We don't expect to find investment advice from opinion columns, but New York Times columnist Frank Rich unleashed a quartet to those willing to read between the lines in his recent piece "Herbert Hoover Lives."

Here's the money quote (no pun intended) from the theater critic turned political pundit: "What are Americans still buying? Big Macs, Campbell's soup, Hershey's chocolate and Spam -- the four food groups of the apocalypse."

"The silver lining to the market decline is that it has created tremendous buying opportunities," says Gregory Dorsey.

The contributing editor to Stephen Leeb's Income Performance Report adds, "Consumer staples are set to sail through a tough economy." Here, he takes a look at PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP) and Heinz (NYSE: HNZ).

"From Gatorade and Tropicana to Frito-Lay and Quaker Foods, PepsiCo has built a $42 billion global empire marketing drinks and snacks that consumers are likely to buy through thick and thin making PepsiCo the classic consumer staples company.

"Over the next several years, we expect PepsiCo's earnings to grow at an average annual rate of 10% or more. The stock currently pays a 3.0% yield, and management has raised the dividend for more than 30 years in a row.

"The company has a strong balance sheet with low long-term debt. Best of all, Pepsi stock now trades at its lowest valuation (about 13 times next year's expected earnings) since 1990, making it a compelling buy now.

This post is part of our Big Company, Small Town series, featuring large companies and the small towns in which they are headquartered.

As with many interstate travelers, the Cracker Barrel is a regular meal stop during my family vacations. Partaking of some comfort food, perusing the country store for toys and foodstuffs we recall from our childhoods, and resting for a spell in the rocking chairs can be just the thing after long hours on the road.

But also like many travelers, I'm sure, I had no idea that the Cracker Barrel came from the small town of Lebanon (pronounced LEB-nun by many natives), Tennessee, the county seat of Wilson County, east of Nashville.

A local spring was the chosen site for the town, and a nearby grove of red cedars inspired the town's biblical name. The town was incorporated in 1819, and Cumberland University opened its doors there in 1842. The town square -- which today features antique and gift shops that bring tourists from far and wide -- was the site of a Civil War battle in 1862. Some 130 confederate soldiers are buried at Lebanon's historic Cedar Grove Cemetery.

The town expanded once the Tennessee and Pacific Railroad came to town after the Civil War, followed by the Lebanon Woolen Mills and the Gulf Red Cedar Company in 1908. General George Patton's tanks passed through the town on their way to Europe, and after World War II, the town expanded again, with the opening of Tennessee's first industrial park, which is the site of Cracker Barrel's corporate headquarters.