Suicide as self-administered justice: Will it catch on in the West

In the story that won't go away - Madoff's con - questions continue to pile on about the suicide of investor and money-manager Rene-Thierry Magon de la Villenhuchet.  Today, in THE NEW YORK TIMES, an interesting theory is presented. 

TIMES reporter Alex Berenson interviews de al Villenhuchet's brother Bertrand.  As the brother interprets the situation, the suicide represented a classic case of accountability in capitalism.  With risk comes responsibility.  Rene-Thierry Magon might have perceived himself as the one who should shoulder the blame.  And how he did this was not typically western: Taking his own life.

That self-imposed justice system is more prevalent in Asia.  For example, after the melamine contamination of infant formula in China, there was an attempted suicide.  A business leader at one of the dairy companies involved in the fraud, instead of dying, wound up paralyzed.  After the lead contamination crisis in Chinese toys exported to the U.S., suicide was not unexpected.  And it was successful.

Given the grassroots outrage in western nations about the Madoff and other forms of recent financial-market cons, I have to wonder if we will find justice via suicide downright satisfying.  Could be that we will start to encourage it.