You have all seen the commercials lately on television, if you watch it at all during the day or at night: it speaks of how Anheuser-Busch is the original, real American beer. Personally, I could care less about beer, I'm not a regular drinker of alcohol, and when I do allow myself a drink, it's often to taste the drink, rather than achieve any sort of state. Still, I have found my fur has been ruffled with this series of commercials because, where I don't care for beer, I stand strong with patriotism and what it stands for. These commercials are for people like me: they're attempting to sell beer to people with the pitch that they're American. These commercials are relatively new, as in that they haven't been running on commercial spots for years.
Why would a patriotic commercial selling a brand of beer bother me? Alone, I'd have no issue with this. Anheuser-Busch is an American company, founded by Eberhard Anheuser in St. Louis, Missouri in the wonderful year of 1860. Along with his son-in-law, Adolphus Busch, they began the legacy that has become the American beer giant Anheuser-Busch. The issue is, they aren't going to be an American company for long.
As of July 13, Anheuser-Busch is in serious talks to merge with InBev, which is a Belgian-Brazilian brewing company. This company has been noted for it's underhanded tactics in the aquisition of brewing companies before, as Anheuser-Busch found out when InBev made a direct offer to shareholders in hopes to oust the board members. On top of such underhanded acts, InBev is currently under fire about possible dealing with Cuba, that they are currently attepmting to keep under wraps, because if such accusations were true, additional obstacles would be encountered when it came to dealing in the United States. While Anheuser successfully defended itself from the direct-to-shareholder offers InBev made, they have, as of the 13th, agreed to a merger, paying out 70$ a share.
Aside from InBev's underhanded tactics and possible shady dealings, they make note to assure those wary, like myself, of the merger that no brewing sites in the great U.S. of A. would close, and that they'll make an effort to keep a majority of management and board members with the new company. This is where I begin to shake my head in disbelief, as often, these kinds of deals where promises of 'attempts' and sincere 'hopes' often fall short of the expectations that they originally had spoken of. InBev will allow two board members to sit on the new Board of Directors. These two members will be faced with the rest of the board, which has been operating together and with similar interests for years. Should the decision be brought to the table to turn Anhueser-Busch as a label into the most watered-down piss liquid possible while still qualifying as a beer, these two members will find it hard-pressed to convince the rest of the board to do otherwise. While I'm not saying that scenario will occur, I believe I've made my point; the control of the company is no longer in the hands of those directors. The company is no longer American owned.
Which leads back to the commercials. I appreciate an American owned company. I like to know that the companies that make the stuff I buy, live in the country I live in. They see what we need better than anyone else could. You cannot possibly know what Americans want more than Americans do. Sue me for loving my country, and enjoying the idea that we still have companies that make product here, sell product here, and hire people here. What I'm confused about is the timing to these commercials. What a better time to tell your country and the people who drink your beer that you're American than right before you sell out to an outside business interest that is very much not American. I appreciate Anhueser-Busch because it's American, and it stayed that way for so long, even when the popular thing to do was to sell for massive profit to another company who wants stake in the American economy. It depresses me that, through all of that, I'm now seeing another company pressured into such an act.
Perhaps my facts are not straight, or I don't have the whole picture. I've done research, I've read about the situation, I'm not uninformed. Still, I'm not too high on myself to admit that I can only see so far as my position lets me, and I'm not an Anheuser-Busch shareholder, board member, or an executive with InBev. All I know is what I read, and I make sure I really read before I speak. With the information I've gathered, this is a bleak and saddening day for beer enthusiasts and patriotically minded people like myself everywhere. I doubt InBev will ruin Anheuser, but I can't see them running it as an American company.
It's also worth note that Anheuser-Busch is one of the few companies I can think of that is still run principally by a family member of the original founding families. Currently, August A. Busch IV is the President and CEO of Anhueser-Busch. For a company that large, that's a feat to applaud, and a real testament to the American Dream. Also, Anheuser-Busch is a staunch supporter of our troops, proven through actions and commercials alike.
This commercial was put out by Busch sometime in 2005, and unlike most patriotic commercials, I really feel like this was more sincere. Enjoy this, specifically if you respect and admire our men and women serving in the Armed Forces:
Simple, well done, and respectable. No beer, no flashy signs. Just a video of something that actually happens when our boys and girls get back.
Somehow or another a little comment on a series of commercials about beer became an overly Americanized rant on buy outs, foreign companies, and the American Way. Go figure. Still, it was fun to write about, and it puts another entry into the blog. Hope you made it through that.
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2 comments:
You've got all the facts right, and I understand why you think that the commercials are in bad timing. The reason that they have started commercials like this is pretty much a way of saying that they don't like what is happening. They want the company to be unchanged and they do not want to make a deal with the other company, but rather are being forced into it. I guess they would rather air these commercials than ones that actually complain about the situation.
Thanks a ton for the straight forward, and well written response, Maia! I agree with you there, and looking at it as such makes me all the more disappointed that we might be losing the great American lager to an outside business interest. I guess that's just the way of the world.
Who wants to start a brewery with me?
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