The fine: $71,400.

[Dag]

HELSINKI, Finland -- Jaako Rytsola, a 27-year-old Finnish Internet entrepreneur and newspaper columnist, was cruising in his BMW one recent evening. "The road was wide and I was feeling good," he later wrote. "It's nice to be driving when there's no one in sight."

But this road wasn't empty; a radar-equipped police car was clocking his speed. The officer pulled over Mr. Rytsola's car and issued him a speeding ticket for driving 43 miles an hour in a 25-mile-an-hour zone.

The fine: $71,400.

'A Nordic Tradition'

The staggering sum was no mistake. In Finland, traffic fines generally are based on two factors: the severity of the offense and the driver's income. The concept has been embedded in Finnish law for decades: When it comes to crime, the wealthy should suffer as much as the poor. Indeed, sliding-scale financial penalties are also imposed for offenses ranging from shoplifting to securities-law violations. "This is a Nordic tradition," says Erkki Wuoma, special planning adviser at the Ministry of Interior. "We have progressive taxation and progressive punishments. So the more you earn, the more you pay."

[Gear Jammer]

Damn, Nobama's already been there too?   

[Duffy]

Georgia just passed a bill adding $200 to the normal fine for excessive speeds. I don't recall the exact definition of excessive speed, but something like 15 over or greater than 80 mph.. Something like that.

I thought that was bad, but it seems trivial compared to Finland. 

[TrickRick]

Lee County, Florida recently DOUBLED most if not all of their traffic fines.  I just paid $140 for rolling thru a stop sign.  Hey, the revenue's gotta come from somewhere!  Bastids!