>There might be more firms per continental US,
>but fewer firms per globe. McDonalds, Coca Cola and the dreadful mental
>pollution oozing from Hollywood - or its clones - can now be found all
>around the globe, crowding out local products.
But in many cases the "local" products were near-monopolies, protected against competition from imports. Even in the 19th century, the supposed heyday of competitive capitalism, many small firms were local monopolists, and competition didn't ensue until there were real national markets.
Doug