The million fine is effectively an underestimate when the average cost of defending yourself is $1.5 million. And to avoid prejudicing the judge, Aaron was unable to say how bad his problems were, which made asking for assistance hard. Kind of makes a mockery of "the right to a lawyer".
Being a convicted felon is no walk in the park either. That shows up on every job application you submit, and makes it much harder to find jobs for the rest of your life. (Which is something Aaron would have faced, because he'd exhausted his financial resources.)
Im sure having a felony conviction would be terrible for your ordinary person, but with Aaron's resume and public presence I dont think it would be hard for him to find work.
Some felony convictions more than others, having a felony embezzlement conviction for example would certainly make it hard to get a job in accounting. Stock traders who have been convicted of fraud often find it hard to get jobs on Wall Street. But I agree with you that a felony copyright conviction on Aaron's record would probably not be a barrier to him working in a technical capacity.
Being a convicted felon is no walk in the park either. That shows up on every job application you submit, and makes it much harder to find jobs for the rest of your life. (Which is something Aaron would have faced, because he'd exhausted his financial resources.)