Bernard Madoff ran a Ponzi scheme, disguised as a successful Wall Street business, stealing a whopping $50 billion dollars from investors. Today he's under house arrest in his luxury villa, only able to go out to dinner in his local neighborhood (in NY's Financial District) and meet friends in lower Manhattan. A hundred fifty years ago, another, less costly solution would have presented itself.If he was Japanese, he would have had the good grace to step in front of a high speed train or something. However, today, Madoff sits smugly drinking fine wine and eating chateaubriand, thumbing his nose at the world. It's interesting to question whether we're civilized these days or merely stupid.
