So Olympic hero Michael Phelps has ended up in the news for having a picture taken of him taking a bong hit. DOH! 
No doubt this disturbing turn of events will damage Phelps’ Olympic Hero status and potentially cost him mucho dinero in lost sponsorship deals. And really that’s just too bad. I have no problems with Phelps catching a buzz but it was stupid to get caught doing so given his high profile status as a bona fide hero and corporate sponsor whore.
What’s bothersome to me is just how diabolical our society still seems to believe smoking weed is if we are to believe the media made furor. Nearly anyone under age 70 now realizes for the most part marijuana smoking is really not anymore nefarious than having a cocktail. I’m not condoning smoking marijuana or drinking alcohol for that matter and I wholly believe the abuse of any mind altering substance is horrible. It is they hypocrisy with which the dichotomy between the legal and criminal are portrayed. I’m not some crazed pot head, but I clearly believe marijuana use should be legalized as I’ll wager the majority of the citizens of the U.S feel the same way.
What’s bothersome to me is just how diabolical our society still seems to believe smoking weed is if we are to believe the media made furor. Nearly anyone under age 70 now realizes for the most part marijuana smoking is really not anymore nefarious than having a cocktail. I’m not condoning smoking marijuana or drinking alcohol for that matter and I wholly believe the abuse of any mind altering substance is horrible. It is they hypocrisy with which the dichotomy between the legal and criminal are portrayed. I’m not some crazed pot head, but I clearly believe marijuana use should be legalized as I’ll wager the majority of the citizens of the U.S feel the same way.
In fact in these desperate economic times how about the legalization of drugs... period. Think of the revenue opportunities which would be offered by controlling the production and distribution of banned substances which many citizens use now. Obviously revenues from the standardization of these substances could be astronomical not to mention the added benefit of cutting the criminal element out of this highly profitable though currently illegal business. Again, I’m not a raving dug user… just a fairly liberal guy when it comes to personal freedoms and, and a citizen who sees and opportunity for financial stimulus during some very hard times.
And here’s the rub which makes me feel we’re still in the dark ages. We tried alcohol prohibition and it didn’t work. Alcohol and its nefarious cousin tobacco are perfectly legal and highly profitable. The abuse of both of these legal substance cost us untold dollars as our population crashes into one another on our nation’s roads, a beer in one hand and a mike pasted to the lip. These legal and socially acceptable vices wreak havoc on our healthcare system and kill… that’s right… think about the damage done by drunk diving. During 2007 some 12,998 citizens died as a direct result of drunken driving crashes in the U.S. (Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation. Drunk-driving fatalities represent the total number of fatalities (occupants and nonoccupants) in motor vehicle traffic crashes involving a driver or motorcycle rider with a blood alcohol concentration of .08 or higher.) But I digress!
And here’s the rub which makes me feel we’re still in the dark ages. We tried alcohol prohibition and it didn’t work. Alcohol and its nefarious cousin tobacco are perfectly legal and highly profitable. The abuse of both of these legal substance cost us untold dollars as our population crashes into one another on our nation’s roads, a beer in one hand and a mike pasted to the lip. These legal and socially acceptable vices wreak havoc on our healthcare system and kill… that’s right… think about the damage done by drunk diving. During 2007 some 12,998 citizens died as a direct result of drunken driving crashes in the U.S. (Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation. Drunk-driving fatalities represent the total number of fatalities (occupants and nonoccupants) in motor vehicle traffic crashes involving a driver or motorcycle rider with a blood alcohol concentration of .08 or higher.) But I digress!
My beginning point on this mini-rant was Michael Phelps and his apparent proclivity for pot smoking and the resultant vilification of the hero and role model. Superbowl wining QB’s can get hammered and get their picture taken with little public uproar but when pictures of one of our Olympic heroes become public look out!! Good golly what is happening to our role models? The real role models are at home, tending to their families and living life clear headed.
Peace!
Peace!
