“No gain without pain”; “High rewards require great risks, and low risks/no
risks produce low rewards”; “The time to buy is when the blood is running in
the streets.”

These bits of conventional wisdom apply to sport and adventures in financial
markets. Today we are grateful to Janet Albrechtsen in the Oz for applying these same
ideas to life in general.

Our
editor’s contribution to this debate was made some time ago: “We
strongly advocate that much greater attention be given to the use of incentives
and the graduated response in devising regulations which are least costly and
least intrusive. The example we give of the former is the US legislation for a
capital-based policy of prompt corrective action.

“Our example of the latter is a
lower tax rate for companies which conform to higher standards of disclosure.
Other ‘softer’ forms of regulation – including supervision by private or
official agencies – need to be encouraged. At best such agencies reinforce
ethical standards. In contrast, too much black-letter law can encourage the
erosion of ethical standards.”

Read more here.