Who knew? From the WSJ: "The latest spasm of violence in the Middle East has sent crude-oil prices climbing in recent weeks, a familiar action-reaction that frequently has proved to be a drag on economic growth. *** Yet that dynamic figures to ease in coming months and years as U.S. dependence on Mideast oil is, by a variety of measures, at a generational nadir. *** 'The U.S. is less vulnerable to oil shocks,' said Brian Levitt, senior economist at OppenheimerFunds. 'Over time, there's going to be less and less vulnerability to events in the Middle East.'" Why? In large part due to the tremendous increase in domestic oil production resulting in large part from the use of horizontal drilling and multi-stage hydraulic fracturing.