In Land Of Kisses, Hershey Gets Smacked

Unlike Disney World's Main Street, Hershey, Pennsylvania is an authenticplace. One of America's great utopians, Milton Hershey laid out thetown's landscaped streets, created a small shopping district, built a trolleyline, and fashioned distinctive housing for everyone from workers tocorporate executives. The question now being asked throughout much ofPennsylvania is whether the quality of life fostered by good jobs and atruly great place can survive the sale of Hershey Foods to amultinational conglomerate. Pennsylvania Attorney General Mike Fisher doesn't think so and is appearing in a state court on September 3 seeking a restraining order to prevent the sale.In this latest piece from the Elm Street Writers Group, PulitzerPrize-winning journalist Thomas Hylton comments on how the proposed saleof Hershey Foods is roiling a beautiful central Pennsylvania town, andnot just because of impending job losses. Milton Hershey's utopian idealsand effective town design fostered civic strength and a sense of belongingthat is all too rare in America today. Those values are sure to diminishunder new ownership, he argues.