We have had two cases this week that show clearly what regulators really do with their time.
The first is the fiasco of Russian athletes using enhancements to improve their performance. Several news outlets have said this was intentional, state sponsored, and the FSB participated. OF course there is already someone who is supposed to be looking into this kind of thing, and taking blood samples of athletes before and after they participate. The regulation of that kind of thing does not seem to have gone well, because nobody in that chain of people found anything worth bringing up.
The second is the purchase of airtime by companies tethered to China which then broadcast news using the Chinese version of stories. The FCC is supposed to looking at things like that, but didn't seem to notice [until a reporter pointed it out] that it was going on. The Russian news story was broken by journalists in Germany last summer.
Both of these stories illustrate why China and Russia want to control their press. These kinds of stories disrupt the harmony in the universe. The Russians say the versions of stories coming out are "confusing" and prove nothing. The Chinese say the same about the Reuters investigation that prompted FCC to finally open up a probe. This is bad for the world, causing people to have to worry about things that should not be of notice to a public at ease with their situation and happy with their government.
When you start looking into it, regulators seldom do. They publish reports, engage in a few of their responsibilities, and take home a paycheck that makes all of us feel cheated. Government regulators do a lousy job and still get paid for it. We saw the same with the VA giving bonuses to all those people who engaged in dubious behavior. Nobody is paying attention.
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