It seems a shame to have created a sports tag and then never use it, for no better reason than all sports everywhere are shit. With this in mind I present this: the letter Michael Phelps should have written after being caught smoking pot. It's a pretty good assault on drug laws, institutional injustice, and hypocritical busy-bodies, which is an impressive amount to cram in. And I have to admit, the "dangers of professional athleticism" isn't really something I've thought of before.
There are a few things in the letter I might take exception to, if I sat down and parsed it all, but as a rant it holds together pretty well.
h/t to LGM.
4 comments:
The letter does have good ponits to make but the links to the stories of police brutality are laughably one sided (including the one debated for many hours on here once before.
Also conviently doesn't mention the deep damage the drug can do to people on an emotional and mental level.
So yes, fair enough the 'ol dope is a very strange place legally but things are quite as draconian as painted in the rant. Which I accept is fair enough since it's a rant, but just thought I'd mention it.
Fair enough. I didn't actually check out any of the links, since I didn't really think it was the kind of thing that gained anything from careful sourcing.
As to deep emotional/mental damage, I'm not sure how much of that is still up in the air, but in any case I'm sure the author would argue (probably quite convincingly) that decrying any potential psychological damage while effectively cheering on physical harm is still a pretty strange way to go about things.
I don't disagree but these kind of things often try to paint the drug has being totally harmless, when it is at least on the level of alcohol.
It's all one of those silly press whipped up moral storms the whole story really. I'm imagine there will be a slapping of wrists and little else in the end.
"They" do, it's true. This one doesn't, though. The central point is that dope might be bad for you, but so is his job that so many people idolise him for. If it's his right to choose to push his body to the max swimming, why is smoking pot wrong?
Post a Comment