Another Version

I didn't know that about the sweet and sour oil, but I have heard another explanation from a local guy who is a retired systems analyst:  Most of our domestic oil is produced in the West, while most of its customers are in the East.  The most economical way to transport oil is by pipeline, and the second most economical way is by ship.  There are no east-west pipelines crossing the Rocky Mountains, and modern oil tankers are too big to fit through the Panama Canal, meaning they would have to make the long and perilous journey around Cape Horn to deliver western oil to the East Coast.  It's easier to sell our western oil to Japan and then use the money to buy replacement oil from the Mideast.  Like most stories, there is probably some truth to this one, but that doesn't explain why they want to build a pipeline from Canada to Texas when an east-west pipeline is what's really needed.

I didn't know that about the swine either, but I don't think our local deli carries $40 ham sandwiches, so that high end pork must be going somewhere else in the country.  Maybe the oil barons are buying it with the money they save by not having to ship all that western oil to the East.  You think?

I have heard about the apparent migration of various species from south to north over the years, not to be confused with the annual migrations both ways that take place in the spring and fall.  There's probably some truth to that one too because we never used to have possums this far north, but now we do.  On the other hand, we have seen whitetail deer extend their range from north to south and coyotes extend their range from west to east in our lifetimes.  Go figure!