This from the AFA:
Venezuela government is sole owner of Citgo gasoline company
Venezuela Dictator Hugo Chavez has vowed to bring down the U.S. government. Chavez, president of Venezuela, told a TV audience: “Enough of imperialist aggression; we must tell the world: down with the U.S. empire. We have to bury imperialism this century.”The guest on his television program, beamed across Venezuela, was Cindy Sheehan, the antiwar activist. Chavez recently had as his guest Harry Belafonte, who called President Bush “the greatest terrorist in the world.”
Chavez is pushing a socialist revolution and has a close alliance with Cuban dictator Fidel Castro.
Regardless of your feelings about the war in Iraq, the issue here is that we have a socialist dictator vowing to bring down the government of the U.S. And he is using our money to achieve his goal!
The Venezuela government, run by dictator Chavez, is the sole owner of Citgo gas company. Sales of products at Citgo stations send money back to Chavez to help him in his vow to bring down our government.
Take Action
Send an email to Chavez and to Citgo that you will not be shopping at a Citgo station. Why should U.S. citizens who love freedom be financing a dictator who has vowed to take down our government?Click Here To Send Your Email Letter Now!
Very important. Please forward this to your friends and family. Most of them don’t know that Citgo is owned by the Venezuela government.
Thanks for caring enough to get involved.
Popularity: 2% [?]
It’s a no-win situation… First, Chavez is not a dictator: He’s one of the few democratically elected leaders of major oil producing nations. Second, there are precious few oil-rich nations whose governments are any more friendly to our government than Venezuelas. As long as we continue our dependence on oil, we’re going to be financing bad people who despise our government – if not also our people… If you boycott CitGo, then you’ll just funnel that much more money to countries like Iran.
The answer is going to have to mean getting serious about finding better ways to power our economy, and better ways to conserve energy.
Yeah you are right, it appears AFA was wrong on the dictator part. But I think they are right on the citgo thing. There’s no reason to send the Chavez government any more money than we have to.
There’s got to be a “us friendly oil company list” somewhere online. Let me know if you find one first.
My quick google last night and this morning didn’t turn anything up. Of course the Sauds are friendly with our government, but the profits from their oil companies go to people who are not.
I mostly think about ways to strike the root of the problem. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that major oil producers are, by and large, unfriendly to the U.S. ‘Course, right now, anti-Americanism is on the upswing oil-producer or not, but it seems particularly so with those who produce oil. It may have to do with the way oil prices are set by the dollar standard. Or, it may have to do with our overall foreign policy, especially in relation to oil-rich nations. Or, it may have something to do with a feeling among oil-producers that they control the greatest energy resources, but can’t manage to convert that into political power. Not sure… But figuring out the reason behind it and doing whatever we can to mitigate it while remaining within our principles would be good. And, of course, we don’t do ourselves any favors by continuing our massive oil consumption. If we produce most of our energy domestically, then we aren’t forced to buy it from people who dislike us, or our government.
I must disagree with this story, which appears to have been spread by a Christian Taliban site originally. (probably run by Robertson)
Victor Chavez has been made a demon, but quite the contrary, he offered to the State of Maine , discounted oil for the winter for poor and elderly, because of the price of oil and the severe cold.
Just because George Bush can not manipulate Chavez, nor get his country to sell him all the oil he wants, if not reason to malign him.
See Bangor News:
State, tribes, Citgo sign fuel deals; Heating oil delivered to needy Mainers
Friday, January 13, 2006 – Bangor Daily News
AFA is not run by Robertson. It’s run by Wildmon. Yes, they are different.
“Christian Taliban?” That’s an interesting term. What is Christian Taliban?
And are you saying Citgo lowering heating oil prices makes Chavez a good guy or less a socialist?