Bursting with indignation, legions of legalize-marijuana advocates are urging a boycott of Kellogg Co., including all of its popular munchies, for deciding to cut ties with Olympic hero Michael Phelps after he was photographed with a pot pipe.
The leader of one of the biggest groups, the Marijuana Policy Project, called Kellogg’s action “hypocritical and disgusting,” and said he’d never seen his membership so angry, with more than 2,300 of them signing an online petition.
“Kellogg’s had no problem signing up Phelps when he had a conviction for drunk driving, an illegal act that could actually have killed someone,” said Rob Kampia, the group’s executive director. “To drop him for choosing to relax with a substance that’s safer than beer is an outrage, and it sends a dangerous message to young people.”
Also urging a boycott were the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, Students for Sensible Drug Policy and the Drug Policy Alliance. They encouraged their members to contact Kellogg to vent their views.
via Pro-pot group smokes Kellogg for axing Phelps – Olympic Sports- nbcsports.msnbc.com.
That’s exactly the message the general public needs to see – that a drunk driving conviction didn’t even merit a second thought, but a bong photo required immediate termination. This story is on the Associated Press now and it’s beginning to feel like that moment when the little boy cries out that the Emperor is naked. The company that makes pot smokers’ favorite munchies is dropping the world’s greatest athlete for smoking weed because the kids need the message that smoking weed will ruin your life. It’s really a hypocrisy wrapped in an irony wrapped in serendipity, isn’t it?
The reason this story won’t die (other than I won’t let it!) is because it’s vibrating on the same resonance frequency as the public’s overall rejection of this moralistic hypocrisy in general. We’ve suffered through a prostitution ring-busting governor of New York being caught with a prostitute, an anti-gay senator caught in a bathroom soliciting gay sex, and bankrupt CEOs throwing parties and paying bonuses off taxpayer bailout money while their companies tank and 3.6 million jobs have disappeared. No matter where you stand, conservative, liberal, or politically independent, there is some issue where you can no longer stand the hypocrisy. No matter where you vote, Democrat, Republican, or Other, there is someone in your own party representative of another hypocrisy.
Another thing that makes this story different than other athletes-caught-with-weed stories is that Michael Phelps, more than just about anyone in any sport you can name, is the Greatest Ever (sorry, Ali). Santonio Holmes and Plaxico Burris may be stoners who caught the last two Super Bowl winning touchdowns, but nobody is confusing them with Jerry Rice (yet). Ricky Williams runs good, but nobody’s forgotten Emmitt Smith or Walter Payton. Josh Howard is pretty good on the court, but he’s no Michael Jordan (or, perhaps, LeBron James… in a few years…). When these guys are caught, somebody can always play the “I wonder how good they might have been” card with respect to weed smoking. What do you say to the pot smoker who follows up 6 gold, 2 bronze at age 19 with 8 gold and 7 world records at age 23? (“Don’t get caught!”)
And to follow this story up with a macho sheriff going after eight people for the bong misdeeds and another Major League Liar admitting to steroid use? Please, Universe, keep it comin’
Topics: Associated Press, Boycott Kellogg's, DPA, Drug Policy Alliance, marijuana policy project, Michael Phelps, MPP, Rob Kampia, SSDP, Students for Sensible Drug Policy
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[...] of Michael Phelps. Phelps picked up a bong, so Kelloggs dropped him. NORML ups the ante by telling its members to…. umm…. oh, yeah, don’t chow down on Kellogg’s [...]