It was rather late in the production schedule for this month's issue, when I was made aware that Editorial Director Joe Carbonara, for whom I have the utmost love and respect, had commissioned an unscheduled piece of editorial on the predicted impact of a Trump presidency on the foodservice equipment and supplies industry. I wasn't thrilled ... for a couple of reasons.
Number one, we are entering a period of hyper-partisanship in politics and taking sides or appearing to take sides is a fool's game for a publication based on objectivity that operates far outside the political realm. Number two, in the age of Twitter, events change from moment to moment and committing any commentary to print that will appear weeks in the future seems equally risky.
Having said all that, I agree with Joe that there are some stories that are just too big to ignore and we see it as our duty to report on changes that we see impacting the industry at large. With the understanding that a lot can happen before you have a chance to read this, Dana Tanyeri's story does, I think, a terrific job of even-handedly laying out what we think we know at this time about a Trump presidency and what it may mean for the E&S industry.
I will leave it to you, the reader, to decide whether it fits better near the Growth Chains section or the When to Replace section.
Perhaps, by the time the foodservice equipment and supplies industry gathers in Orlando for The NAFEM Show Feb. 9-11, we will have a clearer understanding of what lies before us.
