There is a good argument for why the creator of Silk Road shouldn't go to prison

Ross Ulbricht, the creator of online black market Silk Road, was sentenced to life in prison by a judge in federal court Friday.

Earlier, I argued that if you believe drug kingpins should get harsh sentences, then good-looking computer-and-bitcoin guy Ross Ulbricht deserves a harsh sentence. (I should clarify that my definition of a harsh sentence is, like, any time spent in prison. Life in prison is unconscionable.)

Bloomberg View's Matt Levine disagreed fairly vehemently with my argument.

This is an excerpt from our Twitter conversation about it:

The funny thing about where the conversation ended up is that this is actually not that far off from the larger point I was trying to make. Maybe I just didn't do it very well.

If you don't believe that any drug dealers should go to prison, then Ross Ulbricht shouldn't either.

NOW WATCH: Here's what happens when you get bitten by a black widow

Please enable Javascript to watch this video