You wrote:
“Phelps’ life is disrupted only because someone decided to publicize it, someone else in power decided to make an issue of it, and others decided to use him as an example.”
No. None of this could ever have happened if Phelps didn’t smoke pot. That’s key. Period.
And it wouldn’t have happened if pot were legal or if the person who took the picture didn’t try to make money off another person’s celebrity or if there wasn’t a market for rejoicing in other people’s mistakes/lives.
He’s an olympic athlete and I admire his athleticism and as long as he’s not taking performance enhancing drugs I’ll continue to admire his swimming. He’s not an elected or appointed official in my government or church. What he does in his personal life is none of my business.