“The bigger and better question may not be whether insider trading is rampant but whether corporate corruption in general is rampant; whether ethical bankruptcy is on the rise; whether corrupt business models are becoming more common.”
— Preet Bharara, Deputy United States Attorney, Southern District of New York
My informal theory is that a small percentage of people are reliably criminal. Strong laws and regulations, with substantial punishment for violations, are made necessary by these people. Such laws also keep the rest of from thinking too much.
As my dad once said, the test of a good law is that it keeps an honest man honest and a dishonest man in jail.