Michael Phelps, You are off the Hook!

Well Mike Phelps, you are no longer a big news story. The media and I have latched onto a better story, the story of Yankees star, Alex Rodriguez, who when when you google Mr. April through September, his name is first on the list. Mr. Rodriguez is an immensely talented baseball player, you cannot take that away from him. However, unlike Michael Phelps (or known facts about Michael Phelps) A-Rod cheats. He used steroids to give him that competitive edge. 

Alex Rodriguez' much publicized mea culpa was just a cheap way to head it off at the pass. He expected forgiveness for his transgressions, but it pretty much blew up in his face. The element he did not take into consideration is the fact that he is a regular asshole. He has been called A-Fraud and A-roid, Stray Rod, and other such disrespectful handles that one ought to think there might be something to it. 

Even the ever-hopeful and classically serious President of the United States was pretty pissed off about it.

"And if you're a fan of Major League Baseball, I think it tarnishes an entire era, to some degree. And it's unfortunate, because I think there are a lot of ballplayers who played it straight."

One thing we have to take into consideration when we evaluate the contents of Mr. Rodriguez' soul is the fact that he had a lot of pressure on him to perform for his unprecedented contract. He had a lot to live up to, and depending on who you talk to, he failed. His post season performance is dismal, and he has really done something that we all have expected.

Now that he has had his little come to Jeebus meeting, I think we all can move on. He will have an asterisk next to his name.

Michael Phelps got ratted out for smoking the reefer. Not exactly a performance enhancing substance. People were all up in arms and Kellogg's took away his endorsement deals. Which is absolute bullshit. He did not tarnish the image of competitive swimming in the way that steroids have indelibly marked baseball. He smoked the weeds. The kids who look up to Mike Phelps are not going to make their pot decisions based on his actions for several reasons:

a. It does not help athletic performance.

b. It is illegal.

c. They have all heard the terrific "Above the Influence" commercials

Now, steroids have a few simple facts behind them including:

a. if used properly, reduce injuries and healing time

b. enhance performance

c. rapidly builds muscle mass

d. they are almost a prerequisite for superstardom in MLB

A-Rod used steroids and got away with it for 8 years. If it was not for the Canseco Effect, it never would have come to light. He is still rich, and still wearing pinstripes.

 Mike Phelps got caught with some reefer and lost his lucrative endorsement deals. He got railroaded for doing something millions of Americans do every day. It may be illegal, but it is not morally reprehensible on the level of shooting chemicals into your butt cheeks that make titanic home runs more and more pedestrian.