Madoff made it his life’s work to demonstrate the folly of having insiders within an industry (securities exchange) regulate it. Madoff served with distinction on a number of organizations that purported to be helping make the stock market less scammy – little did they know. And Madoff rubbed shoulders with the rich and famous (whose pockets he was picking, while he was doing it) and politicians (whose pockets he was lining, with the money he picked elsewhere).