Perspective. 9/11 insured loss estimate was $40.2 billion

That is according to 2002 estimates from the Insurance Information Institute.

This puts the Bernie Madoff fraud into some perspective. Note I don't say "alleged" after our touchy-touchy American media fashion -- old Bernie has admitted it, and put a $50 billion number on it. While it is not clear there was ever really that much money there, that is the working number we have.

Whatever the number, it's a big one, of the order of the insured financial loss from the 9/11 attacks.

So what's up with the way our system seems to take the Madoff very lightly, while we went to war over 9/11? Why is this guy not down at Guantanamo getting waterboarded, instead of watching his life unfold on the big screen while he sits at home under house arrest?

I also have to wonder how much dollar value one of New York's minority citizens would have to steal from a corner store uptown from the Madoffs to be remanded to Riker's Island. It's probably less than $1 billion.

What do you think?