Rules Rule!

Yes, we all have complaints on our government's official decisions that are supposed to make it harder for humans to hurt ourselves. Yes, some of these rules and regulations are a bit mundane or stupid. Yes, they are a necessary evil. Yes, it could be worse. Yes, you could live in a communist country that is failing its people.

Things went terribly wrong in one communist country via the department that regulates food, food products, and medicines. The Head took bribes to allow approval of medicines that may not work or be safe and to allow tainted products into the market. Other things that went terribly wrong:

***Over 18 hospitals and 30 pharmacies in one region were found to have fake batches of albumin used for patients suffering from serious conditions like shock and severe burns. These IVs are also used in open-heart surgery. (But at a whopping 300% profit for the fakes and drastic supply shortages it is easy to see how they got into the market so easily.)

***Malnutrition killed at least 13 babies from products labeled "baby milk" that had no such thing inside.

***Tainted toothpaste was exported to Panama and has been cited as the source of several deaths.

***Pet food was exported containing an ingredient used to kill rats and caused an enormous recall after several pets died. (Do not come between an heiress and her poodle. There will be hell to pay!)

***Exported anti-malarial drugs were either totally fake or contaminated. Considering malaria kills several people per day in the world it is a shame that many more paid for these "drugs" and got to die from malaria anyway.

The government punishment for the Head was death by gunshot. I think it is fitting, maybe a little extreme. A better punishment would be treatment with each fake or contaminated substance he let through, douse him with sugar water and make him dance in the mosquito infested wetlands. Agh, maybe just let the victims' families take turns punishing him. I am sure they would be gentle.....

Moral of the story: Rules are not perfect in their inception or enforcement but they were meant to help you out!