Political Communication blog

When I heard that Michael Phelps had acted in such an immature manner I was so disappointed. Whether he wants it or not he is very much in the public eye including the eyes of young children. I know that everyone makes mistakes, but I am disappointed in his actions and the reactions of the American public.

I wish that for once (which I thought he would live up to) there would be a "celebrity" that could be a good role model for the young children that look up to them.
 

There are plenty of celebrities that make good role models, but we rarely think of those and instead focus on the ones considered "bad." Just right off the top of my head, I can think of like the Mannings (Peyton and Eli) for sports, Tom Hanks for actors, Ron Howard for a child actor that grew up normal, etc.

In every community, there are local figures that make good role models as well. Some of our MSU sports figures are probably good role models, and I know some of them visit the local elementary schools.

Speaking of, our MSU Lady Dogs are playing at The Hump tonight, and could use all the support they can get. Hardly anyone goes to women's games, which is a shame, and I think the kids in the area are missing out on a really good opportunity to see positive role models for girls. Tell your friends, and tell them to bring their kids if they have any. :)
 

I think Michael Phelps was not very smart about his extracurricular activities. Everyone makes mistakes but they way the public handled it was amazing. Everyone’s reaction was so calm and nonchalant about it. People are so use to celebrities that mess up so they weren't that concerned with him smoking weed. The whole situation was made better by him coming out and telling everyone that he messed up and he was sorry. I think if he didn't do that then people might have reacted differently. It was a good move on his part.
 

A few points:

1. If you choose to smoke pot and are a public figure of some sort, do it in the comfort of your own home with people you know and trust. Dont do it in a crowd at a college party. Thats stupid. A better solution would be not to do it at all. But if you must, be private about it.

2. The kid is 23. He might seem to be a hero when swimming on television, but in real life, he is the age of a college student. We all make mistakes.

3. Can you be prosecuted for being caught smoking pot in a picture? For example, that certain picture that was taken did not prove he was smoking pot. There was no visible marijuana. For the record, it is not against the law to smoke pot. It is against the law to possess/sell pot.

4. How can they touch his medals? The IOC has no right to touch the medals he earned.
 

I was also shocked when I saw the photographs of Michael Phelps smoking pot. But, at the same time he is just a human being and nobody is perfect. I feel like he could have been a little smarter about it, if he is going to go to the great lenghts to even do it at all. I understand that he is still young and makes mistakes, but he has to realize he is a huge public figure now. I don't feel like no one cared about his actions in fact it probably hurt many of his fans. I also don't feel like this is any form of a step towards the legalization of marijuana.
 

I agree with Robert. The guy is 23, you cant expect him to do no wrong just because he's a public figure. Like some of the others have said, he should have been smart with it and did it privately. In the public eye he's going to put on this act but behind close doors(well what should have been)he's just like the average person doing his own thing. There are a lot of actors, actresses, singers, rappers, athletes etc. that smoke weed. And the thing is some of them they are much older then he is. I can expect that coming from him because he's young. There's nothing about this story that surprises me. The only thing I can say he was silly for doing was not being smart about it. Lets be real. Smoking weed is not right but you have to realize people are going to do what makes them happy and if smoking weed makes him happy he's going to continue to do it and you cant tell most adults what to do and how to live there lives because in the end there going to do what they want anyways. He just knows next time what to do and what not to do. I mean this doesn't make him a bad person because even good people make mistakes. As long as you come out and apologize and admit that you were wrong and be sincere about it, the American people will seem to be more forgiving.
 

I think it is rather interesting that most people don't think it's a big deal. I happen to be one of those people. Our president has said that he used to partake frequently and it basically wasn't an issue. In the 92 campaign it was a pretty big deal when Clinton said he smoked but didn't inhale. I don't know if you can completely attribute this to Obama's ability to inoculate the situation. Honestly, I think most people don't find pot to be that big of a deal...even though some obviously, do...especially in comparison to some other things. I also find it interesting that a number of referenda concerning the legalization of medical marijuana were all passed in the recent election. If I'm not mistaken all of them were...yet all of the referenda concerning the restriction gay rights were also passed. We live in an interesting country.
 

Most people don't consider it that big a deal because, in my opinion, to most people it just isn't an issue. Probably most of us adults have tried it. It's a substance that's been considered illegal for only a tiny fraction of the history of human civilization, while being in use for thousands of years. It's pretty much a naturally-occurring substance. And the U.S. is on the downward slope of an arc of hysteria over the use of marijuana that began and peaked only just in the last century.

I personally don't care for it, and worry about the reaction times of anybody using it and driving on the same road as me and my family, for example. But, I think (and I'm just guessing here, but I don't think I'm wrong) it is far less devastating than another deadly, but perfectly legal substance, which is of course alcohol.

It almost seems hypocritical to prosecute marijuana so harshly while alcohol is perfectly legal.
 

I could not believe the media tried to blow this story up so big. The guy is not going to be perfect and he is cursed by being in the public eye. I do not feel that this will make any major changes in the legalization of marijuanna.