DuPont sold its share in Aramid - the end of 2 century military history 

Genesis 3:19 ("You are dust, and to dust you shall return").

DuPont de Nemours Inc (the “DuPont”), once one of the greatest chemical companies in the world, was founded over 200 years ago by a French immigrant, Éleuthère Irénée du Pont, who found his refuge in the US (fleeing the French Revolution). Thanks to him, the US has built up its military muscles thanks to gunpowder. Yet it looks like 2 centuries later, the company is destined to lose its past glory. At least in the military segment. 

Such a remark is rather objective when considering the recent sale of Aramid for $1.8 bln. For those of us who don’t know, Aramid is the producer of Kevlar, a magic and light material, which is used by policemen and military troops across the world to save lives (bullets, grenades, etc.). BTW, Nomex, another material that has been sold as a part of the same deal, helps withstand fire of up to 370 °C. Although both materials were developed in the 1960s, they are still at the top of the world in terms of their applicability, with millions of people using them daily. So why does DuPont sell its flagship product and decide to take some chips from the table? 

There could be several reasons, including that DuPont was actually told to leave the table because it’s no longer a local American producer, hence, the risks of taking over the know-how could become real if competing nations. Or DuPont, with all its distribution power and broad (hundreds) product portfolio, targeting many markets and product verticals (i.e., electronics, biosciences, mobility, water, you name it), can’t be that impolite and aggressive (as many government clients demand). Or the US government decided to exert direct control over the crucial material as it is facing the spiraling conflicts across the world. In any way, it feels more like a Godfather’s principle of “making an offer that one can’t resist” being implemented, instead of an actual business reason behind the sale. The money paid isn’t high enough for DuPont bosses to be happy with the deal. 

Anyway, we may soon see many more friendly and diversified incumbers loosing their best-in-class stars, for the larger good. And this is what brings us further from the world’s peace.