> But regulation hasn’t stopped the [pension] plans from being underfunded, in part because the regulators, who worried that companies would use pensions as a s

> But regulation hasn’t stopped the [pension] plans from being underfunded, in part because the regulators, who worried that companies would use pensions as a slush fund to smooth their earnings, kept them from overcontributing in flusher times. Why would this sort of smoothing need to be regulated away?