I post it here simply for the purpose of saying: big freaking deal.

RTFA: http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/news/150832/14-tim…

In our exclusive photo Michael Phelps, who won a record EIGHT gold medals for swimming at the Beijing games last summer, draws from a bong.

The glass pipes are generally used to smoke cannabis.

…that said, here’s the “proof”

[UPDATE 2009-02-01]
RTFA: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5…

Olympic great Michael Phelps has acknowledged “regrettable” behavior and “bad judgment” after a photo in a British newspaper showed him smoking marijuana.

In a statement released to The Associated Press, the swimmer who won a record eight gold medals at the Beijing Games conceded the authenticity of the exclusive picture published Sunday by the tabloid News of the World.

Phelps said: “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.”

This dude currently holds the human record for the most gold medals won in swimming at the Olympic Games. It makes you wonder about the veracity of the anti-marijuana propaganda, that’s for sure.
[/UPDATE]

RTFA: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-…

The government of Iceland today became the first to be effectively brought down by the credit crunch.

After several nights of rioting over the financial crisis, Prime Minister Geir Haarde, surrendered to increasing pressure and called a general election for May.

A poll would not normally be held until 2011.

Haarde also revealed that he had been diagnosed with a malignant tumour of the oesophagus and would not seek re-election.

‘I have decided not to seek re-election as leader of the Independence Party at its upcoming national congress,’ he told a news conference.

The global financial crisis hit Iceland, which has a population 320,000, in October, triggering a collapse in its currency and financial system under the weight of billions of dollars of foreign debts incurred by its banks

I love the sound of “first to be brought down…” That sort of anthropomorphic language nearly establishes the “credit crunch” as a sovereign and sentient being, just as much as it suggests that other governments might be toppled by risky financial practices. Fortunately, in a country so small, it should be a relatively simple task to audit the financial transactions and speculation that led up to this situation, right? After all, this “credit crunch” is as much the actions of people as it is the current willingness of people to lend to one another. In other words, it’s all people doing these things, not some strange non-human third-party.