Members OneFinger Posted February 1, 2009 Members Share Posted February 1, 2009 Newspapers in the UK are publishing pictures which supposedly show Michael Phelps smoking a bong. IF (and I emphasize if) it is true, this could torpedo his participation in the 2012 games in London. I believe there is a 4-year ban from the Olympics for drug use. Read more at: http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/news/15083...nabis-pipe.html Very, very sad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members OneFinger Posted February 1, 2009 Author Members Share Posted February 1, 2009 Here's a statement issued by Phelps on Sunday: “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.†Unfortunately, it's not a denial of any supposed drug use. This doesn't look good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest raulgmanzo Posted February 1, 2009 Share Posted February 1, 2009 It doesn't matter and won't keep him out of competition. Unlike some other drugs marijuana use is NOT banned for olympic athletes except DURING competition. In the big picture this is nothing. Him being busted for drunk driving is obviously a much more serious situation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest cary Posted February 1, 2009 Share Posted February 1, 2009 hi raul...nice to see you on this board.....when are you coming to nyc?.....i am hoping it is soon and that we can meet....bh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caeron Posted February 1, 2009 Share Posted February 1, 2009 I want the video that comes after this shot. The one that starts, "oh wow, I'm so stoned and horny..." Seriously, if it doesn't affect his ability to swim competitively, who cares? Now get me a picture of Obama burning one, and I'll be more interested. (Not upset, just more interested.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BiBottomBoy Posted February 2, 2009 Share Posted February 2, 2009 Does anyone really care about pot smoking anymore? I'm not into it, because I don't want to spend money to be lazy, hungry and paranoid, but if people are into it, what's the big deal? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdamSmith Posted February 2, 2009 Share Posted February 2, 2009 As Carville & Stephanopoulis might have said: It's the endorsements, stupid. The NYT points out: In May 1998, Gary Hall Jr., a United States swimmer who won four medals at the 1996 Olympics, was suspended for three months by swimming’s international governing body, FINA, for testing positive for marijuana. Under the current World Anti-Doping Agency code, cannabis is not considered a banned substance during out-of-competition testing. Athletes face suspension only if they test positive for it at a competition. Hall, who came back to win six medals at the 2000 and 2004 Olympics, said in interviews before the Sydney Games that his failed drug test had caused him to lose all of his endorsement deals. The swimming manufacturer Speedo, which sponsors Phelps and awarded him a $1 million bonus for tying Spitz’s record, dropped Hall after his drug suspension. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/02/sports/o...html?ref=sports Maybe times have changed. We shall see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BiBottomBoy Posted February 2, 2009 Share Posted February 2, 2009 I just don't get w hy that would cost endorsements. I don't think I know any adults who haven't tried pot at least once in their lives. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest zachary Posted February 2, 2009 Share Posted February 2, 2009 He's lived an unusual life, swimming for hours a day and that crazy diet; no social life for years, and evidently he picked up someone he was dating in sc and went to visit. he presumbably cut loose and was catching up on fun. he said in dec that he was going to start training the first of jan, but again, i guess he put it off, i would. Maybe cuz of the endorsements he has to go back into training now for the next world meets and to get ready for the next Olympics. More Olympic medals than anyone in history, isn't that right, and yet he still wants to compete. I hope this blows over without him having to do the rehab thing; we ordinarily think that rehab isn't for marijuana, and yet i've seen it before. i think it would prob help, but to me his big issues are the celebrity, too much money and accomplishing a life goal that he'll never be able to match for the rest of his life. that would be depressing, what do u work for? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdamSmith Posted February 2, 2009 Share Posted February 2, 2009 Some perspective... http://msn.foxsports.com/other/story/91684...P>1=39002 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest zachary Posted February 2, 2009 Share Posted February 2, 2009 Some perspective...http://msn.foxsports.com/other/story/91684...P>1=39002 incomments to the above link/article re phelps, "you think he does big bong hits? you should see the size of the lines he does, full on Hoover..." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lookin Posted February 2, 2009 Members Share Posted February 2, 2009 Looks like it's all over without even a tokin' reprimand. Phelps Backed by Sponsors After Marijuana Photo Feb 2, 10:46 AM (ET) By ROB HARRIS MANCHESTER, England (AP) -Two of Michael Phelps' leading sponsors expressed support for the Olympic great Monday, a day after he apologized for being photographed in a British newspaper inhaling from a marijuana pipe. Luxury Swiss watchmaker Omega termed Phelps' actions a private matter and "nonissue." Swim wear manufacturer Speedo called the 23-year-old American a "valued member of the Speedo team." Perhaps the marketing whizzes at Speedo can even get some mileage out of this, maybe with a "Michael Phelps is a grower!" line. If the girls can do it, why not the boys? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RA1 Posted February 3, 2009 Members Share Posted February 3, 2009 Without being judgmental about the use of marijuana or any drug here is a question either rhetorical or for any reader to answer. In this day and age of the EPA, California and many others being so concerned about air quality and what we breathe, how can any of those folks justify the use of any thing from grape vine to tobacco to heroin to marijuana being induced into one's lungs? Just introducing any such has to be harmful to one's general health with no drug effects. I would think any thinking or well looked after athlete would especially be aware of these problems. Best regards, RA1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BiBottomBoy Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 Man, I can't believe that you believe they myth that smoke of any type actually harms you. That's a lie the government feeds you so people will pay huge taxes on cigs and so that they can justify mandatory sentencing on smokeable drugs. Don't believe the lie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BigK Posted February 4, 2009 Members Share Posted February 4, 2009 So what. I'm willing to believe that he's not a daily toker given that he's so goal driven and works out so hard most of the year. Not at all surprising to me that he's tried smoking pot, probably a majority of our population over 18 and under 60 have smoked pot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BiBottomBoy Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Exactly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TNTTed Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Whether or not smoking pot should be legalized, or whether or not it causes any harm, or whether or not ‘everybody does it’ are separate issues. Like it or not, Phelps broke the law, and IMO, anyone such as he who’s in a position to have major influence on so many people, should be held to a higher standard. I personally was disappointed in what he did. And I'm probably even more disappointed that most people are so blasé about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BiBottomBoy Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 I don't personally know anyone who doesn't "break the law" from time to time. Hell, we are currently posting on a website that is dedicated to people who break the law. It's pretty silly to get "disappointed" when other people do the same. Whether it's driving too fast, cheating on our taxes, giving someone $150 to suck our cocks or drinking too much in a bar, we all break the law. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TNTTed Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Well, that's sort of my point. We are not in positions to influence anyone with our wrongdoings. (At least I'm not). He most definitely is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BiBottomBoy Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 You think that somewhere out there is some random 17 year old kid who is saying to himself "Well, I was never going to take a bong hit before, but since Mike Phelps did it, I guess I should light up." Pot. Kettle. Black. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TNTTed Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 You think that somewhere out there is some random 17 year old kid who is saying to himself "Well, I was never going to take a bong hit before, but since Mike Phelps did it, I guess I should light up." Seems to me that he, himself, was influenced by a bunch of (probably) drunken friends into doing the same thing. So, yes, I think it's much more likely that he can influence a random 17-year-old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BiBottomBoy Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Any kid who is going to start smoking pot because a low level sports celebrity was photographed with a bong deserves to be Darwined out of the gene pool. This is up there with people who think that stars coming out of the closet makes teens think about sucking cock. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TNTTed Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 OK, we're sort of getting off the issue. He still broke the law, and most people seem unconcerned about that. It doesn't matter that the law may be absurd or that everyone might be guilty of breaking some laws. It's Phelps' celebrity status, and the fact that that status has the capability of exerting so much influence, that demands a higher standard of behavior. IMO, of course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BiBottomBoy Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Why does winning a bunch of gold medals mean he has to live up to a higher standard. That sorta dehumanizes him, doesn't it. I don't think that being successful should mean you have less rights than others. He swims fast. He's not a high school guidance counsuler. To me it's obvious that if anything he should be rewarded with more freedoms, rather than fewer, for being successful at what he does. To be honest I never thought I'd encounter "obey the law puritanism" on an escort site. It just goes to show that the thought police are everywhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TNTTed Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Geez, settle down. I’m just stating my opinion. If my remarks suggest “Puritanism†or “thought policeâ€, then I guess I’m not communicating very well. I think maybe we should just agree to disagree. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...