Master Index of Archived Threads


Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

Kong76 Jun 14 2010 03:55 PM

Is anyone here actively avoiding BP? I hope no one has/had stock, your retirement plans likely do or did. My guess is they'll go bankrupt. Don't get me wrong for what follows, it pains me to see that footage every day of that oil and what the potential destruction it has for the gulf and beyond. Someone in our area turned a run down old Gulf station into a spankin' new BP mini mart last year. It's clean, bright, and they sell cheap beer at all hours of the night. We got a BP Visa rewards card since we get our gas there ... you should see the looks we get when we whip that thing out to pay for dinner! My guess is we'll be getting a Shell card in the mail in the next couple of months. The gas station/mini mart is a franchise owned by a family who has lived in our area forever. Sales are down, down a lot ... not buying gas there or a twelve pack of swill is not punishing BP it's likely punishing your neighbor and fellow tax payer. Valad, stop the oil leak NOW!!!

metirish Jun 14 2010 04:25 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

Not avoiding it although there are not any in this area that I can think of.....the ones right near me are not BP. Still boycotting them is going to hurt a franchise owner and not Tony fucking Heyward or BP itself....and yeah some expert I read last week says they will go Chapter 11 if for nothing else to avoid paying out claims.

Kong76 Jun 14 2010 04:52 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

They'll go bankrupt because all their money is going to be gone or owed to someone else. There will be nothing left and they won't rise from the dead because they avoided any liability by going to court believe me.

metsmarathon Jun 14 2010 06:02 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

i stopped going to bp because their pumps by me are just painfully slow. but i always liked amoco, and then liked using bp. not sure why. now i go shell almost all the time.

themetfairy Jun 14 2010 06:44 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

I go to my local Sunoco. They aren't thieves like the guys at Valero who are always shortchanging people on cash purchases, charging extra for credit card purchases, etc., and the guys at Sunoco will clean your windshield while the car is gassing up. I don't think there is a BP nearby.

Kong76 Jun 14 2010 07:35 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

In the interest of full disclosure, I own stock in Royal Dutch Petroleum. I hope they find a way to plug that bastard hole and soon ... it's becoming scary shit, what if they can't?

Willets Point Jun 14 2010 07:59 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

I think we should all go to our local BP and take a leak.

Kong76 Jun 14 2010 08:08 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

I knew you'd post something funny and quickly.

Willets Point Jun 14 2010 08:09 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

It's a one-liner that's been stuck in my head for weeks. I've just been waiting for a set-up. Thanks.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Jun 14 2010 08:10 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

Most of your local service station owners are just local biznessmen, franchisees or whatever. Now, I understand that a lot of them liked BP because they are known for having good logistics (deliveries & such), a pretty advanced c-store operation for a gas merchant and until recently, good brand equity with their whole "we love the environment" message, as laughable as that is now. BP opened a very clean station near me, right across from a dirtier Hess without a nice c-store, and until recently they seemed to be getting away with charging 4 or 5+ cents a gallon more as a result. One thing their whole image campaign allowed them to do was not display their prices as prominently as the typical competitor for gas. If the stations are to be punished now it's only because they are also victims of BP cutting corners in safety that led to this disaster. It's known for instance corporate was lobbying for fewer regulations and less oversight as a means to save $$, then invest toward things like franchisee support and TV commercials, etc.

Fman99 Jun 14 2010 08:13 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

There are no BP's along my normal commute. Hence this is a non-issue for me.

Edgy DC Jun 14 2010 08:18 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

For some of you non-issuers, how about an if-then answer? I don't own a car (my missus does), but have no problem avoiding a bad player. I realize decent and relatively innocent people lose, but others who hitched their wagons to more responsible players are rewarded.

metirish Jun 14 2010 08:21 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

"I've not got much experience at plugging holes , I can't remember the last one I did plug"

DocTee Jun 14 2010 08:42 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

Costco, baby, all the way. Failing that, Safeway (a supermarket chain). Can't remember the last time I patronized a "big oil" station-- the ones I mention here are cheaper, by far.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Jun 14 2010 08:49 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

I'd definitely go to Hess sooner than BP now, though BP still has the best coin-op air-pump and vacuum in the hood. I have more trouble focusing my anger on these indy businessmen vs. the suits and really, the whole industry. Regarding Doc's comment -- the reason Costco in particular is "cheaper" is that their superior volume allows 'em to buy gas everyday, but price against the locals who might buy their gas only once or twice a week. So when gas prices are falling, they're raking in superior profits while tricking you into thinking you're getting a great deal. You get a better deal at Costco while gas prices are rising (just try and avoid going inside the store, they make that up there).

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jun 14 2010 08:58 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

Since we don't drive all that often, but for trips out of the city to visit family or go shopping/road tripping, we don't fill up all that much. When we do, we pretty much buy where it's cheap, which doesn't tend to be BP. (Delta? Raceway?)

Zvon Jun 14 2010 09:09 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

This runs just a lil to long for me but I still got a chuckle. [url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AAa0gd7ClM&feature=player_embedded

Nymr83 Jun 14 2010 09:51 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

Regarding Doc's comment -- the reason Costco in particular is "cheaper" is that their superior volume allows 'em to buy gas everyday, but price against the locals who might buy their gas only once or twice a week. So when gas prices are falling, they're raking in superior profits while tricking you into thinking you're getting a great deal. You get a better deal at Costco while gas prices are rising (just try and avoid going inside the store, they make that up there). its also members-only, so they make a membership fee upfront before you get access to the cheaper gas. likely worth it if you drive for a living, commute an hour+ by car every day, or already shop at costco, but i'm not sure if it works out when you are joining just for gas as a sometimes driver.

Ashie62 Jun 14 2010 11:10 PM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

I use Delta with their Dunkin Donuts. Plenty of lonely BP stations along Rt. 46

TransMonk Jun 15 2010 09:44 AM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

My local convenience store was a mom and pop place up until about 5 years ago when they turned into a BP station. I so rarely drive that I don't buy gas there...but I'll still stop in every once in a while for water/milk/toilet paper. There is another mom and pop gas station about twice as far from our house as the BP (still only about a mile away) that offers the best gas prices in town. We stop there to save the cash (it's cheap enough that cars often wait in line to gas up). A car hasn't been my primary mode of transportation in more than ten years. Through necessity, then frugality, then practicality I have gotten to the point where I only find myself handling a gas pump a few times a year. It has never been due to some sort of environmentally conscious effort, but at times like these, I am certainly glad I am not sucking on the teet.

soupcan Jun 15 2010 10:07 AM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

I got a BP and Shell on opposite corners one half mile from the house. A Texaco is another half mile away and a Exxon/Mobil is a half mile the other way. I used to go to Exxon/Mobil until there was some groundswell of support to boycott them for price-fixing or some such nonsense. That was fine - BP was closer. So I've been going to BP (which used to be an Amoco). Recently, I've been turning left instead of right to go to the Shell station instead of the BP, but its just silly. I'm punishing the small businessman and just as Exxon/Mobil and BP are companies that seemingly put profits over everything else, I'm sure Shell and Texaco and Gulf and whatever other oil companies are out there, do as well. You need gas, what are you gonna do? Lesser of two evils and whatnot.

Kong76 Jun 20 2010 08:05 AM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

From FOX If it's any consolation to the residents of the Gulf of Mexico, BP CEO Tony Hayward didn't win the yacht race he attended this weekend. His 52-foot yacht, named "Bob," finished fourth in its class. Nonetheless, the decision by Hayward to return to England to attend JP Morgan's annual race around the Isle of Wight is the latest "PR gaffe" by the head of the oil giant blamed for the largest environmental disaster in U.S. history. "I think we can all conclude that Tony Hayward is not going to have a second career in PR consulting," White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel told ABC's "This Week."

DocTee Jun 20 2010 08:09 AM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

As one Gulf State Representative said, he should donate that yacht to oil spill cleanup efforts.

metirish Jun 20 2010 08:29 AM Re: Boycotting BP -- this should be good!

Well as Tony said previously " it's a big ocean" , plenty of room for oil disasters and yacht races.