"Save Mr. Hershey's Dream" or Feel My Rage!!!

So, if one takes a drive around Hershey, Pa they will find clusterings of little orange yard signs reading "Save Mr. Hershey's Dream." Presumably, these signs are in response to The Hershey Company's plan to relocate a number of jobs to plants in Mexico and, if rumors are to be believed, a number of other countries as well. This has angered numerous people in the general Hershey area. Obviously, the employees of the company have reason to be concerned as they may lose their jobs, but the plan has also angered a group of local elitists who have little interest in The Hershey Company beyond its ability to maintain the bubble of elitism that they have surrounded themselves with. To this egotistical, and apparently uneducated, rabble of lemmings, I have this to offer.

The myth that is generally proposed is a tale of the incredible loyalty that Mr. Hershey had for his community, such overriding loyalty that he would never do anything as harmful and deceitful as outsourcing. This myth is so off base that it is almost not worth debunking at all, but since I'm that kind of jerk, here it goes. 1916. That single year destroys the Hershey elitist myth. In 1916, Milton Hershey took a trip to Cuba. He loved Cuba for its weather, its people, and its vast amounts of cheap sugar. Within six weeks, Hershey had purchased his first sugar plantation in Cuba. Within a decade, Hershey, Cuba consisted of multiple sugar plantations, a railroad, a model town, and an orphans school. Sound familiar? The fact is that Milton Hershey was incredibly loyal. He was incredibly loyal to cheap labor and abundant resources. These were the determining factors in his decision to base his new chocolate factory in Derry Church, PA in 1903. The location was ideal because it combined a large number of milk producing dairy farms, an ample supply of freshwater from a local creek, and a readily available work force. His choice of Derry Church was, wait for it, a business decision. The elitists conveniently forget that Hershey actually started a number of businesses nationwide in Denver, Chicago, and Lancaster (to name a few) before his move to what is now Hershey. I'm sure he had some sentimental attachment to the place where he grew up, but he didn't start his business there until he realized that it could make him money. It is true that Milton Hershey was loyal to his workers and treated them well, because it made good business sense. Happy workers work better. At the end of the day, Milton S. Hershey was a capitalist, he did good things for the community because they were ultimately good for him, which brings us to my next argument.

While we are on the topic of loyalty, lets discuss the local chocolate workers' union. Since Milton Hershey's death there have been strikes and threats of strikes. The most recent strike was over a proposal by The Hershey Company to have employees contribute towards their own health care. Let's consider for a moment the nature of labor unions. The idea of labor unions is socialist at its core, and therefore frequently at odds with capitalist goals. I'm not trying to fault either system here (both are imperfect), but merely pointing out facts that are often overlooked. The modern labor union in fact is seldom true to socialism, but has morphed into a pseudo-socialism. True socialism strives for the good of all. Labor unions strive for the good of all who are members, the rest be damned. So considering the self-centered (dare I say ethnocentric?) nature of our local chocolate workers' union, is it really a surprise that they have found themselves at odds with the, also inherently self-centered, leadership of The Hershey Company? Not at all. Both organizations exist solely for their own benefit. Here's the rub. All of the member of the chocolate workers' union are employed by The Hershey Company. When the employees band to together to make demands that are solely in their own interest, only one thing occurs. Labor is no longer cheap, it is expensive. Not only is it expensive, but the expensive workers are no longer happy because they always want more, and they want it at the expense of the company. In the end, one of the key factors that led Milton Hershey to start is plant in Derry Church has been removed. This leads me to one inevitable conclusion. Not only is The Hershey Company justified in relocating jobs, but doing so does not violate "Mr. Hershey's Dream" because Milton S. Hershey dream of a viable, even dominant company. I will even go so far as to say that Milton Hershey himself would relocate jobs if he were running the company today.

Now for some random thoughts about the relocation plan in general. 1) Relocating jobs is ultimately better for the Hershey community than not relocating jobs. A healthy and viable Hershey Company is the only hope that the Hershey community can hold for the company. Refusing to recognize economic trends and adjust to them would lead the company to is demise, which would also have the Hershey elitists bemoaning corporate mismanagement. 2) In the long run, relocating jobs to Mexico may be good for America. While border security is a popular topic among talking heads these days, few recognize the fact that the best, and most difficult to attain, solution for our border problems is a strong and stable economy in Mexico. Until the benefit of living and working in Mexico outweighs the risk of crossing the border, security will continue to be a problem. When profitable and stable companies do business in Mexico we all move towards that goal. Let's face it, the chocolate that will be made in Mexico is going to be sold in the US. People need to be employed here to sell that chocolate. If The Hershey Company grows, our economy still grows, and it will grow in a manner that more aptly fits our service based economy rather that the production based economy of yesterday. 3) Despite the fact that The Hershey Company will always maintain its headquarters in Hershey, the Hershey community doesn't need them. Organizations like Hershey Entertainment and Resorts, the Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, and the Milton Hershey School are growing by leaps and bounds and combined employ far more people in the area than The Hershey Company does.

So there are my thoughts on that. I really do love the town of Hershey, and I think it has a great legacy. It just annoys me when a bunch of self righteous jerks try to high jack that legacy to boost their own egos.