Takin' on water..

[JonL]

Originally Posted by piece-itpete

Cost/benefit is the only real workable way to approach safety....

Pete

Which is precisely why we need a backstop of regulation, inspection, and enforcement.

A company's cost/benefit analysis may not align with society's cost/benefit analysis, especially when the risks are off in the future (carcinogens, environmental toxins), or affect predominantly those with little power (children, the poor, elderly, etc.)

I don't buy the libertarian argument that market forces will keep things in check. Maybe after a few dozen people are killed, or there's a rash of birth defects in 2nd generation offspring of users of a product (look up DES and pregnancy)... better to be proactive, IMO.