“One hundred and fifty years is a really long time. For example, 150 years ago America was only 33 states, Big Ben chimed for the first time in London and outlaw Billy the Kid was just being born. That’s roughly two lifetimes for the average person. Your grandparents probably weren’t even born yet. It’s a long time. So just think of how different the world will be when notorious thief Bernie Madoff’s sentence is finally over,” writes entertainment journalist Germain Lussier on Twirlit.

That fairly puts into perspective the sheer length of defrauder Bernie Madoff’s 150-year prison sentence.

However, when taking into account the US$65 billion he defrauded from thousands -- ranging from rich celebrities to the regular man-on-the-street -- some bloggers felt that the punishment doled out to the 71-year-old was fair.

“(Judge Denny) Chin emphasized the symbolism of the sentence, noting that it was important for three reasons: retribution, deterrence, and as justice for all the victims, who are from all walks of life. He pulled out one victim's letter and noted, 'I was particularly struck by one story: A man invested his life savings; he died of a heart attack two weeks later. His widow went in to see Madoff, and he said, 'Don't worry, your money is safe with me.' And so the widow invested more,” wrote Erica Orden of New York Blogs’ Daily Intel.

She includes Madoff’s widely-reported adress to his victims in court:

"I cannot offer you any excuse for my behavior," he said. "How do you excuse betraying thousands of investors who entrusted you with their life savings? How do you excuse betraying two hundred employees? How do you excuse lying to your brother and two sons? How do you excuse deceiving your wife of 50 years, who stood by you and still stands by you? ... Although I may not have intended to cause harm, I did a great deal of harm ... When I started this problem — this crime — I believed I could get out of it. I made an error of judgment. I could not accept the fact that I failed, I could not accept that mistake. I have left a legacy of shame for my family. People have accused me of being silent and unsympathetic. That's not true. My wife, she cries herself to sleep every night."

Kurt Avish appears to be terribly pleased with the outcome of the case. “Contrary to some country where the head of frauds are always let out free, Bernard Madoff is a good example given by the court!” he wrote.

Still, some bloggers found Madoff’s exemplary punishment and apologies a cold comfort for the victims of his Ponzi scheme.

“Frankly, I doubt that the victims he left defrauded of millions of dollars will feel much comfort from his hollow-sounding apologies while they are in the process of losing their homes, collecting enough food stamps for Hamburger Helper, and checking out the available amenities at their nearest tent city,” writes schmutzie on Mama Pop.

Other bloggers argued that Madoff alone is not to blame as he could not have pulled off this massive fraud without help from a flawed financial sector.

Bock, calling the whole scam a “bottle of smoke”, is one of those who had many questions.

“I think this is a case of monumental denial by one man, but there are other questions I don’t know the answer to.  For instance, did anyone at Chase Bank ask what $170 billion was doing in Madoff’s account?  Did they ask where all this money was coming from?  $170 billion!  What about the low-level staff on the 17th floor where the Ponzi scheme was operating from?  Will their boss, Annette Bongiorno, be charged with anything?

“Did his auditors ever look at his dealings?  Did any regulator ever demand to see details of the investments he was supposed to have made on behalf of his clients?  Did any employee of his firm — a hugely influential company on Wall Street — ever wonder where their wages were coming from?  Did anyone in the New York financial community ever talk to anyone else when it must have been obvious to everyone that the entire thing was a fiction?”

He argued that it takes two hands to clap, and in this case it was the authorities who were not quick enough to pick up on the obvious signs that all was not right with Madoff’s dealings, as well as the various parties who were blinded by the promise of a fast buck.

As Rykirah of Jack & Jill Politics puts it succinctly: “He’s only a cog. I want all the rest of them that helped him pull off his scam.”

As always, there are more cynical bloggers who doubt that Madoff would have to go through his whole sentence.

“He will probably die in jail, but you never know what kind of magic expensive lawyers can work,” writes Drea on the Business Pundit.

Regardless of Madoff's appeal, the damage has been done and the number of years Madoff spends in prison -- whatever that may be -- is only scant replacement for the money lost in the books.