*Sentence out of whack

It turns out that Bernie Madoff received only the fourth-longest sentence for a white-collar defendant, according to Forbes. His 150 years was the maximum allowable for his crimes, but Sholam Weiss was put away for 845 years in connection with the collapse of National Heritage Life Insurance. The Bureau of Prisons lists his release date as Nov. 23, 2754. His co-defendant, Keith Pound, was sentenced by the same judge to 740 years; he died in prison at 51. Among other huge sentences:

--Norman Schmidt, 74, is serving a 330-year sentence handed down in 2008 and is currently at a high-security federal prison in Beaumont, Texas. He ran a "high yield" investment scheme.

--Frederick Brandau, 64, was convicted and sentenced to 55 years in 2001 for a $117 million Ponzi scheme through a viatical settlement firm he ran in Florida. The conviction and sentence have since been upheld.

--Charles Lewis, 73, was right-hand-man to Norman Schmidt and got 30 years for his role in the $40 million Ponzi scheme.

--Eduardo Masferrer, 60, a formerly high-flying Miami banker, was sentenced to 30 years in 2006 for his role in an accounting fraud that led regulators to seize his Hamilton Bank in 2002.

Hmmm. Not to question in the slightest Madoff deserving life in prison, but I have to wonder what good is served by these over-the-top sentences. Putting someone away for 845 years? Or even 150 years? Madoff's lawyers say there was a sense of "mob vengeance" in the proceedings, and they might have a point. I mean, the guy is going to die in prison, no matter if it's 30 years or 1,000 years. Besides, what about all the all Ponzi schemers who were put away for minimal jail time - or not prosecuted at all because the case wasn't strong enough? Sorry, the proportionality here just seems way out of whack.

*Six out of 10 respondents in a WSJ online query say 150 years is the right amount. Another 23.5 percent says it was not enough and 15.7 percent says it was too much.