IronSheik, I think most of your points are good ones. But the NFL had to do simething here. I don't know if this was the right punishment, but a billion dollar business can't tolerate even the hint of cheating, ever.
But it already does tolerate it. Every sport does. Like the examples I listed. Is an under deflated ball really that severe of a crime? Seems minuscule to me. I'd put it below stick 'em. And the fact that the report doesn't say he "definitely" did it, I think this is mind blowingly insane.
I think inflated balls have a bigger impact on the game than stick'um, or O-linemen greasing up.
For instance, New England had the lowest number of turnovers last year - seems an obvious upside of under-inflated balls. You often here the importance of winning the turnover ratio as it correlates to wins in the NFL - and the Patriots found it easier to hold onto the ball.
So, I think this was an on-going serious offense. I think the Patriots did what they could to frustrate the investigation. I think the Patriots were already on thin ice with the commissioner's office based on past indiscretions. I think this penalty, including the Brady suspension, was intended to take all of that into account, and hammer the organization (and lets face it, the organization will be harmed more than Brady by Brady missing 4 games).