 One might wonder how a retributivist can be so concerned with disproportionately punishing while also tolerating the known infliction of excessive suffering (see  section 4.3.3).  But there is an important difference between the two: an agent inflicting punishment may come to know that a particular individual is suffering more than most would from a particular punishment, but she should see that as just an unfortunate side effect of inflicting a proportional punishment; she must aim, however, at inflicting only a proportional punishment.