Ties with government a good thing...

Pasadena-based may not be recession-proof, but it sure is proving that some companies can survive a weak economy, when the conditions are right.

In reporting on Tetratech's stellar first-quarter results, it struck me that there are some companies that can do well -- perhaps even better -- when the economy goes south.

Other firms' gloom is others' brightness.

It's as if this company makes money on the conditions. In this case, Tetratech is benefitting from military base closures and reallignments, the end of wars, infrastructure spending. As the government shifts to fixing the economy, here is a company well-positioned to help in that fixing.

But it's a in a good position, regardless of whether times or good bad.

Of course, it helps that a lot of Tetratech's contracts are with the government.

If they dependent soley on the private sector, I wonder if they'd being do so well.