Citgone: West Howard Ave gas station now Valero
Andisheh Nouraee | July 1, 2011Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez has had a rough couple of weeks.
First, he had to fly to Cuba for cancer surgery. (You mean 11 years in power and countless billions in oil revenue, he hasn’t built a decent cancer hospital in Caracas? ¡Qué lástima!). Then, he lost his country’s retail foothold in the tiny yanqui paraíso we call Decatur.
All of which is an unnecessarily confusing way of saying that the Citgo on West Howard Avenue at Atlanta Avenue is changing its retail affiliation. Yesterday, a small construction crew began removing the station’s Citgo markings and replacing them with Valero decor.
Citgoing, going gone.
A better blogger might have walked across the street to ask the station’s owners why they’re leaving Citgo to become a Valero, but why risk getting hit by a car when I can settle for a stupid Hugo Chávez reference?
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Check it out on google: Valero IS STILL a Citgo. It’s a case of changing their
brand name, only.
Thanks for the heads up. I’ll continue to boycott.
Sorry, but Valero is a US publicly owned company based in San Antonio http://www.valero.com. There was one posting on one blog four years ago claiming that it was a Citgo front, but that has been thoroughly refuted. It’s true that some Citgo stations have been re-branded, but that is a decision a distributor makes. There are also instances of Sunoco stations be re-branded as Valero as well.
Sweet. I’ll now become a customer. Thanks for “the rest of the story” Paul.
Leave Thinking Man to investigate a story? Bah!
Thank you! I was wondering what was going on with the new colors.
I wish the new company would paint a mural on the back of the building so that it stops getting tagged. I know the owner must not like having to paint it.
Sincere question for people who have boycotted Citgo because its parent corp is Venezuela’s national oil company: which gas stations do you shop from and why?
Excellent question, Andy. Since much of the petroleum we consume comes from countries that are unfriendly to the U.S., I have often wondered why many choose to single out Chavez and Venezuela.
Feeling like you have control over your own life doesn’t require accuracy or truth.
I only buy Canadian gas and Mexican Coca-Cola. It’s how I roll.
Chavez is the most vocal in his hatred so I try to return the favor. I appreciate the fact that the rest of the US hating countries at least try to pretend otherwise. You may counter that Chavez is at least more honest with his hatred, and you may have a point…but I would ignore it.
I don’t care where the gas comes from. Just clean up the place! the store and the grounds are disgustng
You read my mind, Token. Even if every bad thing you think of Chavez/Venezuela is true, putting your dollar in his pocket is still less bad than putting it in the pockets if other oil rich dictatorships/monarchies/autocracies.
It’s a moot point regardless because petroleum is a fungible resource. It doesn’t matter who you purchase it from. The aggregate high demand for petroleum is what keeps $ flowing to oil producers, not your retail preferences. When you boycott a gas station in metro Atlanta, the only person who loses money is the hardworking station owner you’ve chosen not to buy beer and beef jerky from. If you want to keep your dollars away from unsavory international actors, drive less, buy a more fuel efficient car, support mass transit initiatives in your community, bike, etc
Yes, what you said. The oil the U.S. imports from Venezuela (4th largest source to our demand) goes to refineries who refine the oil into gasoline and petrochemical products. The gasoline and petrochemicals are distributed throughout the market from the refineries. The gasoline coming from the refineries is NOT branded but sold to any gasoline dealers/stores who buy it. So, no matter what brand name is on the station where you refill, you are probably using Venezuelan oil in the mix. And, as Andisheh says, most of the countries exporting oil to the U.S. don’t like this country and could halt exports at any time, leaving us waaaaaay short of consumer demands. Best solution is to get off petroleum dependency as soon as possible, utilizing renewable energy sources.
Bike!
The US produces around 50% of it own oil and another 30% comes from Canada and Mexico …Depending on who’s numbers you believe… The other 20% comes from the Evil Places like: Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Venezuela, Angola, Norway, etc ….just sayin’.
gotta watch for those Norwegian terrorists, spiking beer with lutefisk and running reindeer through the public squares…
And they are all so blond and shifty looking!