Collateral damage from the Michael Phelps incident

Last week a photo of Michael Phelps with a bong circulated in the tabloids and on the 'net. The party occurred in Columbia, South Caroline, where the local sheriff, Leon Lott, has now decided to get involved.

Lott says the picture indicated a law was being broken in his jurisdiction. He said he couldn't ignore the violation just because Phelps is rich and famous.

... since investigators began trying to build a case, they've made eight arrests: seven for drug possession and one for distribution. These are arrests that resulted as the sheriff's department served search warrants. The owner, who wasn't even at the party, is one of the eight now charged.

So, has Michael Phelps been charged? Well... no... not exactly... no. Why not? Well, let's let Governor Mark Sanford explain the reason for charging everyone except Phelps...

"I don't see what it gets at this point," said Sanford.

What a bunch of hypocrites. Give me a break.

Good discussion of this at Reddit, including this observation: Phelps didn't actually admit to smoking marijuana. What he said publicly (as far as we know) is this -

I engaged in behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment. I'm 23 years old and despite the successes I've had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner people have come to expect from me. For this, I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public it will not happen again.

He admitted to "bad judgment" without specifying anything further; he could have just been posing with an empty bong.

If nothing else, what this case is doing is bring the topic of marijuana use to public discussion. Re which, see this Salon editorial.