An excellent job of illustrating the failure of the Republican administration and Congress to adequately protect this country from this particular form of economic terrorism, Kim.

As Hurricanes Katrina and Rita demonstrated, any disruption to the nation's refining industry instantly increases gas prices. What if Chávez, who periodically threatens to curtail oil shipments to the USA, closed Citgo's refineries?

"He'd only have to do that for 90 days, and he'd destroy our economy," worries Matthew Simmons, a prominent energy investment banker. "He actually has our livelihood in his hands."

Imagine that - here we are at the mercy of a mad jackass in Venezuela -- and the greatest concern out of Washington is our ability to torture detainees...

Who voted for the clowns that are running this country of ours, and how far up their *ss can those voters bury their heads before they realize the mistake they've made, and do better in the next election?

Vote conservative if you wish, that's your right, but quit electing morons who are putting this country in this kind of jeopardy, please!

Oh, and I haven't read Chavez's comments, but I am not aware of how -- as Kim puts it - Chavez "insulted America" in addition to calling Bush the Devil.

Did he really insult America, or is that just another lie?

He wouldn't have 90 days.

Within 72 hours of any shinola of that nature out of Chavez all of Venezuela's assets in this country would be frozen and the government would take over those refineries. Venezuela won't see those assets again until ol' Hugo is dead and gone.

Sure, ol' Hugo can go crying to his Democratic buddies all he wants and they will not help him. Why? Because I do not think they are that stupid. The backlash against them would be so great they would all have to wear neckbraces. The MSM might try to spin the situation but it will have no effect. The other assorted LLL's, the Democratic nutroots and the race/identity organizations will foam at the mouth and try to pull their usual stuff but it will have little or no effect.

Of course ol' Hugo can get some commie lawyers in California to file a lawsuit in the nutty Ninth where he might win only to have it thrown out on appeal.

Lee, just because you can't do two things at one time doesn't mean the administration can't. Go screw yourself you pompous ass.

I won't buy Citgo gas but sure do enjoy the big bucks I make when working in Vevezuela that comes out of Chavez's oil money profits. :-) The US really needs to build more Refineries and open up more fields to become less dependant on these Asshats for oil!

JM

I did not expect this from any Pol in Boston, as a Red Sox fan, I wouldnt mind seeing the Citgo landmark come down:

http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=158718

"Within 72 hours of any shinola of that nature out of Chavez all of Venezuela's assets in this country would be frozen and the government would take over those refineries. Venezuela won't see those assets again until ol' Hugo is dead and gone."

So, Nahanni, you are saying this blogpost is Bullsh*t -- and we really aren't at the mercy of Chavez? Why would Kim lie about something as important as this?

but quit electing morons who are putting this country in this kind of jeopardy, please!

A good start would be voting Kennedy, Kerry, Pelosi, Boxer, Harkin, Murtha, Schumer, Clinton, Jackson-Lee, Rangel, Cantwell and "Bagdad" Jim McDermott out of office.

Lee,

I have a portable 7 ton chainfall I'd be willing to loan you to pull your head out of your *ss! You really don't have a clue do you? There is no way Chavez would cut off the US supply of oil. Its called money to stay in power you dummy. Where did you get your incredible base of political knowledge, Berkeley? You really need to take off those multi colored sun glasses Kerry gave you from the 60s.

JM

I find it difficult to believe that taking "6%" of the refineries offline for "90 days" would "cripple" our economy. Katrina did worse for longer and we're recovering rather well.

I doubt the FedGov would take over their assets, but I am certain that we would see a bill that would limit / prohibit such important assets from being wholly-owned by certain foreign countries like this. iirc, there was a similar measure considered in the Dubai Ports situation.

And, Lee - Kim didn't "lie". She quoted an investment banker who holds that opinion. Your attempt to twist plainly visible information is borderline trolling. Trolling is not welcome here.

So you say Kim quoted a lying investment banker? Why would she choose to post lies, Jon? It wouldn't have anything to do with the upcoming elections now, would it?

Lee:

Imagine that - here we are at the mercy of a mad jackass in Venezuela

I know, and it's the Republicans fault, because if Democrats were in power we wouldn't need gas or oil, we would frolick to work throwing flowers and riding rainbows.

Let me break it down for you...if people like Chavez and Ahmadinejad actually like us...we're doing something wrong.

You make the most assanine statements.

Let's get back to an adult discussion, shall we? Name calling is both contraproductive AND juvenile.

Boycotting Citgo gas is a good start to teaching Chavez that violating the basic rules of good manners for guests in someone's house is not acceptable. But then, he probably got the idea that it was okay for him to defame and insult the President of the United States from his many confabs with his beloved nutroots friend Cindy Sheehan, don't you think?

What the bomb throwers in this country do not seem to realize is that other nations do not understand the nature of our republic and honestly do believe the indiscriminate words of some overzealous and indiscriminate opponents of our President (as opposed to honest critics - and there is a vast difference) represent the views of all Americans. Certainly in their dictatorships, the kinds of speech we hear daily from the left in this country about the President of the United States would result in pretty dire consequences anywhere else in the world. As in a bullet to the head.

While I do NOT believe dissent should be stifled, the KINDS OF WORDS used should be considered carefully, lest we give a further false impression of our nation to the rest of the world.

"While I do NOT believe dissent should be stifled, the KINDS OF WORDS used should be considered carefully,..."

Nice sentiment there, but if you back up a couple of sentences, you find this...

"What the bomb throwers in this country do not seem to realize..."

Bomnb throwers? People who disagree and say so in strong words are "bomb throwers" -- lol! I suggest you practice what you preach regarding your choice of words! Discussing honest disagreement among Americans in violent terms such as yours only gives aid to the enemy - they think there really is strong, violent opposition -- when in fact it is just good old American democracy in action.

You convervatives are waaaay over the top in the use of unkind words. Practice what you preach, and quit giving false hope to our enemies, Gayle.

apparently no one here knows how the oil markets work. boycotting citgo gas stations will in no way decrease venezuela's profits as long as gas demand remains unchanged. it will only hurt the station owners. it's called fungibility.

it's the same idea that if everyone boycotted exxon, that would drive prices down, which is completely untrue.

here a quick explanation. boycotting citgo (or exxon) means that other stations sell more gas. however, this increased demand at these stations means that the suppliers have to go elsewhere to find sufficient supplies. who might have extra supplies? why that would be citgo since everyone is boycotting them.

just because you go to a citgo or exxon station does not mean you are getting citgo or exxon gas. it just means they have a contract with that company to be supplied with gas in times of tight supply ahead of independent stations who buy on the spot market.

so go ahead and boycott citgo if you want, it don't make a lick of difference as long as you don't decrease demand.

Yeah, screw Citgo and Venezuela! I'll fill mah' tank wit sum' Ay-Rab Oil!! Yeeeah!!

sean,

Excellent points and all very true.

Chavez had it easy. All he did was combine the degrading childish (or mentally retarded) remarks of the democrats and spew them out. At least he knows where he and the a-hole from Iran are going. Hope he likes the smell of sulfur because if President Bush is the devil they are facing a raging fire and will be fed in an inch at a time starting at the toes.
Anyone notice that some of the democrats have realized they have went too far with the slime and are trying to slither out of it like the snakes they are.

Seriously...who really cares what Chavez says?
His petty school yard name calling means nothing..
Now Alphonso Johnson getting busted at HUD deserves attention...

I understand sean's points, but effecting a change at a local level is something that should be persued. If the local Citgo station has a prolonged decrease in sales, it is likely to cause him to change to another distributor. Applied across a wide swath of US cities, that *will* have an adverse effect on the profitability of Citgo as a company.

Granted, we are not decreasing our demand for oil or gasoline. And it is likely that a Citgo refinery produces the gas used by other stations, so they are probably not going to be effected much.

But there are many facets to the situation and this is one where a change can be made by voting with the wallet.

If there is decreased demand for Citgo-branded stations, there will be fewer Citgo-branded stations. That's how capitalism works.

Bunker, I heard about the Boston Citgo sign kerfuffle this morning on my way to work. It was funny to hear people whining about how the sign couldn't be taken down and replaced with an American flag because it "has been there for so many years" or because "it's a tradition." I guarantee you that if you tried to support keeping a sign with the Confederate flag using those arguments, these same people would screech like banshees.

In any event, I think the sign will stay up. Why? It's Massachusetts. Most people here are like Lee, and they think one of two things -

1. No American flag. We wouldn't want people to think we support Chimpy McBushitler!

2. We agree with Chavez. Viva!!

If there is decreased demand for Citgo-branded stations, there will be fewer Citgo-branded stations. That's how capitalism works.
Jon

True, but chavez will still be making a handy profit because citgo will still be refining the oil to gas and just sell it to these other branded stations. the only way to decrease chavez's and OPEC's profits is to decrease demand. that's why I bike (bus in the winter) to work and fill up my tank about once a month. I realize not everyone has this option, but we certainly have the option to demand more fuel efficient cars. This is the least we can sacrifice to help the war effort and wean our dependence on oil, considering how little Bush has asked of the general public.

Oh CMD, how sad to see you lying about me - saying I agree with Chavez - total falsehood. I labeled Chavez a troll when he made those remarks about Bush being the Devil.

Are all conservatives liars by nature, or just the ones 'round here?

I agree with you sean in that he will still make money on the oil and refining - *someone* will buy his oil and the gas refined in his plants. But - like you - most people want to help in any way they can. And if putting a hurt on the "Citgo Franchise" of gas stations in the US does that, I'm for it.

I don't have the option of biking - my daughter cares for horses. Horses need trailers and trailers need trucks. But - through your choices that consume less energy - people like me have less cost for fuel. So, I appreciate your choices.

Lee: Anyone who calls the President of the United States "Hitler" as is regularly done by the leftwing in this country, deserves the appellation of "bomb thrower" in my opinion - an opinion to which I am fully entitled!

Does this mean we can refer to Citgo now as Shitgo?

Hitler was morally bankrupt, but competent...ruthless and evil, but fairly well organized.

Bush just isn't a very competent -- despite the MBA. He's also not evil or morally bankrupt, just not a very good manager. Fortunately for him, he has a legion of incredibly faithful supporters.

Gayle - that's just another lie. I fact-checked claims about the left's use of "Bushitler" a few months ago, for example, after numerous comments like yours were made here at Wizbang. I posted the results here as well. Turned out the only users of "Bushitler" at Wizbang were conservative commenters who were using it to talk down about liberals.

So I went to KOS and did a search there - and I only found one use, and it was satire if I recall correctly.

Your continued false claims are only aiding and abetting the enemies of our country. The degree of discord you and people like you claim against the left is false, and it only empowers nutcakes like Chavez.

I ask again that you and conservatives stop encouraging the enemies of our country to believe there is violent discord and disagreement in our nation. There isn't - it's just Democracy in action. It's a shame some people don't recognize that for what it is - but apprently lying about it instead serves some political purpose for Republicans... gee - that's a surprise.

Well, this series of exchanges reminds me of why I don't read the comments here at Wizbang.

In this case a single a single troll refers to the author and many other commenters as "liar", then proceeds to continually attempt to drag the conversation off-topic.

Kevin, I hope that you take the time to gain control of the comments. I learn a lot from the articles posted, but for now I'm going to return to posting comments elsewhere and pasting snippets I've gleaned from here. I love to discuss and debate, but I'm not willing to wade through trolls.

Yes, it's a fine line and a difficult situation to manage. But if a site is willing to enable comments, then it is something that needs to be done. :/

Lee,

The Bush-Hitler-ism is an abstraction and a cynical exaggeration...but it's not an untrue analysis of what many on the far left have said. You'll see it all over moonbat signs, you may hear it escape the lips of both extreme liberals and fascist dictators alike.

The comparison has been made enough that it's been picked up by the right.

Now I know you knew that, but since you're just trolling for a response from Gayle rather than participating in honest debate, I figured I take a minute or two to put out there.

The other two paragraphs of your post aren't worth commenting on; they're just weak attempt at turning conservative arguments against conservatives.

Jon,

Lee is famous for that. Other than him and the occasional visitor, we seem to have some good discussions with varying shades of the political spectrum participating.

Americans not buying their gas from Citgo will not cause any significant impact on Chavez's oil profits. He has been meeting with China regarding major investments by them in Venezuela's infrastructure. As in large power plants and other future needs of his country. The Chinese are also involved (big time) in marketing future suppliers of crude oil for their explosive growth (Thanks to their goods flooding the US market creating Billions of dollars in their economy). Venezuela is ramping up their production to meet the future needs of China for crude. This plan is staged for the next five years. If we stop buying their oil, no problem. China will quickly move in and take all the oil we aren't buying from them on a permanent basis. Venezuela is planning on buying Chinese built tankers to transport the crude to China in the near future. So, it really won't hurt Chavez if you boycott Citgo. It will more than likely hurt Americans at the pumps. If Venezuela stops supplying the US with oil the powers that be will parade an oil shortage and there go the crude prices again. But of course, your opinion and milage may vary.

JM

You all suck. I will boycott BP and Exxon Mobil only fill up my gas tank at CITGO. Chavez is also going to give 40% off to low-income families. And HUGO CHAVEZ did not insult Americans but George Bush-the tyrant and dictator.

"And HUGO CHAVEZ did not insult Americans but George Bush-the tyrant and dictator."

Yeah, that's what I thought too - but I figured I would give the conservatives the benefit of the doubt and ask, and to not just leap to the assumption that Kim's statement that Chavez insulted America was a lie.

That'll teach me.

jack,

Do you seriously think that Chavez will give 40% off to American low income families. ROTFL! Do you believe Citgo stations will lose money to give you cheap gas. The actual profit at the gas pump is less than 10%. It appears Libs believe the gas just magically goes from the ground to the pump. PDVSA does sell very cheap gas (at a big loss ) in Venezuela. And 75% of "his" people buying the gas are the dirt poor group that elected him to be the dictator. In Venezuela gas is less that 20 cents a gallon. So I would suggest you move down there and take Lee with you. :-) You may not enjoy the country as much as Cindy though.

JM