TheBongPlace: The Marijuana Blog

With a lung capacity that helped him set seven world records in the 2008 Olympics, Michael Phelps had to have been higher than anyone at that party.

Phelps probably sucked the whole bowl down in one hit and held it in for a full minute. Maybe that’s why someone felt compelled to sell the photo: When a multimillionaire burns through half your stash in one bong-load, maybe you feel a bit taken advantage of.

The difference is that Phelps sobered up afterward. But his fellow party-goer must have still been high when he or she sold the photo of the 16 medal winning Olympic champion to The News of the World for what’s rumored to have been $5,000 without demanding syndication rights.

To be fair, he or she may not have known that the story would become the sensation that it has. How could smoking pot be such a big deal? In the United States, our last three presidents have admitted to drug use. Time estimates that 42% of Americans have smoked pot. I don’t know who the other 58% are.

It’s no wonder with sites like Celebrity Skin, a site that sells the fecal matter of the stars, reports that the owner of the bong tried to sell it on e-Bay for $100,000. Maybe this is the same person who sold the photo, realizing their folly and trying to make a final effort at fortune.

Now, eight people (the bong owner among them) have been arrested. The talking heads are going nuts, stumbling over each other to seem more scandalized with every bit of “news” they manufacture and release.

Only in America could this happen. Here are six reasons why:

It started in England.

The Brits know a scandal when they see one. The News of the World publishes a couple of paragraphs about Michael Phelps smoking weed and we just run with it.

Banners run on the bottom of the screen on CNN and MSNBC, saying things like, “Sheriff investigates whether Michael Phelps smoked pot,” and “8 people arrested in connection with SC party Michael Phelps attended.”

No wonder no one takes Americans seriously.

Our news outlets cover an incident of marijuana smoking with nearly the same fervor that they do mass murders on college campuses. Don’t believe me? Check out this “Breaking News.”

Those Brits sure know how to sell us back to ourselves. It may be a sort of revenge for overtaking their colonies, but they know us. Now listen as the slot machine pays out heavy to The News of the World for those photo rights.

We prefer fake to real.

Boobs, lips, flavoring, wood paneling, flowers, Viagra, Astroturf, top 40 music, bleach blondes, Christmas trees, fingernails, Velveeta, fur: fake, fake, fake. Better than the real thing– just like our news.

Sure, there’s the issue of the economy. Sure, wildfires are raging out of control in Australia. Sure, bombs are killing people in Baghdad and cholera is affecting thousands in Zimbabwe.

But MICHAEL PHELPS SMOKED WEED! AND SOMEONE TRIED TO SELL THE BONG!

We love to tear down the hero.

Nothing’s better than someone we admire screwing up and getting their ass handed to them: Eliot Spitzer, Britney Spears, Michael Jackson, Tonya Harding, Bill Clinton, Mel Gibson, Michael Richards, Larry Craig, Britney Spears again.

Not everyone admired any of these people, but significantly fewer did after the “news” about them broke.

In the United States, there’s nothing better than seeing someone successful screw up. It’s gratifying to people to see that rich, successful people do stupid things. Bring that celeb down to life size and you’re guaranteed to sell advertising time on your network.

We don’t really care about the corporate stranglehold on our culture.

Visa and Kellogg and Speedo and Mazda all get press. Kellogg gets the most because they are willing to condemn Phelps’ dastardly marijuana smoking ways.

Phelps loses one million dollars and Kellogg gets its name on the news several times a day. Free advertising for them and a small loss for Phelps (all things considered).

Now people can debate whether Kellogg is wrong or right and another news item is born. There’s a movement afoot to boycott Kellogg over its unethical treatment of our American treasure.

Meanwhile, Kellogg gets to come out smelling “gr-e-a-at!”.

We pretend to care about drugs being illegal.

If Phelps had been using TGH or some other designer steroid that could make the viewing public feel ripped off for believing in him, perhaps there would be some actual scandal to this “scandal.”

By all accounts, pot is a performance decreasing drug rather than the reverse. Despite Time’s claim that 48% of Americans have tried pot, it’s really more surprising to meet someone who has never smoked pot.

Why do we pretend to care?

Maybe the only thing stopping every marijuana advocate and midnight toker out there from using this “incident” to claim pot is more beneficial than as a nausea cure is that Phelps could not have been using any drugs at all during his victory sweep. He was regularly tested for all drugs throughout any competitive season.

We like to pretend that we care about illegal drug use.

We don’t really… or we would not have elected our last three presidents.

Profit, baby.

They’re selling it and we’re buying it.

People have the luxury of being morally outraged regardless of what side they’re on in this non-issue. Phelps is just a young guy and deserves to have a little fun. He’s setting a poor example. Whoever sold that picture deserves to be tortured.

We’re celebrity obsessed and when headlines that would once have been relegated to The Enquirer are running on cable news networks, we watch and they profit. For the CNNs of this world, this is great. No foreign correspondent has to be flown to far off lands and risk life and limb to cover real news.

These networks now know they can participate in lazy tabloid style coverage and sell more advertising than they would if they were covering real news that required research or reporting.

Pure profit.

COMMUNITY CONNECTION

What do you think about the Phelps “scandal”? Is it uniquely American? Why? Why not? Share your opinions below!

Article via Matador Pulse

By Tony Newman, AlterNet
Posted on February 2, 2009, Printed on February 3, 2009
http://www.alternet.org/story/124793/

Plastered all over the Internet right now is a photo of Michael Phelps smoking marijuana out of a bong. Phelps put out a statement saying that he acted in a youthful and inappropriate way and promises it won’t happen again. Different people are weighing in on the possible impact of this photo on the gold medalist’s $100 million endorsement deals.

Here are a few of my observations on Phelps’ bong hits:

Phelps Is in Good Company

Phelps struck another blow to the myth that marijuana smokers are lazy couch potatoes. Here is the guy who has won more gold medals than anyone in history, and obviously his health and accomplishments are not hindered by smoking some pot. In addition to his swimming skills, he is a successful businessman who has turned his swimming skills into an enormous public relations platform and money generator. Successful and honorable people who have smoked some pot are all around us, from President Barack Obama to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

Phelps Apology Was Unnecessary

While Phelps’ statement said he acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, he did not pretend to have a drug problem and promise to go to rehab. So many times when celebrities are caught with drugs, they give tearful statements and promise to get help. Phelps doesn’t appear to have a drug problem, and there is no reason for him to take up valuable treatment slots if he doesn’t have a drug problem.

Does it Hurt or Help His Image?

While some “experts” are predicting that Phelps bong hits could cost him millions, I could also see it humanizing him and making him even more popular with a large section of the public. Phelps’ swimming accomplishments have always been awe-inspiring, but who could relate to the guy who swam eight hours a day and had to eat 23 hamburgers every day to compensate for the calories he burns off in training? Seeing him with his hat on backwards taking a hit made me feel like I could relate to the guy more. With half of high school seniors having tried marijuana before they graduate, it is not clear that this photo is going to disillusion his fan base.

Pot Use Doesn’t Discriminate, but Our Pot Laws Do

While society has made some progress on tolerating pot consumption, there are still many laws on the books that cause more harm than the smoking of marijuana. Close to 800,000 people were arrested for marijuana last year, and the vast majority for only possessing small amounts. Harry Levine and Deborah Small put out a report last year that found that between 1998 and 2007, New York City police arrested 374,900 people for low-level, misdemeanor marijuana offenses. That is more than eight times the number of arrests on the same charges for the previous 10-year period (between 1988 and 1997), when 45,300 people were picked up for having small amounts of marijuana.

Researchers also found stark racial disparities in who NYPD officers chose to arrest for marijuana offenses. The report found that 83 percent of those charged in these cases were black or Latino, despite equal marijuana use between whites and nonwhites. The discrepancy, the researchers asserted, is because NYPD officers stopped and frisked blacks and Latinos at a dramatically higher rate.

Once someone is convicted of a drug offense, they can lose college financial aid, food stamps, public housing and, in some cases, even voting rights. Money wasted and lives ruined … and for what?

Phelps Can Continue to be a Role Model

I like Phelps and don’t think his bong hit should hurt him. If he truly wants to be a role model, he can take his comments and platform to the next level. He can say simply, “Yes, that was me smoking marijuana, and the laws that ruin peoples’ lives for using marijuana should be debated and changed.”

Tony Newman is communications director for the Drug Policy Alliance.

© 2009 Independent Media Institute. All rights reserved.
View this story online at: http://www.alternet.org/story/124793/

Everyones seen the crazy nun bong well this is a nice collection of random bongs that I have found through out Flickr.

Sesame Street Get’s High Too!

Sesame Street Smokes Weed

Barbie Bong

Barbie Bong

God is My Bong!

Bong God

Some Cool Bong Grafitti

Bong Grafitti

Crazy Powered Bong

Powered Bong

Soccer Cup Bong - I’m really jealous of the owner of this masterpiece!

Soccer Cup Bong

Star Wars Bong

Star Wars Bong

“Whether you are a casual smoker or you are looking to buy marijuana seeds (remember - for souvenir purposes only!), you’ll inevitably come across some weird and wacky slang terms if you spend any time around marijuana smokers.

When marijuana became part of the 1960’s counterculture, it also developed its own slang and inside jokes. This is partly for practical reasons – after all, smoking marijuana is against the law (although I hasten to add that it isn’t illegal to buy marijuana seeds!) and so smokers and growers have always used euphemisms for marijuana to stay out of trouble and avoid the authorities.

But marijuana smoking slang has also developed for less practical reasons. Marijuana smokers are a community, and every community develops its own lingo. It is a way of identifying those who are in the know, sharing jokes and just having fun. And, over time, marijuana smokers have developed a truly remarkable collection of strange and wonderful slang words to describe marijuana, the act of smoking, the effects of the drug, and much more.

There are some very comprehensive marijuana slang dictionaries out there on the web, but this is a selection of some of my personal favourite euphemisms and expressions…

Assassin of Youth, n. There are (literally) hundreds of nicknames for marijuana, but this one is perhaps the most melodramatic! It is named after a 1930’s film that was intended to warn people of the dangers of marijuana, but (predictably enough) it has become a stoner movie classic (much like “Reefer Madness.”)

“You up for some fun tonight? You, me and the Assassin of Youth?”

Bogart, v. This characterful piece of slang refers to Humphrey Bogart, who seemed to go through a number of 1950’s film noirs with a cigarette permanently attached to his lower lip. To “Bogart” a joint is to hold on to it too long before passing it on.

“Hey, pass it along. Don’t Bogart that joint!”

Boxed, n. When you’ve smoked so much marijuana that you’ve lost control of your legs (like a boxer who tries to stand after being knocked out.)

“Sorry I didn’t come and see you last night. I couldn’t move, I was boxed!”

Dutch Oven, n. What happens when you smoke marijuana for a long time in a small, poorly ventilated room, a phenomenon more commonly known as hotboxing.

“We were smoking for hours in that tiny room…it was a real Dutch Oven by the end of the night.”

Four-Twenty, n, adj, v, etc. In America, Four-Twenty is more than just a piece of slang – it is a description of a way of life! No one quite knows how it started, though it is believed to have been the time of day when a group of friends would gather and smoke after school. It has now come to mean the act of smoking marijuana, an invitation to smoke, and generally stands as an exclamation that identifies you as a marijuana smoker. A person, place or even a country can be described as “420 friendly”, indicating that marijuana smoking is encouraged or at least tolerated.

Henry, n. An eighth of marijuana, named after the famous King Henry VIII.

“Did you buy much?”

“Nah, just a Henry.”

Secret Agent, n. A Secret Agent is a joint that is cunningly rolled to look like a normal cigarette or a rollup. If you spark it up, of course, it won’t pass the smell test, but it will pass a quick visual examination.

“I walked out of my house with a joint in my hand and a cop was right there! Luckily, it was a secret agent, so he didn’t notice…”

Wizard of Oz, n. An ounce of marijuana: oz is the standard abbreviation of ounce, while the “wizard” refers to the ‘magical’ properties of the substance in question.

‘No need to pick up for a while, I just brought home the Wizard of Oz.’” - Robert Kane

There are also many other name’s that this guy was just to lazy to list.

Joint, Blunt, Bong, Dank, Chronic, Buddha, Nugs, Nuggets, and I’m sure there’s many many more so feel free to help out and list the others! =D