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?