It literal is yes. At least part of it. How else can he judge what is legal or not?

A policeman's job isn't to distinguish definitely legal from questionably legal.

Their job is to find some portion of things that are definitely illegal. They don't need to have comprehensive knowledge of the law, just enough to know that the things they are enforcing against are definitely illegal.

If you're asking the police whether something you're doing is definitely legal, you're asking the wrong person.

It's part of his job, otherwise how can he do it?

In this case, from what I've seen, SEC can not even say what is "definietly illegal" like you say. So they can not be trusted

In the US, the police have no requirement, legally or otherwise, to hold your hand in avoiding a crime. Police can literally advise you how to commit a crime, and it is on you to not do so. The onus is on you to not be a criminal. Sometimes that means being extra careful. Sometimes that means hiring an expert lawyer and getting them to come up with a regime, and in fact that's like their whole job other than litigation. But your expert lawyer can be wrong.

Coinbase hired expensive lawyers who told them "we think if you do it this way it's not a crime", the SEC disagrees, and it's up to the courts who is correct.

Arguably the SEC doesn't actually make the rules, and is only tasked with enforcing them, and thus they can't actually give advice on the law because their interpretation of the law might not be correct!

You are mixing up the general moral of someone making a law vs some specific country though.

anyhow, then they can of course give you advice what NOT to do, and will do. Otherwise, as i said, how can they enforce something unless they know about it? I don't even get your point, it honestly sound quite stupid ?

>Arguably the SEC doesn't actually make the rules,

Sure, but they should at least tell which rules they follow? I don't get how so many people on HN seem to favour SEC here, a community of programmers who use logic at work

I understand your logic, and some officers try their best to know the law, and some are very familiar with the law, but they are most definitely not accountable to knowing the law and they are most definitely not responsible for educating you on it. Further, they have authority to lie to you about the law.