the goddess anna on April 30, 2008 at 7:31 PM

Of course Common Dreams loves Hugo. It doesn’t matter in this case, since Hugo doesn’t own the independently owned and operated Citgo franchises. All he does is supply them with gas, which they don’t even make money on. Gas stations make their money on purchases inside the store.

I don’t think we’ll be buying Citgo anytime soon anyway – it’s still one of the more expensive stations around here. I’m off to do more research though.

Okay, so I may be wrong. I thought Venezuela was less popular than Canada and all.

the goddess anna on April 30, 2008 at 7:18 PM

Let’s put it this way – all that oil we’re getting from Venezuela is not going to service contracts with Citgo franchises.

James on April 30, 2008 at 2:30 PM

I see. If you ever buy your own Mom & Pop business and it happens to be nationalized by some insane Marxist dictator, you’ll just take the losses because it’s the right thing to do, even though it is largely an empty gesture. I salute your patriotic self-sacrifice.

the goddess anna on April 30, 2008 at 2:45 PM

Um, 7eleven switched from Citgo gas to their own.

True, and good for them, but they were an entire chain, not a stand alone gas station owner.

I don’t feel that much sympathy for them on this – it’s business, and they’re peddling a product from an unpopular source.

Any other “unpopular sources” that bother you on this list? You might have to give up buying oil altogether.

This is my point with Romeo13. Gasoline will sell at near market prices regardless of costs or boycotts.

That’s like saying that a Mc Donalds franchise could become a Burger King with no cost to the franchise owner.

I didn’t say they could do it ‘with no cost.’ I said they saw no problem with being nationalized Venezuelan puppets and made no effort to correct the situation.

Moreover, I don’t believe that Citgo charges a franchisee fee, so if owners wanted to switch they’d have to come up with big bucks to pay for the change over, not to mention the equipment changes.

Buy Danish on April 30, 2008 at 2:21 PM

Ah, so they wouldn’t be out a single penny of their own money if they had severed their relationship with Chavez-Citgo and found employment elsewhere? Gotcha. Compelling sympathy ahoy.

James on April 30, 2008 at 1:58 PM

That’s like saying that a Mc Donalds franchise could become a Burger King with no cost to the franchise owner.

Moreover, I don’t believe that Citgo charges a franchisee fee, so if owners wanted to switch they’d have to come up with big bucks to pay for the change over, not to mention the equipment changes.

Citgo moms and pops, however, can go piss up a rope.

Citgo is run by Venezuela (Chavez). Notice that they conveniently changed the name to “Valero”?

Dr.Cwac.Cwac on April 30, 2008 at 11:07 AM

.
No, no no! Valero is a US company, primarily a refiner, who has recently begun retailing. They have bought some stations from citgo, which helps out the gas station owners – they should be recommended, not boycotted.

Chavez took over Citgo when he nationalized the oil companies with what were formerly private corporations.

Buy Danish on April 30, 2008 at 1:50 PM

Yeah, that’s the point. But when Chavez took over Citgo, mom and pop simply welcomed their new Venezuelan overlord instead of seeking to convert their franchise to another gas company. No thanks…not the kind of people I want to support.

Perhaps all of those people should have been more careful when choosing their business partners. I certainly won’t be guilt-tripped into supporting Chavez.

James on April 30, 2008 at 12:32 PM

Yeah, well we get oil from Saudi Arabia. You want to boycott all oil?

Chavez took over Citgo when he nationalized the oil companies with what were formerly private corporations. Many of these franchises pre-date his rise to power. Should they just lose their life’s investments as a gesture of solidarity against Chavez?

Sometimes standing on principle ends up being a meaningless gesture that does more harm than good. In this case you’re hurting the mom and pop store owner (and the 4,000 Americans who work for Citgo in Texas) while doing little if anything to hurt Chavez.

eanax on April 30, 2008 at 12:14 PM

So you claim you understand this, yet you are blaming the government for the bubble?

Citgo is run by Venezuela (Chavez). Notice that they conveniently changed the name to “Valero”?

Dr.Cwac.Cwac on April 30, 2008 at 11:07 AM

You got it all wrong, man. Citgo never changed its name. It still has refineries and sations around.

Valero is a different petrochemical company. It’s based in San Antonio, and has the most refineries in the country. It bought a huge number of Citgo and Diamond Shamrock statios in recent years.

Citgo is run by Venezuela (Chavez). Notice that they conveniently changed the name to “Valero”?

Dr.Cwac.Cwac on April 30, 2008 at 11:07 AM

Hence my boycot. I didn’t know about Valero, though…I’ve only seen one station with that name, and I wasn’t tempted to make a purchase there anyway.

The problem is that by boycotting Citgo you’re mostly hurting the small business owners who own Citgo franchises. Citgo is also based in Houston and has 4,000 American employees.

Buy Danish on April 30, 2008 at 11:27 AM

Perhaps all of those people should have been more careful when choosing their business partners. I certainly won’t be guilt-tripped into supporting Chavez.

Maybe the truckers should just target a few Congressional Democrats… and a few environmentalist whackos for their wrath.

Go check what Professor Reynolds posted this morning. The Alberta drilling is being stopped cold by the same people who say to care about the environment.

I think the truckers and the American people better have a “DC oil party” before long.

You’re right, nothing is new.

Yep, I am right. Nothing is new when it comes to human behavior.

People are still just as stupid.

Yes, people continue to make stupid choices and engage in stupid behavior because our biology really hasn’t changed much since the dawn of civilization. And all of this happens despite the fact that we’ve created tools to make our lives more comfortable and we’ve learned much about the world we live in.

The thing is, as long as you sell before the bubble pops, you can make quite a bit of money.

blink on April 30, 2008 at 11:39 AM

Wow! Now, THAT’S breaking news! Someone, anyone, alert the media! Blank, blanc, or whatever his name is, has revealed an astonishing discovery!

That’s what the ENTIRE commodities market is about. Placing bets now based on current events and what is thought could happen in the future.

Supply and demand. If there’s a strong demand and the supply is unstable or limited, of course the the price for that commodity is going to go up even more due to the unstable/limited supply. And the speculators are trying to jump on the gravy train. Wow. What’s new? Nothing…

eanax on April 29, 2008 at 7:40 PM

eanax, were you buying tulip bulbs in 1636?

You’re right, nothing is new. People are still just as stupid. The thing is, as long as you sell before the bubble pops, you can make quite a bit of money. Mo-mo’s know this. Mo-mo’s live this. Mo-mo’s get rich like this.

You don’t know what a mo-mo is.

If it costs $1.00 to make gas, and your selling it for $3.00 because others in the market are… then you are helping to support an overpriced market.

If THEY kept their prices down, then they would get a larger market share…

Romeo13 on April 29, 2008 at 6:35 PM

These statements prove that you aren’t smart enough to intelligently engage in this discussion.

The “market share” you mentioned isn’t limited by pricing, it’s limited by capacity!!!!!!!

THIS IS IS IS IS MY POINT!

Dr.Cwac.Cwac on April 30, 2008 at 11:07 AM

The problem is that by boycotting Citgo you’re mostly hurting the small business owners who own Citgo franchises. Citgo is also based in Houston and has 4,000 American employees.

It’s not as cut and dried as it sounds and certainly stopping imports from Venezuela would not help the current situation.

I’ve been boycotting Citgo for years.

James on April 30, 2008 at 7:22 AM

Citgo is run by Venezuela (Chavez). Notice that they conveniently changed the name to “Valero”?

Johan Klaus on April 30, 2008 at 1:27 AM

The situation in NOLA is bit different because entire neighborhoods were wiped out and the pace of rebuilding has been slow. Like the price of oil, it is a supply and demand situation.

That being said, people with the mindset of holier-than-thou Highhopes are a serious threat to our freedom and prosperity. Instead of pushing Congress to open up oil fields and allow new refineries to be built (while developing new technologies for the future), they blame the American people for not squeezing their families into sardine cans and, beyond all reason, assert that people commute long and grueling hours to work as a “lifestyle choice”.

People are smart enough to carpool or use park and rides if those options are available to them, and indeed many people are using those options, in addition to cutting down on unnecessary car trips. However, it is ludicrous to claim that everyone can do it, or that these conservation methods provide a meaningful solution.

It’s a huge distraction from reaching workable solutions and it plays right into Al Gore’s and Nancy Pelosi’s hand.

All you need is a national boycott of one oil company per month. I mean a total boycott. BOYCOTT ONE A MONTH!

sonnyspats1 on April 29, 2008 at 6:08 PM

I’ve been boycotting Citgo for years.