Why regulations matter

Posted on Sunday, September 19, 2010, 10:10 am by GottaLaff
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Today’s letter to the editor from the L.A. Times:

Why regulations matter

Re ” Salmonella found 9 days before recall,” Business, Sept. 15

For those who grouse about too much government regulation, the news shows the horrific results of not enough government regulation.

Because apparently there were no required automatic shutdown devices in the San Bruno conflagration, there were none. The result was hours of death, injury and destruction.

And in the massive egg recall, it appears that the more than 400 positive salmonella tests were not reported to the FDA because the firm apparently was not obligated to do so.

Business cannot be trusted to police itself — profit precedes even the gravest issues of human risk and jeopardy.

Which came first, the chicken or the salmonella?

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  • Mommapolitico

    Well-said. Melissa Harris-Lacewell said on The Rachel Maddow Show the other night that government is there to do what people cannot do well for themselves ( I'm paraphrasing). This sure fits the bill – the greater good: that's why government exists, and regulation makes sure that it happens. Both of your examples are classic cases of the corporate lobby making subtle changes to keep their bottom line strong at the expense of citizens like you and me.

    Great post. Powerful message! Go, P2Blogs!

  • boricua1968

    There are actually two Federal agencies that monitored the egg facility…the U.S.D.A. and the F.D.A. (plus local health authorities) and the over-regulation still did not stop the outbreak. Government regulation is not always the answer. When did the last outbreak of salmonella occur in the egg industry? Seems to me that self-policing works. Maybe we could revert back to having our own chickens in our back yards with no government oversight and see if salmonella cases increase or decrease.