It's OK, I acted Childish

After checking to see who won the Super Bowl and rewatching Bruce Springsteen's crotch attack the camera on YouTube a couple times this morning I figured I would see if anything pressing was in the news. Something caught my eye, mainly because it was the lead story on CNN. Michael Phelps, the swimmer that won all those medals for the 3 people whom live under a stone, was photographed smoking a bong at a party. (Link)

My question from all of this is it really that big of a deal? I mean the guy is still a college kid and, based on what I've been told from numerous people who've met him at U of M, he is exactly the type of guy that would go to a party and do something like that. But still what is the big deal, millions of college kids do drugs, drink excessively, among other things everyday. Granted I never did anything like that but I would say I was an exception for the most part. I really do think most college kids experiment with stuff they were always told not to do. 

The one thing that does irritate me though is that Phelps will walk away from this without consequence because he released a statement saying that his behaviour was regrettable. If an average college kid were to get caught doing this he or she could face jail time, several fines, and a mark on their record. I still don't think smoking pot is that big of a deal, but I do think it's a big deal that a so called celebrity won't face the same consequences an average person would. 

Why should celebrities be treated any differently than anyone else, especially athletes since they are only famous because they were able to play a kid's game well? Like I said people who smoke pot are the least of my worries and I don't really care what you do. But there are laws stating that it's illegal to use marijuana and if you are caught you have to face the consequences whether they are right, wrong or indifferent. But hey Phelps is famous and can swim fast so a statement saying that he acted childish is good enough right?