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In fact, oil companies paid three times more in taxes than they earned in profits during those 28 years.

This statement is not entirely correct. oil companies were assessed three times more in taxes than they earned in profits but, like any corporation, they passed the cost of that tax onto the consumer in the form of higher prices.

1] Remarkably, there are some in this country who think “big oil” is not paying its fair share and that a windfall profits tax is needed to punish the oil industry for their “excessive” profits.

A windfall profit tax will punish the consumer. The corporations will simply raise Thor prices to cover the cost of the new tax.

The question then becomes how can prices be lowered? The answer, at least in part, is already before Congress. A bill currently before the House The Fair Tax Act H.R.25 and the Senate version(S.25) will replace our current federal income tax with a Consumption/National Retail Sales tax.

How can this lower prices? Currently any good is taxed at each stage of production. These hidden/embedded taxes known as value added taxes(VATS) raise the cost of all goods. The Fair Tax Act will abolish business to business taxesFair Tax FAQ#2. Companies will be forced to pass on the cost savings in the form of lower prices due to competition.

How can The Fair Tax help on the state level? States can choose to conform to The Fair Tax Fair Tax FAQ#25. By doing so states will realize The Fair Tax will have a much broader and more stable tax base than the income tax because the tax will be collected with every purchase. This is true even when people are unemployed. No tax can be collected from a person's income who is not working. The broader tax base will result in states raising the same amount of state sales tax with a lower tax rate. Administrative costs will be considerably lower. Only one additional line will be necessary on the state sales tax form to collect the federal consumption tax. Conforming states will receive will be paid a fee for collecting the tax. Visit theAmericans For Fair Taxation website for more information.

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This statement is not entirely correct. oil companies were assessed three times more in taxes than they earned in profits but, like any corporation, they passed the cost of that tax onto the consumer in the form of higher prices.
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Yes, this is the real truth about corporations. The money to pay any taxes comes either from the customer through prices that are higher than otherwise, the shareholder in the form of an assessment, by depleting corporate assets, or by the corporation borrowing from some third party.

If I was king, and I am unlikely to ever be, I would end this fiction and just require corporations to pass profits directly to each shareholder in proportion to the number of shares. I would also abolish the income tax, but not to worry as each shareholder would pay his Fair Tax share as he conducted his personal business.