The Exorcist V: The devil stole our gas profits
According to an AP item, some gas station owners in Oklahoma are actually dropping Citgo brand gas, blaming slumping sales on Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's statements about President Bush being the devil. Citgo is a state-owned Venezuelan company.Gas distributor Arkansas Valley says that it has seen a 10-15% drop in sales to some Missouri and Oklahoma stations following Chavez's United Nations speech where he called Bush "the devil."
"We started losing business at our stores," company president Weister Smith told the Tulsa World newspaper. "Some of our independent retailers came to us and asked us to make a change away from Citgo. Some of them actually covered up their Citgo signs."
Citgo had already announced plans to stop selling their fuel at 1,900 Citgo-branded stations in 10 states, including Oklahoma, by March. But some independent retailers are afraid consumers will start going elsewhere if they don't speed up the switch to another brand.
However, Duff Thompson, president of Fiesta Mart, dismissed these complaints by explaining that rumors of a boycott of Citgo stations started soon after the speech, leading him to switch brands at eight of the company's Tulsa stations.
"We have some stores showing declines," Thompson said. "But I wouldn't attribute it all to the Chavez situation."
And it's important for consumers to know that boycotting Citgo stations will hurt the station owners more than Chavez or the Venezuelan company. "It's not Citgo they're getting back at," Vance McSpadden, executive director of the Oklahoma Petroleum Association said. "It's that independent businessman who has got his livelihood invested in that business. That's who you're punishing."
[Source: AP via MSNBC]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Greg A. 9:12AM (11/09/2006)
"Citgo is a state-owned Venezuelan company."
Not exactly. Citgo is a U.S. company that is now wholly owned by Venezuela's state-owned petroleum company: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citgo
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alex hofstetter 9:45AM (11/09/2006)
I stopped buying Citgo over a year ago because of Chavez.
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JAG 10:09AM (11/09/2006)
#1 The buck stops in Chavez hand no mater if it is a wholly owned company or whatever. Sorry for the guys that sell Citgo but if Chavez insists on bringing down the US economy, it is a little hard to go buy gas from the guy. I would recommend the independent distributor to look for another brand, Lukoil is looking for distributors, give the ruskies a call.
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Bocephus Billy 8:27AM (9/21/2007)
That's a bad excuse. They're losing sales because they suck, not because of whatever the Venezuelan President has said or done. No one shops there because QuikTrip owns them.
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master of low expectations 10:28AM (11/09/2006)
This is a sad story, I feel for the business man. Some president of another country says what a lot of people think about Bush and the business man is feeling it. I would buy gas there more often because of this.
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J 12:12PM (11/09/2006)
how does citgo stop selling their own gas... ?
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Richard Warren 11:42AM (11/09/2006)
Cities Service used to be a smaller American company, the CITGO name did not come about until 1965. From the early 1900's the company bought and managed lots of distribution and refineries. They also bought a number of engery companies in 1929 to the tune of 50 million dollars. They became a billion dollar company in the 30's with 25,000 employees.
Quick Marts came on line in 1972 in the late 70's they became more involved in LPG discovery and distribution.
In 82 Occidental purchesed them after a failed merger attempt with Gulf Oil. In 83 They CITGO as an independent company is spun-off then bought by Southland Corp (7-11)
In 85 they signed the first crude contracts in Venezuela. The next year 1/2 of CITGO is sold to Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PDVSA), the national oil company of Venezuela.
1990 CITGO becomes wholly owned by PDVSA with its acquisition of the remaining half of the company.
So ends an "American company"
By 1995 72 Percent of the crude oil and feedstocks delivered to CITGO's refineries is from Venezuela.
By 2000 Oswaldo Contreras is named President and CEO of CITGO, replacing Dave Tippeconnic.
Then you get the comments: "Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's statements about President Bush being the devil. Citgo is a state-owned Venezuelan company."
We express "surpirse"
And so it goes for "American companies" The names remain the same, the players and ownership change and most people don't even know, care or are aware.
A distant relative ran the company in the late 50's and early 60's when it was an truly American company.
I feel bad for the retialers that take the brunt of the hit that truly has noting to do with them.
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d 10:46AM (11/09/2006)
#5. So, I guess you're jiggy with Iranian Nuclear weapons and Hamas + Hezbollah in Venezuela.
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XOXO 1:05PM (11/09/2006)
LOL, so he calls Bush the devil and we stop buying their product. But saidies launch planes into buildings, sponsor every single madrasa in the world, have telethons on TV for hamas and hezbollah...........and yet no one boycotts Exxon...which get's most of it's oil from ARAMCO...saudi state owned oil company.
#3 Out of pure curiocity, do you know what the word Russki means? It means Russian in Russian. But you use it as an insult. It's like you insulting a Japanese by calling him JAPANESE.
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master of low expectations 10:55AM (11/09/2006)
#6, that interesting, you took my comment about the plight of the business owner and turned it into my political support for another country. Good for you, you have an excellent imagination.
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NapkinSketch.org 11:00AM (11/09/2006)
I hate Citgo gas. I had two sets of injectors fail on two cars after I filled up with their gas. Sure it might of been a bad tank, but I will never fill up with Citgo ever again.
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mediapusher 4:05AM (11/10/2006)
I find it hard to believe that people wouldn't go to a Citgo to buy gas because of what some floozy Venezuelan president said about our president.People aren't that simple minded are they?
It goes beyond that. Maybe their stores "suck"? Their restrooms aren't clean, their prices aren't competitive?
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Derek 12:30PM (11/09/2006)
Not only does Chavez oppose Bush, but he:
* is supported extensively by Fidel Castro's communist regime
* is attempting to form an anti-"Western" alliance with Iran, Libya, and the authoritarian government of Belarus
* supports communist revolution in Columbia
* selectively abolished property rights in his own country, an important right that we often take for granted
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Mike Hughes 12:34PM (11/09/2006)
Sorry, I don't feel bad for the small retailers. If you product tanks, you take the hit, if it soars, you rake in the dough. That's how it works. In addition, if you, as a business owner are buying a product to sell that supports terrorism, and people stop buying it, in my mind, you deserve it. You can check http://www.terrorfreeoil.com/companies.php if you are interested in avoiding support for terrorism.
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c 12:43PM (11/09/2006)
"It's that independent businessman...."
Independent means you can sell whatever you want- Citgo gas doesn't sell well? Sell another brand that does. No different than any other retailer.
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Mr_Oak 12:46PM (11/09/2006)
I am fence sitting on this one. Don't really care for either cat. Dubya tried to take Chavez's govt. down and failed of course. I can understand Chavez being a wee bit peeved about that. However, his comments at the UN, were not becoming of a statesman.
11/07/06 was a great day in American history, counting the days to the end of this disgraceful, humilitating era. I say the neutering GWB was the beginning of the healing process. We are a resilient people, and something tells me that we are going to be alright.
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Greg 12:59PM (11/09/2006)
What are the alternatives?
Shell Oil: Owned by the Saudi Arabian Gov't that sponsers ANTI CHRISTIAN TEACHINGS in their schools, and Christianity is OUTLAWED in their Country.
Exxon: Funny, they still have yet to pay the fines that were issued to them from the EXXON VALDEZ disaster.. how long ago was that?
LukOil: Russian owned, the country that is building the Atomic Reactors for Iran... nuff said.
BP / Amoco: Let's see... they merged, they cut staff, their oil refinery in Texas Keeps blowing up... they refuse to build more refineries.... please... the British are famous for off shore tax deferred schemes and Amoco, formerly AMERICAN gas stations.... are now avoiding paying taxes to the US by teaming up with BP.
Chevron: how many Gasoline Refineries have these guy's developed over the last 10 years ? I bet the answer is ZERO.
Citgo: Chavez called Bush the Devil.... well I have been saying Bush is a Modern Day Damien well before Chavez stated it.
Venuzuala: Chavez ensures everyone can afford Gasoline... that is why it is 12 Cents a gallon for the people of Venuzuala.
John Kerry: During the second Presidential Debate in 04, Kerry through out threats to Venezuala... out of no where.... why?
April 15th 2000: Then Energy Secretary Bill Richardson (now the Gov of New Mexico) was featured on CNBC.... he had just got back from Saudi Arabia after asking them, on orders from Bill Clinton and the world bank to ''''CUT OIL PRODUCTION''''... at the time oil was historically low, around 15 - 18 dollars a barrel... and Bill Richardson asked the Saudi's to cut production to get the price of oil up another $10 a barrel... so the extra funds could be used by Venezuala to pay it's debt back to the world bank.
Now the question to ask is... has Venezuala been paying back their debt to the World Bank?
More imporantly... do the people of the United States know that the World Bank manipulated the price of Oil, so countries could make more money?
The interview of Bill Richardson explaining the World Bank / USA intervention to drive up the price of oil was broadcasted live on CNBC.. again, on April 15th 2000.
I was in shock watching it.. for it was indepth... and IGNORED by the so called liberal media and right wing media.
Now Americans'.. with their household appliances filled with stuff made in Communist China (who told our US ambassador to SHUT UP when asked why they continue to build up their Navy) are mad that Bush was called the Devil by Chavez... please... give me a break.
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High Def 5:30PM (11/09/2006)
#15 Healing process? So the fact that in every state Gay marriage was defeated but will be imposed on public by liberal judges is healing? Increasing taxes is healing? Legalizing pot is healing? Or getting Hillary re-elected who accused Republicans of plotting Monica Lewinski into White House is healing? Stopping death penalty is healing? Or as the case with you, caring more for a dictator simply because he opposes Bush, where do you stand on the whole Iran thing by the way? They hate BUSH, what about hezbollah, come on nasrala hates Bush or how you say it, Dumbuya?
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JON 1:04PM (11/09/2006)
11/07/06 was also a great day for Osama bin Lauden,Taliban,Terrorists,Facist dictactors,Islamic extremists,Appeasers...
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Greg A. 1:46PM (11/09/2006)
#3 "#1 The buck stops in Chavez hand no mater if it is a wholly owned company or whatever."
I wasn't claiming otherwise. I just wanted to point out yet another instance of poor wording on Autoblog.
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