Free Republic

A Russian beverage company said on Thursday that it was acquiring the Pabst Brewing Company, which makes the Pabst Blue Ribbon beer popular with barflies and hipsters alike and other brands like Colt 45 and Old Milwaukee. [snip] The buyer is Oasis Beverages, a Russian brewer and beverages distributor. Backing Oasis is TSG Consumer Partners, an American private equity firm focused on consumer goods, which will take a minority stake. “Pabst Blue Ribbon is the quintessential American brand – it represents individualism, egalitarianism and freedom of expression – all the things that make this country great,” Eugene Kashper, the chairman...

It's no secret that for some time I've put much or most of the blame for the nation's prolonged economic anemia squarely on the shoulders of Federal Reserve Czar, er, Chairman Alan Greenspan. Admittedly, cataclysmic events like 9-11 and the war in Iraq also have contributed to the economic malaise. But the initial plummet, which started before President Bush took office, rests with Greenspan. That's what I think. Here's what America thinks. In our latest national survey, we asked 1,000 adults if they believe Greenspan should be renominated again as Fed chairman. There was certainly no "irrational exuberance" for returning...