Business: Waiting in a Tense Town

Situated on the southern shore of beautiful Lake Winnebago, the Wisconsin city of Fond du Lac (pop. 34,400) appears to be a pleasant haven far removed from the poverty and pain of the nation's recession-struck cities. Peopled mainly by second-and third-generation descendants of German immigrants, the city prides itself on being the home of the thrifty, the hard working and the tidy. Houses are neatly painted, lawns well kept, streets clean. Main Street is currently being resurfaced, and the perky detour sign reads: PARDON OUR PROGRESS.

Appearances deceive. The translation of the town's French...

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