#1189 Crafted Profits

So as the recovery gets underway, I find it interesting to look back and see who did well last year.
Surprisingly, the beer industry was down. “Surprisingly,” because people usually turn to beer and crime when things get tough. But there was an interesting anomaly in the picture of beer. Only the big, cheap beer companies were off.
Beer nationally was down 2.2 percent, while “craft” beer makers saw a 1.7 percent increase. Why, do you think? It’s the same reason lots of small downtown merchants reported increases while the big chain discounters like Sam’s Club were laying people off.
People stick together in tough times. They support their local retailers, the people they perceive as closest to the edge. So, counterintuitively, when we should have been flocking to the discounters, we were paying a little bit more at our local establishments, getting better service and a feeling of pulling together while we were at it.
And a good mug of beer too. You got to admit, a beefy stout or porter just feels more substantial than a light industrial lager. It’s more like food. So we can also justify it and say it’s not just a beer.
It’s beer and lunch.
Archeologists say that beer was actually the original use for yeast. That whole bread thing came later. Beer was a safe and dysentery-free beverage and source of nourishment. And an efficient source of calories.
Beer, the original energy drink.
I felt like washing down my sorrows with some the other day when I read the latest figures from Goldman Sachs. Turns out they managed to withstand the economic downturn quite well too. In fact, they reported a 13.4 billion dollar profit for 2009, the largest in the firm’s history. Capitalism at it’s best, use every weapon at your disposal.
Some folks would say that GS was taking advantage. But you could say the government was very very smart to invest money in Goldman Sachs, and have them lead us into the recovery.
And we actually need to have Goldman Sachs get more cozy with the government. And populate the government’s crisis management team with even more Goldman Sachs alums.
Forget about beer, it’s Goldman Sachs that really understands the value of crafty.
America, ya gotta love it.