Gas-station owner dies after fast against oil giants

poor guy. i guess he was pretty serious about the fasting, but at some point, you have to eat, eh?


Mehdi Shahbazi was a man who championed the consumer and listened to his own counsel as he waged a years-long battle against Exxon Oil and then Shell Oil.

The conflicts cost him his eight service stations - from Salinas to San Jose - his home, his health and his life.

Shahbazi, 65, died Wednesday at Stanford Hospital due to a fast of more than four months to protest the power of oil companies - and as gas prices approach record highs in California.