The Portland Water Bureau has posted a picture of a 19-year-old graphic designer on its Web site to shame him for putting soap in a downtown fountain.

We think the shaming is more spectacle than something that will prevent Portland fountains from getting soaped.

Police had ticketed Nolan Cunningham for misdemeanor criminal mischief after security guards saw him put dish soap in the Ira Keller Fountain, according to The Oregonian. The fountain is big — 75,000 gallons — and frequently gets soaped.

“We’re naming names – and showing his picture as a deterrent to other people who may think that shutting down a major downtown attraction for a couple of days is fun. We are working with law enforcement and the courts, but we also want to let people know that these kinds of actions will be made public,” the water bureau says on its Web site.

Shutting down the fountain is a major nuisance for the water bureau. It takes a day to drain and clean the fountain. And it costs $1,000.

Shame as punishment has been undergoing a revival. A federal judge ordered a mail thief to serve time in prison and stand outside the San Francisco Post Office he stole from for 8 hours wearing a sandwich board that said: “I stole mail. This is my punishment.” A sneaky purse snatcher in California was directed to wear tap shoes in public.

There are many other examples, especially for drunk drivers. In some cases convicted drunk drivers have been ordered to have special license plates, pick up trash wearing signs identifying them as a drunk driver or even carry a picture of a victim they killed in their wallet. Many newspapers, including this one, print the names of people charged with DUII.

Does public shaming work?

There is reason to believe it does. Most people do fear ridicule. These sorts of punishments can humiliate and stigmatize. They can be an alternative that means less crowding in a jail.

Cunningham, who may face community service for his deed, told The Oregonian that he is “not too happy” about having his photo online, but he’s really not that worried about it. He did say that he would not soap a fountain again.

But does shaming really rehabilitate or deter? Is the shaming the thing that may stop Cunningham or the other penalties he may face? Does shaming solve a problem or just create a kind of satisfying spectacle for the public?

In many cases, the answer is murky. If a judge is convinced that shame will help rehabilitate or deter a criminal, we believe a judge should be able to use it.

The water bureau’s effort may make soaping vandals think twice. We think it’s more important to have them pay for the damage they caused. The only thing the bureau’s shaming has done for certain is given Cunningham an anti-hero role in his very own soap opera.