Official feel bad for Michael Phelps Thread

I'm sure some of you have heard a picture has surfaced of him smoking out of a bong and of course the TV is blowing it all up all I have to say is leave the man alone if he wants to hit a bong let him it's obviously not effecting him in a negative way other than the stereotypes around the world and messed up laws and TV bullshit

 

I agree with you. Its dumb how they are making a big deal about.

 

Big Bong Theory By Sally Jenkins
CN Source: Washington Post February 03, 2009 Washington, DC
So Michael Phelps dove headfirst into the bong water. Is anyone really surprised, after all those laps? There has always been something submerged and escapist about the world's greatest swimmer. When presented with a chamber containing a hazy translucent liquid, he did what's become second nature to him. He buried his face in it. I'm just sorry I wasn't at that University of South Carolina house party to witness Squid Boy's binge firsthand -- not that I would ever make such a staggering misstep myself. continued...

dove headfirst into the bong water

to witness Squid Boy's binge

"...the primary reason to outlaw marijuana
is its effect on the degenerate races."
- Harry J. Anslinger - America's 1st Drug Czar (FDR - JFK)



Does Embattled Phelps Deserve a Break?
CN Source: Associated Press February 03, 2009 New York
A young man appears to be smoking pot at a party. Big deal, right? Our new president has freely admitted doing just that in his youth - inhaling, too - and it didn't derail him one bit. So should we expect more of Michael Phelps? It depends on what we want and expect our youthful role models to be: perfect, or flawed like the rest of us. And so as the Olympic swimmer's many corporate sponsors were wrestling with their options Monday, a day after an embarrassing photo emerged of the decorated athlete appearing to inhale from a bong, some were looking at the bright side. continued...

Deserve a Break? Embattled? 8 Gold Medals...

Olympic swimmer's many corporate sponsors...

"Casual drug users should be taken out and shot."
- Daryl DARE Gates - Former LAPD Chief



Michael Phelps, Hypocrisy, & American Drug Policy By John V. Santore
CN Source: Huffington Post February 02, 2009 USA
Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps was recently photographed using a marijuana bong at the home of a friend. The photographic evidence made a denial impossible, which led to release of the following statement today... full story

"In a republic like ours, people often think that the proper response to an unjust law is to try to use the political process to change the law, but to obey and respect the law until it is changed. But if the law is itself clearly unjust, and the lawmaking process is not designed to quickly obliterate such unjust laws, then the law deserves no respect — break the law." - Henry David Thoreau



"I engaged in behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment. I'm 23 years old and despite the successes I've had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner people have come to expect from me. For this, I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public it will not happen again."

"Republic . . .
it means people can live free, talk free, go or come,
buy or sell, be drunk or sober, however they choose."
-- John Wayne

Facebook: Michael Phelps's Notes

NO-ConPromise!

Celebrity Stoners: American High Society

NFL Buzzkill

"Insanity [is] ...
Continuing to do the same things and expecting different results."
-- Albert Einstein

We are calling for a World Wide BOYCOTT,
of any and all companies dropping ads
on the grounds of enough hypocrisy!

Should Michael Phelps apologize for being photographed with a bong?
Craig Ferguson thinks not.

CBS Vid The Late Late Show - 02/02/09
The Whole Michael Phelps Controversy

Hypocrites and their Apologists... tsk tsk

 

What Michael Phelps Should Have Said
Radley Balko | February 2, 2009

Smoking pot shouldn't be a crime.
Or the public's business.

Dear America,

I take it back. I don’t apologize.

Because you know what? It’s none of your goddamned business. I work my ass off 10 months a year. It’s that hard work that gave you all those gooey feelings of patriotism last summer. If during my brief window of down time I want to relax, enjoy myself, and partake of a substance that’s a hell of a lot less bad for me than alcohol, tobacco, or, frankly, most of the prescription drugs most of you are taking, well, you can spare me the lecture. continued...

"In any civilized society,
it is every citizen's responsibility to obey just laws.
But at the same time,
it is every citizen's responsibility to disobey unjust laws."
-- Martin Luther King Jr.

SC sheriff investigating Phelps' pot pipe photo,
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP)

considers marijuana charge

Olympic superstar Michael Phelps could face criminal charges as part of the fallout from a photo that surfaced showing the swimmer smoking from a marijuana pipe at a University of South Carolina house party.

A spokesman for Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott, who is known for his tough stance on drugs, said Tuesday the department was investigating.

"Our narcotics division is reviewing the information that we have, and they're investigating what charges, if any, will be filed," said Lt. Chris Cowan, a spokesman for agency. continued...



Michael Phelps, Hypocrisy, & American Drug Policy (thread)

Hypocrites and their Apologists... tsk tsk


No Extradition for the BC3!

 

http://www.change.org/ideas/view/legalize_the_medicinal_and_recreational_use_of_marijuana

 

Top travel destinations for Michael Phelps and other marijuana smokers
Posted by The Marijuana News Staff on February 5th, 2009

Divide and Maintain Dysfunction.

Michael Phelps - the good stuff
DWR: Pete Guither 2.4.9

Yes, there have been a lot of ridiculous columns by entertainment and sports journalists about how Michale Phelps "shames us all" for his horrible action in taking a bong hit, but it's been entertaining to me to read the comments to most of these articles and see the journalists being torn a new one by the public.

Some of them have been quite astonished that their readers weren't supporting them in their ritual condemnation of Phelps. Hilarious.

Here's a couple of delightful instances where the writers got it right.

Andrew Stuttaford at National Review Online's the corner

Look, I don't blame Michael Phelps for apologizing. He has a living to earn, so he did what he had to do.

In the meantime, I merely note that this broken wreck of a man's failure to win any more than a pathetic fourteen Olympic gold medals (so far) is a terrifying warning of the horrific damage that cannabis can do to someone's health--and a powerful reminder of just how sensible the drug laws really are.



And then, a clear must-read is Kathleen Parker in today's Washington Post: Phelps Takes a Hit

She's on fire:

And the law is the law. Therein lies the problem.

Our marijuana laws have been ludicrous for as long as we've been alive. Almost half of us (42 percent) have tried marijuana at least once, according to a report published last year in PLoS Medicine, a journal of the Public Library of Science.

The U.S., in fact, boasts the highest percentage of pot smokers among 17 nations surveyed, including The Netherlands, where cannabis clouds waft from coffeehouse windows. [...]

Other better-known former tokers include our current president and a couple of previous ones, as well as a Supreme Court justice, to name just a few. A complete list would require the slaughter of several mature forests. [...]

One recent ad produced by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy says: "Hey, not trying to be your mom, but there aren't many jobs out there for potheads." Whoa, dude, except maybe, like, president of the United States.

Once a kid realizes that pot doesn't make him insane -- or likely to become a burrito taster, as the ad further asserts -- he might figure other drug information is equally false.

Thanks, Michael, for jump-starting a national conversation by taking a hit on a bong.

If it were only that easy for the rest of us...

Update: Joe Klein at Time Magazine jumps in: Legalize it, already

Kathleen Parker has the precisely correct reaction to the Michael Phelps flap. Marijuana should be legalized and taxed. It's costing the society way too much in terms of law enforcement and hypocrisy.



Monday, February 2, 2009
Updates: Cheye Calvo and Michael Phelps

Olympic Champion Michael Phelps Caught With Marijuana Pipe
Phelps, who vaulted to international stardom during the 2008 Summer Olympics by winning a record eight gold medals in swimming, has been caught in a very compromising position, according to a report by the British paper News of the World. full story

Marijuana Wars In The Workplace
US OR: Edu: Fox, Lauren Oregon Daily Emerald 03 Feb 2009

Richland Sheriff Could Charge Phelps
US SC: Beam, Adam The State 03 Feb 2009

The United States Is Mired In Adolescent Behaviour
CN BC: Editorial: Vancouver Sun 04 Feb 2009

Phelps, Pot And Consequences
Editorial: Dallas Morning News 03 Feb 2009

So, Phelps Is Human
CN ON: Editorial: Ottawa Citizen 04 Feb 2009

Michael Phelps' Public Stoning
US CO: Harsanyi, David Denver Post 03 Feb 2009

DEA Chief: Winners Occasionally Use Drugs
September 9, 1997 | Issue 32•06 WASHINGTON, DC
In a surprise announcement with wide-ranging implications for U.S. narcotics policy, Drug Enforcement Administration director Thomas Constantine acknowledged Monday that some winners "may occasionally" use drugs.

Phelps unites pot smokers By David Edwards
CNN’s Jeanne Moos reported that the photo of Michael Phelps smoking a bong has united pot smokers on the internet.
This video is from CNN’s American Morning, broadcast Feb. 4, 2009.

Former Olympian defends Phelps for bong use

Smoking pot with Michael Phelps?



72% want Obama to end DEA raids
DWR: Pete Guither 2.4.9

According to a California NORML press release:

While the DEA continues to stage medical marijuana raids in California, nearly three-quarters of voters think President Obama should honor his campaign pledge to end the raids, according to a poll of 1,053 likely voters by Zogby International.

In a question sponsored by NORML, voters were asked: During the presidential campaign, Barack Obama said he would stop federal raids against medical marijuana providers in the 13 states where medical marijuana has become legal. Should President Obama keep his word to end such raids?

Response:

* Yes - 72%
* No - 21%
* Not sure - 7%.

Yes votes outnumbered No by over 2 to 1 in all geographic, political, and demographic groups. The poll, conducted Jan 29-31, had a margin error of +/-3.1%.

The question is, of course, designed to encourage a "Yes" vote (that's not unusual in commissioned polls), but it's still an impressive number and very useful to make a good point.

 

Do you want to know why Michael Phelps smokes weed?

Michael Phelps, Hypocrisy, & American Drug Policy

Michael you owe NO ONE an apology. Especially the Hypocrites and Apologists. You did not make a mistake. You toked a bong. The entire Cannabis prohibition is the result of a lie. The legal alternatives are far more de-habilitating. Have the courage of your convictions.

The only time you owe anything is in the pool. Off the clock means you are an American with a Constitution guaranteeing your Free Speech.
Too bad Wall Street and Madison Avenue run on Fascism.

Many wise people have used cannabis for many reasons over the centuries. It reduces stress, unlike booze that inebriates into a comatose state. The smoke is an expectorant that helps open small airways and keep dangerous SMOG and pollutants from causing lung damage and cancer.

When a government outlaws research and hides past studies from the people, and even the schools. When they give away the Treasury and make wars behind our backs. Especially war on some citizens over certain drugs and plants. It is high time the people stood up and just said no.



Appeasing liars perpetuating cannabis prohibition is not good for the 3000 kids sodomized in juvi prison. Or the thousands of kids getting chemically poisoned from pesticides sprayed in drug war zones and farm lands. Not used on Hemp that is lumped into the mix. Non psychoactive narcotic burlap, blue jeans and a nutritional source of Omega 3 in its seed.

High on Hemp

Now making up 98% of the nations "marijuana" eradication program. Protecting the kids with more fraud? Saving them from stronger fiber than trees produce? Can't tell a jury your doctor said try it cause the judge says it ain't medicine. In spite of the 300 joints Uncle Sam rolls every month for each of the remaining IND patients.

Eradicated Marijuana Is 98 Percent Ditchweed

The Ganjawar started with a lie, is maintained on lies and no one is interested in truth. Compromising on reality is insanity. The reform movement maintains the war the same as the DEA, Lawyers. Its a catch 22 because the profit they make enforcing the war and the profits they make selling synthetic alternatives to Ganja and Hemp. Keeping competition off the Dow Jones via Prohibition.

The Elkhorn Manifesto

There is no reason to outlaw cannabis, let alone schedule Ganja and Burlap the same as crack. Its a plant, get over it. If YOUR kids get it then the parents should be dealt with. You don't know what YOUR kids are doing, making laws preventing me from toking won't save them. Leaving total theory to perpetuate another war product sold to employ hundreds of thousands, paid with taxes diverted from schools and health care. We're running a band aid factory and forcing citizens to walk around barefoot on paths of broken glass.



I wonder what is more ludicrous, the DEA clowns following orders kicking Polio patients, advertising Hobgoblins. Or reformers figuring out how to appease them, contemplating how many square inches a person should be allowed to have to grow X # of plants. Stop the lie and either remove Ganja from the drug listing or add cigarettes, coffee, coca cola, aspartame, fluoridation, football, dirt bikes and booze. Either case, it does not fit in the schedule #1 classification.

The Ganjawar Fraud

It is not based in reality. We can not politicize science without losing credibility. Its a joke. 13" or 11" in a foot depending on jurisdiction. How about 83ç on the dollar or $1.13. Measurements like math doesn't work if you lie. 2+2 has too remain 4 or everything fails. Ganja has to meet criteria, that it doesn't meet for a schedule#1 narcotic, ie;pcp, crack, lsd but not meth and powder cocaine. It is not physically addictive with life threatening properties or overdose or sudden withdrawal shock as does heroin and alcohol. Even if abused it does less harm to the body than normal SMOG and traffic, no comparison to chemical cigarette products. None of the pesticides or additives to make it pleasurable as Reagan used to say.

 

Unless you live in an Afghan cave many countries outside of US talking head censorship, know of cannabis' medicinal value. Hundreds of years in the western world and thousands in the East leave only over zealous witch hunters believing there is no medicinal value. Or that research should be buried or outlawed. Or grant the DEA total authority to deny Universities the right to do research with their own test materials, given the DEA record of fraud and corruption concerning testing and propaganda. Nothing about cannabis smoking fits Sch#1, everything about alcohol and US chemical cigarette consumption does. Yet we know how devastating prohibition was in the 20's. Its worse today with even less Constitutional rights to protect us.

Richard Nixon On Pot

Nixon lied and started a multi-trillion dollar police action removing Ganja and Hemp. With the Moral Majority DARE sermons crucifrying hard working stoners, all the while covering up Shafer's Commission results. Keeping Baby Yuppie Boomers and yellow journalists duped and frothing over a two bit Watergate break in red herring. I find it hard to believe this is still or even was then, a secret. Therefore I find it hard to believe ANY thing compromising the facts. Politicians and LEO's are not necessary concerning this issue.

Virtues' of Ganja

Slowly we turn, State by state, inch by inch pseudo initiatives, arbitrarily enforced and constantly tweaked, are wasting resources. Abusing civil rights of patients and healthy productive gold medal winners, that can never relax and enjoy the benefits. What part of American life, let alone Dream does this resemble? Snitches, censorship and police state busting and caging sick people? Dysfunction alone can't explain this abomination. Greed and Cowardice is why it continues. Premeditated on we the people.



Just say No BS. Its just a vegetable. Lies don't spring medical side effects. Theory is a guess of the future. When past theory doesn't pan out in the present, it should be written off, not tried again and again. The only stepping stone to other drugs is Prohibition. Are you daft to think any plant can lead a human to a man made substance? Let alone one not invented. Ganja 10k-y Heroin mid 1800's. The only potency difference is connections, as in the 60's. 70's, as always. No lung damage in 10,000 years, No cancers in cultures outside of the DEA brochure to continue receiving $billions a year.

Boomers' blissfully unfazed by mere facts

Billions of dollars and we believe it all goes to rounding up stoners and junkies? A black budget for security. So no CPA tracks down under covers busting school kids and ruining their futures for their own good. Who funds Iran Contra, killing 30,000. Who funds Panama raids killing 111. Haiti, Burma, Thailand and Philippines. No paper trail to some vast right wing thimk tanks. Besides 8 million in slot machines from the Virtuous Drug Czar Bennett, Walters mentor.

Kill the Messenger

The corruption of the O.Nark D.C.P, Military/Prison and subsidiary Poisons and Pharmaid corporatists, all run on Fossil Fools, Steel and Plastic and unnecessary. Pesticides spewing on farm-workers and kids. 90 million pounds yearly on cotton, not Hemp. More abortions than clinics give. Unnecessary with Cannabis sativa. Home grown in dirt Ganja vs the Booze and White Powder Infrastructure built on chemicals, steel and plastic. No Hangovers.



SOS and yet the best reformers can get is a whine and a plea and a few run arounds. Po po pitiful us. Fighting for scraps and pats on the back and 5 second sound bites then a minute of stereotyping. Same lame funny stoner flicks, na na na na na na, defusing any serious conversation. With electors living in Neverland? Then quasi legislation or like holidays, occasional jury nullification. After the trial in some cases. Gutter science political mathematics scheduling Ganja a dangerous narcotic.

Renagade Cops & Ganja Props

Not near as many as mandatory minimums. Losing college tuitions. Forfeitures, Confiscations, Prison rape and Corporate intimidation. Coercion to sell their plastic foods, just jump through this Unconstitutional hoop. Enough Hypocrisy, enough buzz words replacing reality you can pick up and weigh or find on a map. Ganja is or Ganja ain't. No victim No whining! No silly plea bargain religionists rehabs deterring jury trials. No censoring defenses, medical or moral, ain't no body's business if you do. Reform the reformers! We got enough puppets running the system. The Ganjawar is Reckless.
Peace, Love and Liberty or the Merchants of DEAth
DdC

Hypocrites and their Apologists... tsk tsk

Divide and Maintain Dysfunction

 

Ddc, where do you get this stuff, is it like a personal scrapbook of yours? Cause if so that's all kinds of awesome.

"In any civilized society,
it is every citizen's responsibility to obey just laws.
But at the same time,
it is every citizen's responsibility to disobey unjust laws."
-MLKJr.

That quote really hit home

 

8 arrested in Michael Phelps case
Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Holy crap. Sheriff Lott is certifiable.

Lott says the picture indicated a law was being broken in his jurisdiction. He said he couldn't ignore the violation just because Phelps is rich and famous.

We've now learned that since investigators began trying to build a case, they've made eight arrests: seven for drug possession and one for distribution. These are arrests that resulted as the sheriff's department served search warrants.

We've also learned that the department has located and confiscated that bong.

COPsAgainstGanjawar

"No drug, not even alcohol, causes the fundamental ills of society. If we're looking for the sources of our troubles, we shouldn't test people for drugs, we should test them for stupidity, ignorance, greed and love of power."
- P.J. O'Rourke: Writer



Phelps Swimming Suspension

Michael Phelps has been suspended by USA Swimming for three months over that picture of him smoking pot from a bong.

“This is not a situation where any anti-doping rule was violated, but we decided to send a strong message to Michael because he disappointed so may people, particularly the hundreds of thousands of USA Swimming member kids who look up to him as a role model and a hero,” USA Swimming said in a statement Thursday.

The organization has also cut off financial support to 23-year-old for the duration of his suspension.

Word is Phelps will not fight the suspension, which he says is ‘Fair.’

Kellogg’s Breaks Endorsement Deal With Olympian Michael Phelps

Beijing to bongs



Michael Phelps Talks Possible Early Retirement In Wake Of The Marijuana Photos
In his first interview since a photo surfaced showing him smoking marijuana from a pipe at a college party last November, 14-time Olympic medal-winning swimmer Michael Phelps says he is contemplating whether or not he will compete in the 2012 Games due to his shame over the public scandal.

Here is some of Phelps Interview with the Baltimore Sun:

“This is a decision of mine that I’m not going to make today and I’m not going to make tomorrow,” Phelps said. “It’s going to require a lot of time and energy and a lot of thinking for myself - but also talking to Bob and talking to my family and just deciding what I want to do.

“Yeah, there are still goals that I have in the pool, 100 percent. But I’m not going to let anything stand in my way. If I decide to walk away, I’ll decide to walk away on my own terms. If it’s now, if it’s four years, who knows. But it is something I need to think about and decide what I want to do.”

Read the rest of Phelp’s Interview with the Baltimore Sun here.

Merriam-Webster sham·ing: to force by causing to feel guilty <shamed into confessing>

Releasing Guilt and Shame
This essence powerfully cleanses the psyche, dissolving all sense of guilt, shame, or remorse.

ReleasingGuiltandShame.htm
Crime, Shame and Reintegration
Braithwaite explains that the desire to avoid shame aids in the development of conscience and social bonds. He distinguishes between two types of shame: stigmatizing shame which rejects and permanently labels offenders and reintegrative shame which only rejects the offender's deed but not the offender himself.

Conferences encourage positive personal change in offenders because unlike courts, conferences allow offenders to shed their offender label and be reintegrated into the community.

Mothers Against Misuse and Abuse
Formed in 1982 MAMA's approach is based on personal responsibility, informed decision making, and respect for human dignity.



"Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is to tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger."
Reichsmarschall Hermann Goering, Nazi Air Force (Luftwaffe) commander, the Nuremberg Trials

Nazism or Drug Cops

SCAPEGOATING -
Blaming social problems on a cultural, racial, or behaviorial group.

PREJUDICE -
Selling the public on the idea that all members of the targeted group are 'bad' people.

LIES -
'Facts', which cannot be verified, and pseudo scientific studies are used as propaganda against the targeted group. History is rewritten.

NO PUBLIC DEBATE -
"These people have no right to have their viewpoiunt aired." and " Anyone who disagrees or questions us must be one of them!"
Why is Ganja Illegal

DEHUMANIZATION -
Characterizing all members of a targeted group as subhuman and typically capable of monstrous deeds and/or crimes.

PROTECT OUR CHILDREN -
"They corrupt, seduce and or destroy our children."

CIVIL LIBERTIES SACRIFICED -
"We must give up some of our freedoms, liberties, and rights in order to combat this menace to society."

Leary-v-US
Marihuana Tax Act violated his privilege against self-incrimination

LEGAL DESCRIMINATION -
Laws criminalize members of targeted group and they may be denied jobs, the right to own property and/or be restricted as to where they may live or go.
famm

INFORMERS -
Citizens are urged to 'turn in' friends, neighbors, co- workers and family members.

SECRET POLICE -
Non-uniformed police squads set up to wage war on targeted groups utilizing deception, infiltration, espionage and entrapment.

Joseph McNamara Collection

CONFISCATION OF PROPERTY -
Property and assets are seized from people who are members of targeted group. Property may be divided between the informer and the state.

REMOVAL FROM SOCIETY -
Prisons, rehabilitation camps,'hospitals', executions and genocide...
("kill them all" "Zero Tolerance")

"Arbitrary and capricious" is legal language that was used by DEA Administrative Law Judge Francis Young in 1988 to conclude that DEA was obligated under the Controlled Substances Act to reschedule marijuana as a prescription medicine. DEA Chief Administrator Robert Bonner proceeded to arbitrarily and capriciously disregard Judge Young's well researched and reasoned decision, which the Act allowed him to do.

JPWaldo Smoked Schwag...Fry the Liars!

Why is Marijuana Illegal?

 

Pot charge possible after Phelps' pipe photo

More Michael Phelps articles

SC Sheriff Investigating Phelps' Pot Pipe Pic AP Video

Michael Phelps Could Be Facing Legal Trouble

"Not only are we here to protect the public
from vicious criminals in the street
but also to protect the public from harmful ideas."
- Robert Ingersoll - Former DEA Director (1972)

“Ideas are more powerful than guns.
We would not let our enemies have guns,
why should we let them have ideas.”
- Joseph Stalin

More On Michael Phelps Infamous Bong Photo & Apology

Michael Phelps Hits The Bong, Probably Not A Good Idea…

Police say charges could be filed against Phelps SmokeScreen News

Michael Phelps apologizes after marijuana photo surfaces

Hollywood Gossip and Entertainment Blog
More Phelp's stories/pics



Pot Smokers Unite Against Kellogg
Since Cannabis Culture Editor Marc Emery's call for a boycott of Kellogg's a few days ago for dropping Olympian Michael Phelps after he was photographed smoking a bong, pot smokers from across the globe continue to put the heat on the cold cereal company. Surprisingly, the mainstream media seems to be paying attention.
full story

Boycott Kellogg Co. for Dumping Michael Phelps
Cannabis Culture Magazine Editor Marc Emery is encouraging all marijuana smokers to boycott Kellogg's cereal company for dropping their sponsorship of Olympian Michael Phelps after he was caught on film smoking from a bong. full story

Pot-Smoking Phelps Isn't Alone Among Athletes

Olympic Champion Michael Phelps Caught With Marijuana Pipe

In Defense of Michael Phelps’ Bong Hits
Posted by The Marijuana News Staff on February 6th, 2009

Michael Phelps Drug Charge Threat
US: News of the World 09 Feb 2009

Hey, Bong Boy Phelps - It's Not the Pot That
Canada: Column: Southey, Tabatha Globe and Mail 07 Feb 2009

Maturity and Celebrity
US ND: Edu: Editorial: Liden, Stephanie Dakota Student 06 Feb 2009

Michael Phelps Is Not Alone
CN QU: Editorial: Montreal Gazette 07 Feb 2009

Phelps' Legacy Will Not Be Remembered
US IL: Edu: Column: Johnson, Jeremy Daily Vidette 04 Feb 2009

Real Moral to Phelps' Bong Story
US TX: Column: Parker, Kathleen Dallas Morning News 07 Feb 2009

Stop The Reefer Madness! By Steve Almond
CN Source: Boston Globe February 06, 2009 Boston, MA

You have no doubt seen by now - several hundred times - the photo of gold medalist swimmer Michael Phelps sucking on a bong.

As might be expected in our age of manufactured sanctimony, the pundits have gone into overdrive on the Olympic icon. "This is a sad day for Phelps," Christine Brennan moaned, in that vaunted organ of conventional wisdom, USA Today, "and a sadder day for the millions of parents and young athletes who planned their lives around his races last August. How disappointed must they be that a glorious hero, a person in whom they placed their trust, has done something illegal for which he must apologize?"

Boycott Killoggs
Thats some really weird schtuff as Johnney would say...

A Grass-Roots Situation
Shadowed in cycles through recent decades while other legal or illegal or performance-enhancing stimulants took turns getting all the hype, marijuana has just hollered in the case of merely the most-decorated Olympian in history, Michael Phelps. It has tried to yell from the recent past of the Super Bowl most valuable player, who alighted at Disney World only four months after a forgotten arrest.



* Michael Phelps and Sheriff Lott : He's gunning for you, Michael.

* Michael Phelps Apologizes for Bong Shot

* Michael Phelps Marijuana Bong Discussion On “The View” (02/02/09)

Michael Phelps comes to terms with 3-month suspension By Associated Press

USA Swimming suspends Michael Phelps for 3 months By Associated Press

"Laws do not persuade just because they threaten."
- Seneca, A.D. 65

Celebrity Stoners: American High Society

Cannabis extract made by Parke, Davis & Co. circa 1910

COPs Against Ganjawar

Pesticide Abortionists

Many Veterans are the Enemy of the Bush D.E.A.th War

300000 Iraq & Afghan Vets Suffer PTSD & Depression

 

Thanks, just collecting over the years.
It all comes down to wars.
The names are changed to protect the profits.

Marijuana, Cannabis, Hemp, Prohibition, and Civil Rights Quotes
The history of insane ravings about cannabis from ignorant politicians, quack doctors, holy rollers, and alleged "scientists".

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and MMJ Prohibition

"One may well ask: How can you advocate breaking some laws and obeying others? The answer lies in the fact that there are two types of laws: just and unjust. I would be the first to advocate obeying just laws. One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws."
-- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Quotes on Cannabis and the Law



"In any civilized society, it is every citizen's responsibility to obey just laws. But at the same time, it is every citizen's responsibility to disobey unjust laws."
-- Martin Luther King Jr.

Quotes About the War on Some Drug Users PdxNorml



"There is nothing more dangerous than to build a society with a large segment of people in that society who feel that they have nothing to lose. People who have a stake in their society, protect that society, but when they don't have it, they unconsciously want to destroy it."
-- Martin Luther King Jr.

 

Kathleen Parker: Snap, Crackle, Pot
Washington Post OpEd about Phelps, Lott, and the drug war, and she speaks with Howard Wooldridge of LEAP.

Drink and drive and it's grrrrrrrr-eat! Smoke pot and your flakes are frosted, dude. So seems the message from Kellogg's, which has decided not to renew its sponsorship contract with Michael Phelps after the Olympian was photographed smoking marijuana at a party in South Carolina.

That's showbiz, of course, but the cereal and munchie company had no problem signing Phelps despite an alcohol-related arrest. full story...

LOTT LACKS CONSISTENCY IN DRUG ENFORCEMENT

Leon Lott is doing his job. After the eight arrests he's made in the aftermath of Phelpsgate, there's no doubt about that.

But is the Richland County sheriff just trying to keep his reputation from going up in smoke? Is he going for the gusto solely because he's in the limelight?

These are legitimate questions, and while we can't know Lott's motivation, certain elements of the story do not check out.

It makes sense that he's pursuing Phelps's case. After the photographic evidence practically fell in his lap, he would have been a fool not to follow through. But the head-scratcher is his insistence on tracking down these eight others. continued...



Sheriff Lott's New Toy
Radley Balko | September 1, 2008, 1:12pm

The Richland County, South Carolina Sheriff's Department (that's them above) just obtained an armored personnel carrier, complete with a belt-fed, .50-cal turreted machine gun. Sheriff Leon Lott has charmingly named the vehicle "The Peacemaker," and insists that using a caliber of ammunition that even the U.S. military is reluctant to use against human targets (it's generally reserved for use against armored vehicles) will "save lives."

Can we call this overkill, yet? Is there any weapon people like Sheriff Lott would consider inappropriate for use against American citizens?

Oh, Come On
Monday, September 1st, 2008

This is just ridiculous: The Richland County (S.C.) Sheriff’s Department has acquired an armored personnel carrier complete with a turret-mounted .50-caliber belt-fed machine gun for its Special Response Team.

UPDATE: Pete Guither found a photo of the thing, and the weird origin of the name the sheriff gave it.



SHERIFF LEON LOTT SHOULD STOP THE POLITICKING

Sheriff Lott is using the Michael Phelps incident for his own shameless exposure and abusing his position as sheriff for political purposes. There are bound to be countless editorials on this subject this week but mine will be different: because when I started writing this, I was as high as a kite.

As soon as I heard the news that Lott had ordered the arrest of college-aged kids in connection with the Phelps bong hit, I called a very successful pot smoking friend and said, "I need to smoke." She was very confused as I am known as a staunch non-smoker, but Lott had driven me to the edge.



'Insane' Sheriff Makes Eight Arrests From Party That Produced Phelps Photo
The Michael Phelps bong photo fiasco continued today as Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott arrested eight people connected to the party where the photo was taken. full story...



Pot Smokers Unite Against Kellogg
Since Cannabis Culture Editor Marc Emery's call for a boycott of Kellogg's a few days ago for dropping Olympian Michael Phelps after he was photographed smoking a bong, pot smokers from across the globe continue to put the heat on the cold cereal company. Surprisingly, the mainstream media seems to be paying attention. full story...

 

Pot Smokers Unite Against Kellogg
Since Cannabis Culture Editor Marc Emery's call for a boycott of Kellogg's a few days ago for dropping Olympian Michael Phelps after he was photographed smoking a bong, pot smokers from across the globe continue to put the heat on the cold cereal company. Surprisingly, the mainstream media seems to be paying attention. full story...



Boycott Kellogg Co. for Dumping Michael Phelps
Cannabis Culture Magazine Editor Marc Emery is encouraging all marijuana smokers to boycott Kellogg's cereal company for dropping their sponsorship of Olympian Michael Phelps after he was caught on film smoking from a bong. full story...

Feature: Drug Reformers Boycott Kellogg Cereals
Over Dumping of Michael Phelps Over Bong Photo

Law Enforcement: This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories
There may be something rotten in the dope squad in Philly, something definitely was rotten in Beantown, and yes, another jail guard goes down.



Police Trying Too Hard to Build Case Against Phelps

Speaking of Phelps, the attorneys of two of the young men that Sheriff Lott went after have spoken up, and (no surprise) the only thing Lott was after was for them to incriminate Phelps. Pete Guither

The lawyers did not release the names of their clients, but Harpootlian said that his client didn't even see Phelps smoke marijuana at the party. McCulloch said his client was out of town, and only lived at the home when the party happened. Both men have since moved.

"After they arrested him, they didn't ask him where did you get the marijuana or who sold it to you. Almost all the questions they asked him were about Michael Phelps," Harpootlian said. He added: "It was like they were busting the biggest heroin distributor in the country."

The investigators appear to be trying to build a case against Phelps from others - a tactic normally used to bring down drug dealers with a large amounts of cocaine or methamphetamine, not someone who smoked marijuana five months ago, said Chip Price, a Greenville attorney who has dealt with drug cases for 33 years.

"Never have I seen anything like this on a simple marijuana case," Price said.



Lott Pot/petition

26 of 30 USC students tell WIS they've smoked pot
Feb 10, 2009 Updated: Feb 13, 2009 COLUMBIA, SC (WIS)

Michael Phelps is back in the pool, but eight people who partied with him in Richland County have been arrested.

The charges stem from a house party near Five Points where a photo was taken showing Phelps smoking from a bong.

Some people say the deputies should have better things to do, while others say the law is the law.

But what may be most surprising is what we heard on the USC campus.

USC students, WIS viewers weigh in on marijuana use, Jordan Sandler reports (java)

How many students have smoked marijuana at the University of South Carolina? Here are some answers we got:

 

Sports Hotshots Can Rob, Rape and Pillage ...
But Smoke Pot and They're Screwed
by William K. Wolfrum, Shakesville
While the corporate media focus on Michael Phelps, a look at some other crimes committed by sports players.

NFL Buzzkill

Why no criminal prosecution when companies bribe?



Kellogg's Wimps Out Over Phelps's Bong Hit
What Century Are They Living in?
Bruce Mirken, AlterNet. February 6, 2009.
While hypocrisy is hardly rare in American life, Kellogg's decision not to renew his endorsement contract is really egregious.

Boycott Klogogs

Canada joins Boycott / MMM 5.2.9 \ D.C. Convergence 7.4.9

but the Phelps thing will dissipate by the time anyone cares about swimming again in four years.

The Michael Phelps Witch Hunt Gets Surreal

Michael Phelps, Hypocrisy, & American Drug Policy

Michael Phelps Has No Business Apologizing for Taking Bong Hits
Tony Newman, AlterNet. February 2, 2009
The Olympic gold medalist struck another blow to the myth that pot smokers are lazy couch potatoes. He has no reason to say he's sorry.


Pot Tarts are better for ya...

The Drug Czar is required by law to lie

DAREyl SWAT Gates LAPDog Perversions

"A child miseducated is a child lost."
- John F. Kennedy

False positives plague drug tests by Bexar probation

L.E.A.P.

What law enforcement money was included in final stimulus plan?
See related Grits posts

Stimulis: Because All Economies Have Performance Issues
Posted on February 14, 2009, 4:04pm | Nick Gillespie

Bush Administration Deals Eleventh Hour Blow To Scientific Freedom
1/12/2009 WASHINGTON, D.C.
The Bush administration struck a parting shot to legitimate science today as the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) refused to end the unique government monopoly over the supply of marijuana available for Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved research. DEA’s final ruling rejected the formal recommendation of DEA Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) Mary Ellen Bittner, issued nearly two years ago following extensive legal hearings

Petition to Obama: - 1/23/09
Stop Bush's War on Medical Marijuana Patients

"We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people."
- John F. Kennedy



.'Insane' Sheriff... with a Tank

Renagade Cops & Ganja Props

Police are Trying Very Hard to Bust Michael Phelps for Smoking a Bong
Chronicle Blog by Scott Morgan on Thu, 02/12/2009

COPsAgainstGanjawar

 

The informants are watching us...
But who's watching the informants?

Preliminary research indicates that up to 80% of all drug cases in America may be based on information provided by informants.

An informant can be a useful law enforcement tool – a necessary evil – if used properly. But putting police work in the hands of known criminals and blindly trusting that justice will be done is an unnecessary evil. Learn more >>

NARCS, Undercovers, Informants... oh my!!
In their quest to trample tokers and catch cannabis “criminals”, the police often become criminals themselves.

Rachael Hoffman RIP



"If we cannot now end our differences,
at least we can help make the world safe for diversity."
- John F. Kennedy

In Defense of Michael Phelps' Bong Hits

Top travel destinations for Michael Phelps and other marijuana smokers

Now you know why the world's greatest swimmer eats 10,000 calories a day

 

link.. ganja as a job
http://www.hipforums.com/newforums/showthread.php?t=350411&f=229

 

No prosecutions in Phelps 'case'
From a news conference minutes ago...
Monday, February 16, 2009

Durring a news conference, Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott said there is not enough evidence to prosecute anyone involved in the Michael Phelps marijuana case.

Monday's news conference puts an end to speculation if Phelps would be charged with smoking marijuana in Richland County.

Michael Phelps, Hypocrisy, & American Drug Policy



phelpsboycott.jpg
insaneleonputz.jpg

Marijuana: The Miracle Drug

1/2 pound Joint U2b

Humboldt 420 2008 2 pound joint U2b