Michael Phelps

[mainer]

As Scarlett would say: Michael Phelps "is stuck on stupid!" :-o

How ignorant do you have to be in this age of Mino (BTW....my husband loves his...thanks for the tip, guys), cell phone cameras, et al... to risk million$$$ in endorsements by sucking on a big ol' bong????? My kids were all talking about it today at school. It's scary how many of them thought it was hilarious and no big deal.

Forget the dope for a minute......what about the money!? Or will the companies he's signed with even care?

[Rick]

I think a 20 year old is allowed to make a mistake. I think it will all depend on how he handles it. So far so good, it seems he took ownership of it. There might be a financial hit from some of the sponsors at first, but he is a superstar, I think he'll do just fine.

He needs someone like Tiger Woods, Lebron James, or the Mannings to take him under their wings and help him out.

If he goes on Oprah and cries, he'll be all set. :)) :smoke

[CenTexDave]

Yeah, he admitted the mistake, apologized and stated it would never happen again.
Just like in 2004 when he was caught underage drinking. :))

[Rick]

As long as he is still making money for the sponsors, they will keep him.

[mainer]

The last update I heard was that Speedo at least was standing by him. At age 20 a kid like Phelps (and he is still a kid, no matter what level of accomplishment) suddenly has all of this fame, glory, and $$$, -- not to mention these women -- dropped in his lap. No matter how much discipline he has exhibited throughout the years in order to reach the pinnacle, it must be tough to sustain that discipline in the face of all the goodies he now has at his fingertips. And society teaches him that a little marijuana use is not such a big deal. After all, you can smoke weed and still become president of the United States.

I had a so-called pillar of the community tell me one time that if his kids were going to do something illegal, he would rather them smoke marijuana than drink. His reasoning was that when you drink, you're more likely to drive fast, get really mad, and beat somebody up. When you smoke weed you drive 20 mph, love everybody, eat a bunch, and get sleepy. 8-} Don't know how valid a point that is.

Back to Phelps, the mom in me just makes me worry about him. I hate to see another talented young athlete crash and burn. I also worry about how making this no big deal sends a dangerous message to other kids. I have several swimmers in my class who idolize him. When we talked about it, I emphasized how stupid his actions were, not that he was a "bad person." I dunno...maybe I didn't handle it in the best way.

[FieryPrincess]

The pharmacoogy class I took at UH had a professor that also advocated marijuana as less permanently harmful for you than alcohol.

[Rick]

Gimme some of that second hand smoke....and a bag of Doritos please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 8-} =)) :)) \M/

[Scarlett]

Ya know...that reminds me "of a girl I knew in college."
Only smoked weed three times in her life.
Decided that it makes one quite DUMB. See...she was with a group of friends, and they all got hungry...so they put pizza in the oven. One of the guys called over to the girl and told her to check the pizza. She stood in the kitchen, looking into the dishwasher, and tried to figure out who stole the pizza.

Right then and there, she decided that weed makes one DUMBER THAN DIRT, and never, ever smoked it again. ;;)

[siamcat]

The last update I heard was that Speedo at least was standing by him. At age 20 a kid like Phelps (and he is still a kid, no matter what level of accomplishment) suddenly has all of this fame, glory, and $$$, -- not to mention these women -- dropped in his lap. No matter how much discipline he has exhibited throughout the years in order to reach the pinnacle, it must be tough to sustain that discipline in the face of all the goodies he now has at his fingertips. And society teaches him that a little marijuana use is not such a big deal. After all, you can smoke weed and still become president of the United States.

I had a so-called pillar of the community tell me one time that if his kids were going to do something illegal, he would rather them smoke marijuana than drink. His reasoning was that when you drink, you're more likely to drive fast, get really mad, and beat somebody up. When you smoke weed you drive 20 mph, love everybody, eat a bunch, and get sleepy. 8-} Don't know how valid a point that is.

Back to Phelps, the mom in me just makes me worry about him. I hate to see another talented young athlete crash and burn. I also worry about how making this no big deal sends a dangerous message to other kids. I have several swimmers in my class who idolize him. When we talked about it, I emphasized how stupid his actions were, not that he was a "bad person." I dunno...maybe I didn't handle it in the best way.

I agree with this 100%. Phelps made a mistake, he's young, has accomplished alot, and he has a lot of fame thrown at him.
There is nothing wrong with disagreeing with an action and explaining why it's wrong but understanding how it can happen. Kids learn more from that then just blanket disapproval. I wish him luck and hope he learns from his mistake.