The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit showed both common sense and a sense of humor when it ruled this week that the Federal Communications Commission cannot punish broadcast television stations for airing vulgar language in a fleeting context. If President Bush and Vice President Cheney can use four-letter words in public settings, two of the three judges agreed, then so can Fox, ABC, CBS and NBC.

The judgment delivers a refreshing dose of reality to an agency that has fallen down the political rabbit hole under the current administration. President Bush, ever eager to do the bidding of the religious right, has presided over the FCC while it toughened indecency rules and while Congress increased the maximum fine from $32,500 to $325,000, courting the censorship the architects of our system of government sought to avoid.

So when Bono of the rock group U2 let slip a profanity at the Golden Globes in 2003, the FCC found that NBC was responsible because it aired the gaffe during its live broadcast. The networks were justifiably concerned that the tougher standards would infringe on free speech, and would have a chilling effect on their ability to broadcast live events or even movies like "Saving Private Ryan."

The crackdown fit right in with President Bush's do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do administration. On the campaign trail in 2000, President Bush called a New York Times reporter a "major league (blank)." His comment was captured by an open microphone, as was Vice President Cheney's response, "Yeah, big time." Then there was Cheney on the floor of the Senate, telling Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont to, as the New York Times put it, "get lost" in very profane terms.

By the FCC's lights, neither Bush nor Cheney could be punished for their language, but any news organization that unwittingly broadcast such "fleeting expletives" could be fined. This is the same logic that values a "culture of life," but then heads off to war in Iraq where the Pentagon doesn't bother to count civilian deaths. President Bush and the Republican Party have grown so accustomed to waving the flag of family values that the action is reflexive; their arms go on waving while their mouths commit the sin.

It seems doubtful that America is truly offended by a few four-letter words. This is, after all, a society that embraces the "Sopranos" in all their profane glory and watches rapt while so-called reality shows degrade participants and seem determined to prove that human dignity is worth less than a cash prize.

The FCC would be better served by confronting some of the difficult issues facing 21st century America — including consolidation of media outlets — and leaving the hand that holds the remote to decide what is decent.