We got back in today. More random thoughts from the road-

Gasoline. Is it possible that US gasoline is less energy dense (measured by fewer km per liter) than Canadian gas? This is not an entirely stupid question, because oxygenating additives such as MTBE and ethanol (which are mandated in at least California) probably reduce the overall energy density in addition to increasing the price. What's the benefit? Less CO and more CO₂ in the exhaust stream. Is it worth it?

Strikes. Strikes are only effective bargaining tools for laborers when the total payroll expense is a small fraction of the total operating expense of the concern. This gives the laborers lots of leverage (literally) in that the employer doesn't have to pay wages but still has to pay the rest of the operating expenses. If wages are say 20% of operating expenses, each day of the strike costs the employer four times as much as it costs the laborers.
This helps explain why programmers don't strike.

Teacher strikes. When teachers go on strike, the school district has to bear the cost of depreciating the school, the textbooks, etc. But the real pressure comes from the costs borne by the parents - missed work days staying at home with the children, windfall daycare costs, etc. The teachers, by striking, force the parents to care for their own children between 8 and 3; and this inconvenience to the parents causes the parents to pressure the district to concede. Not to mention the damage to the economy from lost work days, and the concomitant hit to tax revenues. The solution? Eliminate mandatory schooling. It's the only way to be sure.