Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps offered a classic celeb apology: Admit behaving badly while really not admitting he smoked marijuana. Blame youth/inexperience/Satan. Promise to reform. Something short of "I didn't inhale." His semipublic embrace of a bong is news if he presents himself as the anti-drug athlete. Otherwise, no, it isn't. However, the aftermath is news: renewed and canceled endorsements, suspension from competitive swimming and Mayberry cops investigating whether to charge him with a crime (they ended up not charging him).  

A day after a national survey determined that most of America dislikes Cincinnati as much as those of us who live here, Mayor Mark Mallory came out and said, "Naw man, that survey ain't right." Only 13 percent of the 2,260 people surveyed said they'd like to live in Cincinnati, placing the Queen City 28th out of 30 cities, ahead of only fellow-dying Midwestern towns Cleveland and Detroit.