Artest is out for the rest of the season and will lose about 5 million dollars. This is being looked upon as something horrible and it never would have been noticed if a fist fight between players at a different arena had not happened a day or two before this. It wakes people up and makes them more aware of what is going on. The first event that takes place isn't likely to recieve too much flack becauses it's considered an isolated incitent. If it happens again it's a pattern and will be stopped dead to set an example.
Let's take, for example, Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfuntion". Everyone was up in arms but it was considered and isolated incident and forgotten about. It was still talked about but the FCC was no longer under the gun for that particular incident. They were prepared for anything to come so they could step on it ruthlessly to show they meant business with their new policy reform. So, when three schmucks complained about a show being to racy they dropped a 1.5 million dollar suit against the network.
It's called overcompensation, or setting and example, or even scapegoating. It's unfortunate and it happens every day. Just wanted to add my two cents to this mess. Arnet and friends may deserve retribution but it wouldn't have been even close to what they recieved if people's eyes weren't paying attention to fights. He was set up as an example. It's unfortunate for him but that is the designed purpose of scapegoating: to make people stop the undesired action. Whether it's the right thing to do is a topic for either comments or another article.