeah, my plasma tv is a Panasonic, my home theater is a Yamaha.

I guess my computers are american made.
 
bloomz said:
Sorry but I don't necessarily buy American - I buy quality.

My motorcycle is a Honda (built in the USA however) not a Harley.

My van is a Toyota.

When America can come close to those kinds of quality - I'll buy American.

Tho I strongly doubt I will ever buy another American made vehicle. The last one I had (Dodge van) was nothing but shoddy. I fixed the transmission count them - 7 times.

Oh yeah, my plasma tv is a Panasonic, my home theater is a Yamaha.

I guess my computers are american made.
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Perhaps America would have better made products is the final cost weren't such a HUGE factor. Here unlike some other countries the employees are paid a decent wage (in most cases), some are given benefits and we all know the taxes we pay for having employees are expensive (fica match, unemployement, Work. comp). It just doesn't seem possible to compete on a level playing field with regard to BOTH price and quality.
 
Gilliland said:
"America For Sale" is spelled
N.A.F.T.A
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That applies to U.S./Canadian trade too. Are you implying we cease trade with tham as well or just add more import/export taxes to what is currently traded? What about the U.S. product being shipped to & from Alaska that would need to go through Canada (like oil)...would that be taxed twicce?
 
wildflowerschicago said:
Perhaps America would have better made products is the final cost weren't such a HUGE factor. Here unlike some other countries the employees are paid a decent wage (in most cases), some are given benefits and we all know the taxes we pay for having employees are expensive (fica match, unemployement, Work. comp). It just doesn't seem possible to compete on a level playing field with regard to BOTH price and quality.
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ahhh but many of those Japanese products are made in America.

My Honda motorcycle is made in Marysville Ohio with over 90% american parts.
 
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Being a patriot is not easy in these times ! TOTO help me out here !

Where are we ? Are we anywhere ?
What we conceived as the American Dream is being compromised each and every day, as our brothers and sisters defend all that we used to have !
And each and every day, another American life is lost, with another family being deprived of a loved one, yet the end is not remotely in sight.
Or is it ?

Some will argue politics, over and over again, and others economical factors contributing to the demise of the greatest Country the world will ever know, yet solutions never follow, only loss !

Why is that ?


I own Harley, Chevy, Ford etc........but the times are changing.
Not planning to give up the bikes, but America cannot, or does not care to help with the chaos.
That sucks !
But this lifer will be there when the chips are down, whether it be 18,47 or 77, to defend a lifetime of belief, or until I can't physically serve the Country I gave my life for !

UNITY ! Is there another option ?


Sempre Fi
 
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wildflowerschicago said:
Perhaps America would have better made products is the final cost weren't such a HUGE factor. Here unlike some other countries the employees are paid a decent wage (in most cases), some are given benefits and we all know the taxes we pay for having employees are expensive (fica match, unemployement, Work. comp). It just doesn't seem possible to compete on a level playing field with regard to BOTH price and quality.
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wildflowerschicago you are very much on target with your remarks. For 30 years after WWII, American companies became the engine by which most Americans were able to enter into the "middle class. Our companies paid good wages, gave health care and promised pensions in the workers old age.

But people like bloomz, penalized these companies because foreign companies whose costs were much lower brought products into this country at prices our companies couldn't match. They used their cost advantage to make a higher quality product. He gets mad at the politicians because the cost of living of this life style keeps rising, but he has no problem justifying why he need not contribute to the solution.

And you are right that many American companies who were locked into these wages and benefits cut the quality side of their product in order to match the prices of lower cost countries.

And we as a country have some important decisions to make. Millions of good paying jobs have left America, causing millions of people to lose their middle class status. WE can stay our present course and be forced to pay ever and ever more dollars to support social programs that are aimed at keeping people above the poverty level. Or we can redo our thinking about how we purchase our daily goods. Life will never go back to the old days because the world is a much smaller place. But we will have to address the fact that we can't keep enjoying buying cheap products made in some foreign country, and not have to pay ever and ever more money into social programs needed to offset the income losses being felt by those displaced American workers.

The flower industry is not immune. The growth of our industry was built on the buying power of the middle class.
 
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WHOA!!!!! Hold up here.....

I know a bit about this story on several levels. First I own AB stock, Second my oldest and closest friend owns two AB wholesale franchises and just bought two more.

AB does not want to sell out to InBEV! Inbev is a Belgium based company that has buys out beer brewers.

The HOSTILE take over attempt will cost Inbev, not $800B, but $48 BILLION.

Anheuser Busch, CEO August Busch IV, does not want his 156 year old family business to be bought out. The board of directors have to weigh the consequences of this buyout and act in the best interest of the stock holders.

The bid is $65 per share, which was about $8-$10 higher than what AB stock normally sells for.

Joe
 
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Well, I guess Goodmorning America got it wrong. This was on their show on Thursday morning. They never said anything about a hostile takeover or buyout.

They also stated that the employees were outraged.

I would not have started this thread without some serious thought to it.
 
Yes, I heard that AB is trying to buy Corona, if they do then Inbev wont have enough money to buy AB.
I have a family emeber also employed by AB
 
Joe Mioux said:
WHOA!!!!! Hold up here.....



The board of directors have to weigh the consequences of this buyout and act in the best interest of the stock holders.
Joe Mioux said:
Ding, Ding Ding!!!!!


That's us boys and girls. and it's a catch 22! We all want that stock to PERFORM at record highs because it effects our 401K returns. So if a buy out will increase our stock value - full speed ahead.

But then we don't want foreign investors to buy out our companies because it usually means jobs are cut and plants are closed.

ST Louis will take a BIG HIT -along with lots of charitable organization in the St Louis area and perhaps country wide. Remember the profits will now head to Belgium not stay in the USA.

And you know most people don't care about any of these issues until it hits in their backyard. Sad but true.
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