Spot on. Until fines are levied as a non-negotiable percentage of global annual revenue—just like the EU attempted with GDPR and the DMA—these payouts are literally baked into their operational budgets as an expected line item. If breaking the law nets $5 billion and the fine is $500 million, that’s not a penalty; that’s a 90% profit margin on corporate crime.

Punchy & Cynical: "Fines aren’t punishments at that scale—they’re just the cost of doing business. When a penalty is wiped out in less than a single day’s revenue, it’s not a deterrent, it’s just a line item on an expense report.