Posted on 09/28/2006 3:05:11 PM PDT by Kitten Festival
Energy: President Bush may have been loath to reply to last week's U.N. speech by the sulfur-tongued Hugo Chavez, but the American public wasn't. Its boycott of Venezuela's Citgo gas has set off alarms in Caracas.
The big blow came Wednesday when 7-Eleven announced it would not renew a 20-year contract with Venezuelan-owned gas supplier Citgo. Instead, it would start selling its own brand, to be supplied by three U.S. oil firms.
7-Eleven admitted Chavez was a public relations disaster for the firm after his United Nations speech, denouncing President Bush as "the devil," and affected its decision.
"Regardless of politics, we sympathize with many Americans' concern over derogatory comments about our country and its leadership recently made by Venezuela's president," said a 7-Eleven spokeswoman, who'd obviously been hearing from the public. "Chavez's position and statements over the past year or so didn't tempt us to stay with Citgo."
That's about 2,100 gas stations off the books for Citgo, cutting total outlets to 11,000.
The rest are likely to remain targets of the infuriated American public's wildcat boycott of Venezuelan crude. If so, it would be the first time in modern memory a spontaneous consumer boycott had such a commercial impact.
Watching from Caracas, Rafael Ramirez, Venezuela's energy minister, said he was stunned at the "brusque" tone of 7-Eleven's announcement, calling it "bitter to swallow."
He blamed sentiment in "middle America," not quite grasping that Chavez's words have consequences in the country that is Venezuela's leading oil customer.
(Excerpt) Read more at investors.com ...
So does 7-11....
Absolutely, thanks 7-11!
Is there a list of companies that use CITGO? I'd really like to boycott them, but I don't know how to find out.
oh thank heaven for seven eleven!
Let's see how Chavez's communist utopia goes now.
This is a most excellent development. If only more American businesses would act this way.
Hey, Hugo, maybe you ought to stop reading the New York Times. Just because the Times hates this country doesn't mean the rest of us do.
He thinks we appreciated Hugo's brusque comments about our President??
Chavez totally minunderstands the United States, and needs some "sensitivity training".
El Gordo has a bright future as a speech writer for Dr. Demento Dean.
El Gordo has a bright future as a speech writer for Dr. Demento Dean.
-PJ
Gonna have to find me a 7-11 and buy me a freedom slurpee.
Hey, Chubby. KMA!!
Maybe "ugo should check with Jock Chirac about the purchasing power of Americans when they lose a taste for something.
I'm not sure what it means, but I've noticed a number of Citgo stations that are closed down over the past month. I don't know if it's the Chavez angle, or just the usual course of business.
But I'm sure the Citgo boycott will continue to spread.
Venezuela will still be able to sell its oil, because it's a world market, but presumably they will lose something over this boycott, and their shipping expenses will be higher if it doesn't go to the U.S.
Here in Northern Illinois, 7-11 is not a big player, but Road Ranger IS. They dropped Citgo about a month ago at all outlets.
Chavez's comments are the least of it.
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