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A few weeks ago, The Senate passed a bill which increases indecency fines on TV broadcasters to a maximum of $325,000 per violation. Subsequently, it was sent to President Bush and he signed it into law.

However, it is destined to be struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court. It doesn't take a legal scholar to see that this new law obviously violates the Constitution's ban on excessive fines. Just think about it - a person who is convicted of running a red light, an act which puts people in danger of serious injury or death, is rarely fined more than $500. However, someone or some entity convicted of uttering one swear word on TV is now going to be fined $325,000? Where's the justice in that? Are we saying that a certain amount of red light-running, along with its resulting injuries and deaths, is to be tolerated while we enforce a zero-tolerance policy on TV indecency, which has never injured or killed a single person? Are morals more important than lives? Apparently, some people think so.

What's makes the proposed TV indecency sanctions look even more ridiculous is the fact that the maximum fine in most states for felony assault does not exceed $100,000. Is Congress trying to tell us that uttering a profanity during prime time is more than three times as bad as committing felony assault?

Of course, one might argue that the real reason for the high fines is because the lower fines could never get the broadcasters' attention and they have resulted in the networks continuing to broadcast indecent material during prohibited hours. Okay, but why don't we apply this same logic to red light-running? The current fines have not stopped people from doing this. Hundreds of people run red lights every single day. Why not impose fines of up to $325,000 every time someone runs a red light? Better yet, why not impose the death penalty? Now, that would stop people from running red lights. So, why don't we do it? Because it would be excessive and would violate the Constitution. The same would be true of the proposed new indecency fines.

Terry Mitchell

Terry Mitchell is a software engineer, freelance writer, blogger, and amateur political analyst from Hopewell, VA. He's been in the software development/engineering line of work for over 24 years.

He blogs and writes about various subjects such as current events, politics, cultural and social issues, health and well-being, personal finance, religion, technology, media issues, law, government, sports, humor, and trivia.

Through the BlogBurst network, his blog entries are often carried on the Website of the Houston Chronicle, one of the top newspapers in America. In addition, his columns and essays regularly appear on American Chronicle's network of 21 online magazines. They have also appeared online on American Daily, Media Monitors International, Opinion Editorials, The Washington Dispatch, Arrivenet, and hundreds of additional websites.

Terry never misses an opportunity to assail political correctness and take pot shots at the conventional foolishness. He's not a bandwagon jumper - he writes stuff that others should be writing, but are not. He thinks of himself as a kind of modern American philosopher. His blog offers commentary from a unique point of view that is not often found in mainstream media.

Terry would love to have his blog picked up and syndicated by a major news or web organization. He also plans to write a book based on his blog. But, for now, he mainly writes for free as a hobby and enjoys having his aritcles posted on as many websites, ezines, news letters, newspapers, and magazines as possible.