Fines are another regressive fact of life

I heard on the radio yesterday that some state was considering raising the fine for bad driving in a work zone might be raised from their current $200 to $1000.

And I'm okay with that.

But I'm not okay with the relativity of fines.

The Senate Immigration Bill, for but one example, proposes a $20,000 fine for hiring an illegal immigrant.

So, on the one hand, we have a guy who earns ... I dunno ... $30,000 a year and he has to pay a $1,000 fine for a single transgression based on a single stupid act.

On the other hand, a company hires an illegal immigrant, employs him (or a series of 'hims') for months or years, earning ...... I dunno ...... a couple hundred thousand on that labor. And for that ongoing and profitable criminality they pay $20,000. Examples of fines for the violation of securities law by big corporations are even more laughably low and inconsequential, often tens of thousands of times lower than a company's cost just to make photocopies.

As I said, I'm more than okay with the $1,000 fine for endangering the lives of highway workers.

I'd love to see corporate fines raised to a level that inflicts equal pain.

Your license should automatically be revoked!

I'm not defending red light runners, but maybe that should be the punishment for some multiple number of red light convictions ... or for running it and causing property damage?

And I'm sure okay with revocation in a case of some level of bodily injury.

It has gotten way oout of hand in Florida! These people don't deserve to be on the road. There have been to many deaths over something as stupid as running a damn red light!

this continual raising of fines and jail time and adding laws only contributes to the police state element in our society, IMO.

Or do you favor jail time for jaywalking.

I think I understand your sentiment. I'm not sure I understand what you're proposing.

historically speaking, creating stricter sentencing does nothing to alleviate the problem.

I appreciate that you can see my point, though. :hi:

was not so much the notion of fines, per se. It was the disparity of the 'pain' they inlict when applied to ordinary citizens and giant corporations. To the little guy, the thousand bux in my example is painful.

The $20,000 for the big company is hardly a bug bite. And the fines they pay for, say, securities fraud (a nice euphemism for Grand Theft) is even more silly and ineffectual.

a $75 speeding ticket and/or a half-day in traffic court is meaningless for the guy with the $100,000 ferarri- but for a minimum-wage worker, it could mean no food on the table.

in finland, when the ceo of nokia got a speeding ticket a couple years ago, the fine was over $100,000, iirc.

But it also needs to be applied to corporations and corporate crimes. And be indexed to inflict ***real*** corporate pain.

(i forget which) bases the traffic fines on your income...for example, going 10 kph over the limit: Min. wage earner gets fined $10 while a multimillionaire gets fined $10,000.

That's what i would like to see, as far as traffic fines go.

the disparity of pain when one compares, say, traffice fines on individuals to the fines corporations pay for all manner of transgressions. In many case it is, literally, cheaper to risk the fine than avoid the bad behavior.

And that's why I see the whole system as regressive.