Oil & Gas: Refined Conversations.

The cover story for this issue, "No One Likes High Gas Prices," was inspired by this question: Who actually determines the price of gas? In an election year, the answer is obvious--whichever elected official a person doesn't support is clearly responsible for unacceptably high gas prices. For those less interested in blame and genuinely curious about the factors behind the cost of retail gasoline, the article features insights from local gasoline retailers who explain that it's a bit more complicated than the choices of any one individual.

Most conversations about oil and gas, refined or otherwise, require context to fully understand or find a resolution to an issue. "Gasline on Wheels," for example, looks at how natural gas produced as a byproduct on the North Slope will finally get exported to another market. That market is the Interior, so it's not quite as far from the Alaska Arctic as some have envisioned, but it's still a milestone for an industry that's been reinjecting a perfectly good commodity back into the ground for decades. Has the funding for a massive LNG export project finally come through? No. But it may just be...