A 24 year old spammer was fined $10,000,000 today for sending inordinate amounts of email and selling off revealed personal information.  Ryan Pityalak, once regarded as the world's fourth worst spammer, was quoted as saying "This has been a really good learning experience for me. I felt good that I was able to cooperate.  The settlement has been a bit harsh.  I'm happy to move on with my life."

Is $10,000,000 a harsh penalty for being the catalyst in an identity theft operation?  I can't think of a penalty harsh enough.  American law generally affords many criminals lighter penalties than some other countries around the world.  In a situation like this where an international crime is committed against people in various nations, I wonder what might have happened if he were prosecuted in another country?  Chop off his hands?  Salt mines?  Turkish prison?  Caning?  Public stoning?