When Hugo Chavez first offered free heating oil to New Hampshire for their chilly winters, the state turned him down. Instead of making George Bush look bad, they declined the opportunity to reduce the economic cost for New Hampshire residents during the bitterly cold nights of December through March. Now that heating oil is expected to be nearly double the cost this coming winter, the times, they are a'changin.
From The Huffington Post:
With the state's blessing, New Hampshire residents will be receiving some of the fuel this winter.
New Hampshire becomes the last state in the Northeast to embrace the offer.
"A lot of people have said, `We need help and we value any help we can get,'" said Amy Ignatius, director of New Hampshire's office of energy and planning.
The oil giveaway will be managed by Citizens Energy, a nonprofit organization set up by former Massachusetts Rep. Joseph Kennedy to help the poor stay warm. But the state energy office plans to help Citizens publicize the aid and sign up fuel-oil dealers.
New Hampshire may be one of the more conservative states in the Northeast, but in 2008 and the coming winter of 2009, they aren't stupid. When you have a chance to keep people warm....and alive when the bitter elements of nature arrive, it is far more important to make sure the supply is there and it is affordable than to stand on false pride.
|