Inside Tip: MERGERS!
By Robert R. Barney
In case you haven't realized it yet, many of the financial problems hitting America's poor and middle class have another nasty side – probably planned by our leaders in Washington and on Wall Street.
In case you haven't realized it yet, many of the financial problems hitting America's poor and middle class have another nasty side – probably planned by our leaders in Washington and on Wall Street.
The bad economic times, saddled with runaway inflation which itself is being fueled by the high cost of petroleum, are going to create huge mega-mergers.
This week, we saw Delta Air Lines merge with Northwest. Expect many more to come. Your government actually wants team-ups like this to happen.
Why? The answer is simple.
Our leaders, in collusion with Fortune 500 companies, want to stymie competition by establishing monopolies. Monopolies are the single largest threat to both capitalism and the freedoms we enjoy in the United States.
Soon, we can expect to see huge mergers among bankers, the oil and gasoline as industry (yes, Exxon wants to make more profits and can only do so when there are only two or three oil companies in the world), car manufacturers, chemical companies, food chains and the trucking industry.
Soon, we can expect to see huge mergers among bankers, the oil and gasoline as industry (yes, Exxon wants to make more profits and can only do so when there are only two or three oil companies in the world), car manufacturers, chemical companies, food chains and the trucking industry.
I expect to see Ford Motor Company swallowed by a Japanese car firm within three years. Dodge/Chrysler will almost certainly be taken over by Volkswagen or possibly Nissan. In 10 years, we may even see a merger between Toyota and General Motors.
The same applies to the trucking and rail industry. You think food prices are high now? What happens when this artificial fuel shortage cause the little trucking companies out of business? It will be FedEx Freight and UPS. I've been told that even R&L may be a target for takeover by DHL.
The paint industry in which I'm involved has been on this route for 30 years. In the 1970s, 70 percent of auto coatings were produced by the top 50 paint companies. Today, 70 percent are produced by only the top four! Many experts in my field believe in 10 years, America will have just two major paint companies – Dupont and PPG – with a whopping 90 percent share.
The paint industry in which I'm involved has been on this route for 30 years. In the 1970s, 70 percent of auto coatings were produced by the top 50 paint companies. Today, 70 percent are produced by only the top four! Many experts in my field believe in 10 years, America will have just two major paint companies – Dupont and PPG – with a whopping 90 percent share.
Grocery stores are the next target. Last year, Whole Foods bought out its rival, Wild Oats. I predict many smaller chains such as Farm Fresh and Publix will become targets of buyouts by larger stores like Kroger and Albertson's.
Why is this happening?
Why is this happening?
Control.
The government can control you better if you are working for a huge company rather than working for yourself.
Salaried employees pay taxes and basically can write nothing off. Small business owners have many things they can write off and your government hates this. So does Wall Street.
Corporate America simply cannot compete with the little guy. I know many may doubt this, but the little guy can always sell his wares cheaper than the big guys. The reason: the bureaucratic high cost of overhead is immense in large companies.
Here's an example from my business. It costs me about $30 to make a gallon of clear coat paint. That's raw material cost. It probably only costs industry giant PPG $20 because of its buying power. My overhead runs about 20 percent. That makes my total cost about $36 a gallon. PPG probably has a whopping 100-150 percent overhead cost compared to raw materials! This makes the cost of its clear in the $50 range.
How is that? Well, we don't give NASCAR racing teams millions of dollars. We don't have an advertising budget of tens of millions and we don't buy business. It's the norm in my industry for a paint company to give "up-front" money to a body shop for its business. I have been involved in deals when I sold for these companies that paid large dealer groups millions for their business. Millions! So it's easy to see why they have to sell their clear coat for $200. I don't. I also don't sell 4 billion!
Just as politicians pay for votes, large companies pay for business. Politicians hand out cigarettes, booze and even "gas money" in exchange for votes. The Democrats have been experts at such tactics. Wall Street has learned from the best.
We are being merged into a one-world government that will take away your choices. You'll see your rights disappear, and eventually an Adolf Hitler-type will be your leader. Sound far-fetched? Read the 11th chapter of Daniel and see what can be expected. Hopefully, this will not happen in our lifetimes; however, we can't be sure when it will. We do know, though, that it will happen. God says so.
We are being merged into a one-world government that will take away your choices. You'll see your rights disappear, and eventually an Adolf Hitler-type will be your leader. Sound far-fetched? Read the 11th chapter of Daniel and see what can be expected. Hopefully, this will not happen in our lifetimes; however, we can't be sure when it will. We do know, though, that it will happen. God says so.
