Yes, Oil From Venezuela

This is a no-brainer if there ever was one. You do what you must to help the poor, infirm and elderly and, especially, when that is your very reason for existence;

Every damn year, houses burn to the ground at Christmas because people use electric heaters that are simply not meant to heat whole houses when the temperature is in the 20s and there is a Christmas tree lit as well. There is just no damned excuse for it, in a nation with, supposedly, the strongest economy on Earth.

Every year, someone freezes to death in this super-wealthy nation.

I agree with Kennedy. Why should people not choose life and health for themselves and their children, over George Bush's ego, or Chavez's for that matter, not to mention the greed of American oil companies?

Yes, Oil From Venezuela:

There's been a lot of controversy lately over whether Citizens Energy Corp. should distribute -- and the poor should accept -- discount heating oil from Venezuela while that country is under the leadership of President Hugo Chávez.

But those who have no problem staying warm at night should not condemn others for accepting Venezuela's oil. Rhetoric means little to an elderly woman who has to drag an old cot from her basement to sleep by the warmth of the open kitchen stove or give up food or medicine to pay her heating bill.

For nearly 30 years, Citizens Energy has provided senior citizens and low-income families with affordable fuel oil, gas, electricity, pharmaceutical drugs, and other basic necessities. Citgo Petroleum is a US company owned by the people of Venezuela. The oil it provides to Citizens Energy, the nonprofit that I lead, acts as a safety net for hundreds of thousands.

When our partnership with Citgo was announced last year, US Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman praised the discount program as corporate philanthropy. 'It's a charitable contribution,' he said, 'and I wish more companies did it.' Charities like the Baseball Hall of Fame and the Muscular Dystrophy Association receive generous donations from Citgo, but no one is telling them to decline the gifts.

Meanwhile, oil companies other than Citgo have declined to share their record profits with those who most struggle to keep pace with rising energy costs.