Were the Fukushima Meltdowns Caused by Regulations?

According to The Wall Street Journal:

TOKYO—The operator of Japan's stricken nuclear plant let pressure in one reactor climb far beyond the level the facility was designed to withstand, a decision that may have worsened the world's most serious nuclear accident in a quarter century.

Japanese nuclear-power companies are so leery of releasing radiation into the atmosphere that their rules call for waiting much longer and obtaining many more sign-offs than U.S. counterparts before venting the potentially dangerous steam that builds up as reactors overheat, a Wall Street Journal inquiry found.

In other words, regulations written by nervous ninnies afraid of an infinitesimal release of radioactive material caused a far worse problem.

I've found a surprising number of problems are aggravated by the people claiming to be most “concerned” about them. We can add nuclear meltdowns to the list.