[Central Florida Future.com]- To paraphrase one of my journalism professors, the First Amendment is the most important 45 words in the English language.

I think it has something to do with the whole “establishing-the-citizens’-rights” thing.

And, don’t look now, but the government is looking to restrict your freedom of speech.

Paul Little, more commonly known as Max Hardcore, was sentenced Sunday to three years and 10 months in federal prison and fined $7,500 for selling and distributing his films – his pornography films.

Apparently, his videos that contained vomiting and urination were just too gross, and he was charged in May with 10 counts of distributing obscene material through the Internet and through the mail.

Little also had to pay a $7,500 fine for his company, Max World Entertainment.

So Little has to drop $15,000, serve 46 months in a federal prison, will have three years of probation following his release and five years of probation for his company.

All for some skin flicks.

According to media reports, Little was flippant regarding the charges throughout the trial, and U.S. District Judge Susan Bucklew said he was not apologetic until the day of his sentencing.

I would be criticizing the charges, too, if the U.S. government were trying to railroad me for making porn.

Not child porn either, but movies with consenting adults.

How someone can be sent to prison for making a movie, regardless of its content, with adults, who have signed a contract to appear in said film, is beyond my comprehension.

The jury had to watch more than eight hours of pornography. From where I’m sitting, not a bad day to get jury duty.

I haven’t seen the videos for which he was convicted – I swear – but I have watched plenty of pornography in my day.

From the descriptions I have read of the films, there was nothing too outrageous.

No one was cut up, no one was killed, there were no children and there were no animals. Where is the problem?

But really, it shouldn’t matter what the nature of the content is.

Why does a case like this even exist? It wasn’t a child buying the films. They weren’t snuff films.

It was pornography, plain and simple. Well, maybe not so plain and simple, but pornography nonetheless.

So now, I guess we can all step out of our front doors safe in the knowledge that at least one raunchy filmmaker is locked behind bars.

Whew. One less thing for me to think about during my day.

The government has a responsibility to protect us, but I am pretty sure that regulating what films I can buy and watch is not really protection.

It is not anyone’s place to tell adults what they can and cannot do.

Isn’t that part of what is supposed to make America great? That whole freedom thing. I don’t think it counts as freedom if you aren’t, you know, free.

Once people start getting prosecuted for making movies, what’s next?

How long until you are charged for something you create, something Big Brother deems inappropriate?

So yeah, those movies sound pretty gross, and it is more than likely that I would never buy and watch them, but that doesn’t make it illegal.

In fact, that you can buy something as despicable as that makes it right.

Little’s conviction and sentencing is not justice. It is farce.

It is one huge step in the wrong direction for this country, and one from which I hope we can turn around.