Let’s step back for a moment from Congress’ fantasy that higher taxes on oil companies will lower gas prices, and look at a few facts about the oil and gas industry. Perhaps this will enlighten a few elected officials and calm some of the hysteria.     Increased imports and consolidation of smaller warehouses into larger facilities may be drivers behind the recent trend in companies requiring more trailer parking at their mega-distribution centers.     Organized labor sees this election cycle as its best opportunity ever to strike right-to-work provisions from the Taft-Hartley Act. Right to Work (RTW) “secures the right of employees to decide for themselves whether or not to join or financially support a union,” according to the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation.     The Hydra was a nine-headed beast in Greek mythology. Hercules was tasked with killing the monster, only to find that when he cut off one head, two grew in its place.     Unionized workers earn 11.9% more, on average, than non-union workers with similar characteristics, according to research reported by the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington, D.C. Adding a typical benefits load of 30%, the union premium grows to 15.5%.     The U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform (ILR) has published its annual study on the legal climate in each state, and the findings are, well, what you’d probably expect. The survey of 957 general counsel and senior corporate litigators shows that only 3% view the fairness and reasonableness of the state court liability system in the U.S. as “excellent,” while 55% characterize it as “fair” or “poor.”     Health care regulators seem to have taken a page out of Henry Ford’s book when it comes to state-level health care insurance coverage mandates for small groups and individuals…consumers can buy anything they want, as long as it includes the coverage mandates state insurance regulators dictate.