Difficulties that everyday citizens (and voters) have with evaluating the merits of the most well-known financial services firms are multiplied when the challenge is to form a judgement on the long-term value provided by unknown, entrepreneurial firms who engage in financial transactions that are far removed from their own everyday lives.

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In the judgement of Rakoff, not only does he disagree with the absolute value set by the use of FSG, but he is also known for giving credit, a lesser prison term, to those like Gupta who have shown that they have lived an honorable life up until the time of their offense.

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