As a public administrator, I can tell you that there's always some reason for an extra rule, procedure, required form, or regulation, and it's usually to hedge bets against people who cut corners (ie, some speculated or actual idiot ruins things for everyone else). I generally also dislike the idea of over-regulation and "ass-covering" paperwork, and just punishing the idiots is an alternative, but what do you do in an FDA-less America when some farmer is selling 'mad cow burgers' and tens of thousands are infected before the market "corrects" the situation?
-- Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community <[email protected]> Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org
