Oil boomtown: 'We could see 20,000 layoffs by June'

And, should the price of oil go back up sufficient to warrant the rehiring of those 9,000 people, here is what will happen...

The CEO will have his pay package increased some more millions per year. The company will apply for more government subsidy,...no reason to except....hell, why not? Some other executives will get raises. And those 9,000 will feel lucky to get their jobs back, but at somewhat reduced pay.

They will also be able to pick up unemployment, food assistance, education assistance, and tax assistance all paid for by the oil companies and those mean rich CEO's.

People that are laid off don't have to accept the cards they are dealt - there are lots of employment opportunities out there for people.

Tax day is once again arriving, leaving most Americans shaking their heads once again at all the time and effort involved in this annual rite of spring

Similarly, businesses of all stripes — not the least of which is the oil and gas industry — have their day of reckoning with the tax collector.

Contrary to the myth spread by detractors, there are no special subsidies for the industry, which supports more than 9 million jobs.

In fact, one overview from Forbes.com pegged the overall effective tax rates of the Big Three oil and gas firms at 41.5% to 48.3%, depending on the company.

These rates were the highest among the 25 top taxpaying companies (in terms of dollar amounts) that Forbes surveyed.

Others, ranging from the American Petroleum Institute to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, have also put the burden near or above 40%.

Furthermore, even though oil and gas firms report large profits measured in dollars, the margin they get to keep as a percentage of total receipts is much lower than many other industries due to the high cost of investment.

As statistics on Yahoo Finance indicate, the most profitable part of the oil and gas sector — drilling and exploration — stood at an 11.4% margin as of April 29.

More than three dozen other categories — such as brewers (15.2%), personal computers (20.7%) and periodical publishing (21.4%) — were ranked as more profitable.

Despite clear evidence that oil and gas companies are already paying their fair share, the industry remains a favorite whipping boy for politicians in Washington.

Almost every major policy proposal, speech, or campaign rally seems to contain the requisite railing about "Big Oil's special tax breaks."

'Tax Breaks' That Aren't

On further examination, some of these "tax breaks" are widely available and are put in place to take a bit of the pain away from one of the worst corporate tax bites in the world. It's hard to argue energy gets special treatment.

For instance, the domestic production activities deduction, used by numerous major corporations, including GE and Apple, ensures that businesses receive some relief for keeping well-paying jobs here in America.

This is no substitute for a simpler tax system with lower rates, but it's well-intentioned.

Equally puzzling is the reluctance of federal officials to carefully utilize our natural resources on federal lands to increase revenues and job development.

Over the past several years, the Democratic lead Senate has dominated headlines with political posturing over fiscal issues.

Put the crack pipe down.