n t t t t t t t n t t t t t t t tThe Rise of Fake Pot n t t t t t t t n t t t t t t tSubscribe n t t t t t tMillennials The Me Me Me GenerationBarbara Brown Taylor Faces the Darkness

Because it showed me that America still had some progress to make. On equality, and understanding that it doesn u2019t matter what color you are, you treat people as people. And whether a good person or a bad person, you don u2019t judge them off the color of their skin. You can know a person is a good person or a bad person by who they are, not by what they look like. In that situation, it just seems like a lot of people gave him a lot of flack, well deserved, but you know I feel like a lot more people were surprised then they should have been. n

That’s why a lot of people shy away from the conversation that I forced on us in January. People want to it to be done, they want that uncomfortable truth to be over with, they want the racism to be done, they want to believe everything is great and hunky dory. And it’s not. There u2019s a lot of racism still alive and still active. And it just forced America to rethink it once again. And to really, really understand that racism isn u2019t gone. We have to actively push it out. And snuff it out. n

NBA commissioner Adam Silver banned Donald Sterling for life. Do you think if an NFL owner made similar comments, would commissioner Roger Goodell react in the same way, and do you think an owner would be banned for life? n

No I don u2019t. Because we have an NFL team called the Redskins. I don u2019t think the NFL really is as concerned as they show. The NFL is more of a bottom line league. If it doesn u2019t effect their bottom line, they u2019re not as concerned. n

Do you hope the Sterling incident can be a touchstone to force some change on the Redskins issue? n

I would hope it would help. It’d help reinitiate the conversation. And at least there would be another discussion. You know, I think the discussion has stopped. And the public has just accepted it. And I think there should be more conversations. But it is what it is. n

You u2019re confident that the NFL would not have reacted like the NBA did because they already have a team name like the Redskins. So to you, that says a lot, right? n

It does. It says a whole lot. n

Thursday marks the start of the NFL Draft. What was that experience like for you back in 2011? Seattle selected you with its 23rd pick in the 5th round. Did you expect to go higher? n

I was excited when I got the call. But I was definitely disappointed, I fell so late. I was told by multiple teams that I would go earlier on the second day NOTE when the second and third round selections are announced . I was called on the second day. And teams said they would bring me. And nothing transpired. So that was disappointing. You feel like teams lie to you. And so it was an emotional roller coaster. During days like that, when you expect to get picked on the second day, the time to wait for the third day feels like you u2019re waiting years. And when it finally comes, and you don u2019t get picked the whole fourth round, then it feels like an eternity. Where you u2019re like, ‘Oh, my God, am I not going to get picked at all? Was it all for naught? It it done?’ Then you finally get picked, and it u2019s you know, all those worries go away for a second. n

Are you surprised the draft has become such a huge live event, where people travel from all over the country to New York City just to hear Roger Goodell read names? Last year, I met a Dolphins fan who flew all the way from Panama to be there. n

Yeah, I mean it u2019s kind of crazy, man. It u2019s kind of crazy. The amount of coverage and the amount of attention it gets. Because it u2019s a day where you can watch it at home and see the same results. Probably get a better shot of it. It u2019s really surreal. And I mean, I really can u2019t imagine why people would go watch it. n

Since everyone seems to have an opinion on Johnny Football (Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel), have to ask do you think he’ll be a good NFL player? n

I have no idea to tell you the truth. I u2019ve seen him play. I think he u2019s a great player. And he did a great job in college. You know, it can translate very well into the NFL and you can have the next Brett Favre, the next great quarterback. Or it cannot transfer well. You never know until they put pads on, and step onto an NFL field. We u2019ve seen a lot of average college players turn into great NFL players. We u2019ve seen great college players turn into great NFL players. We u2019ve seen great college players turn into terrible NFL players. So you really never can guess how the game u2019s going to translate until he goes out there and puts it on tape. n

So you u2019re not one of those guys who’s automatically convinced he’s going to be an overhyped bust? n

No. Because I u2019m one of the guys that believes you u2019re gonna be who you will yourself to be. So if he believes he u2019s going to be a great quarterback, and he puts in the work, who u2019s to stop him? I mean, they say his size. But I u2019ve sat here and watched Russell Wilson win a Super Bowl. n

Do you think college players, particularly big stars like Manziel, should be paid? n

I do. I think even if they were paid an hourly wage, it u2019d be quite an improvement from what they get. And you know, I understand the arguments about they u2019re getting their education paid for, they u2019re this that and the other, but there are people on academic scholarships that don u2019t have to deal with any extra rigors. They get their education paid for. And they don u2019t have to deal with eight hours a day of football, and you know, if you mess up your knee you u2019ve got to deal with two hours of rehab everyday. So that u2019s 10 hours of your day gone, and there u2019s only 24 in a day. So, if they just gave him an hourly wage, even if they gave him 10 bucks, 12 bucks an hour, that u2019d be a vast improvement over what they got now. n

How do you think an NFL team will react to having Michael Sam, the draft prospect from Missouri who announced he was gay back in February, in its locker room? n

I think it u2019ll play out just fine. I think that u2019s a big deal being made about nothing. I don u2019t think guys will make a big deal about it in the locker room. I think he u2019ll be fine. You know, the thing that’ll hurt him is if he doesn u2019t play well. If he doesn u2019t play well, it doesn u2019t matter if you u2019re straight, gay, or indifferent. If you can u2019t play, you can u2019t play. You can play, you play. And the NFL is a real bottom line league. And that u2019s the bottom line. n

You attended the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, and got a shoutout from President Obama. What was that like? n

I was in awe. It was hilarious after I got past the shock. But it was an incredibly surreal experience for me, to get shouted out by the president. n

How would you characterize these last few months, since your post game interview, the firestorm it caused, and the Super Bowl win? n

It u2019s been a whirlwind. A lot of apprearances. A lot of attention. A lot of people wanting to get your opinion about things, and it u2019s just something you u2019ve got to accept, and something that you have to temper a little bit. You have to temper your emotions and try to stay stable. And also try top stay on your routine. n

Did you learn any lessons from that whole experience, being in the media firestorm and sparking a heated national conversation because of the interview? n

It showed me how fleeting opinions are. And how opinions and people u2019s choices and I guess criticisms are rarely based in fact. A lot of times they are knee jerk reactions, a lot of times they u2019re based off of media perception, you know, what they can see on the surface. Surface perception. And that a lot of people don u2019t take time to delve deep into things before they make an opinion, or make a criticism or mak
e a remark. And that u2019s OK. That u2019s the society we live in, it is what it is, you have to accept it. n

Do you have any regrets about the interview? n

I don u2019t. Because I said exactly what I meant to say. Truthfully, I expected it to get some attention, but I didn u2019t expect it to overshadow the performances of the game. And us winning the NFC championship. I didn u2019t think the media would take it that far, but they did. And so once they took it there, we had to change the discourse. But, um, yeah, I was frustrated that a lot of people didn u2019t acknowledge the great game that safety Kam Chancellor played, the great game that linebacker Bobby Wagner played, running back Marshawn Lynch had a good game, wide receiver Doug Baldwin had huge catches the whole game, and wide receiver Jermaine Kearse made the catch to put us ahead. And you know those are the things that frustrated me a little bit about the incident. n

Have you had any contact with Michael Crabtree at all? n

I have not. n

Has he reached out to you, or you reached out to him, or neither. n

Neither. n

You’re starring in a new ad campaign for Oberto, the beef jerky brand. One ad touts the athletic training benefits of beef jerky. Gotta say, I’ve never associated beef jerky with athletic training. n

(Laughs) Oberto beef jerky is all natural, it u2019s a great source of protein. I mean we eat all these protein bars, with a bunch of sugar and a bunch of calories. Oberto, it u2019s just a good, I guess, substitute for that sometimes. You don u2019t want to always put a bunch of sugar in you. Because your sugar gets high, it gets stuck in your blood, it gets stuck in your system. It makes you tired. You have the ups and downs. So it u2019s a great substitute to be a little healthier. n

But you can understand my reaction? n

I definitely could. I definitely could understand your reaction, man. But I also like their slogan. “You Get Out What You Put In.” I mean, that applies to ball, that applies to all walks of life. And thought that that really meshed well with football and what we like to do. But I can definitely see your reaction n

(This interview has been condensed and edited) n

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“,”section” “name” “Sports”,”slug” “sports”,”url” “http / / /sports /” ,”tag” “name” “NFL”,”slug” “nfl”,”url” “http / / /tag /nfl /” ,”tags” “donald sterling Michael Crabtree NFL Richard Sherman Roger Goodell Seattle Seahawks”,”hero” “class” “landscape”,”thumbnail” “http / / / /2014 /04 / “,”src” “small” “http / / /2014 /04 / “,”small 2x” “http / / /2014 /04 / “,”large” “http / / /2014 /04 / “,”large 2x” “http / / /2014 /04 / ” ,”credit” “Jonathan Ferrey u2014Getty Images”,”caption” “Sherman at the NFC championship ngame on Jan. 19, before the interview that made him famous.”,”alt” “Richard Sherman” ,”id” 91291,”encoded url” “http%3A%2F% “,”encoded shortlink” “http%3A%2F% “,”encoded title” “Richard Sherman%3A The NFL Would Not Have Banned A Donald Sterling For Life”,”twitter text” “Richard%20Sherman%3A%20NFL%20wouldn%27t%20have%20banned%20Sterling”,”twitter via” “TIME”,”email title” “Richard%20Sherman%3A%20The%20NFL%20Would%20Not%20Have%20Banned%20A%20Donald%20Sterling%20For%20Life%20%7C%20TIME”,”email body” “Richard%20Sherman%3A%20The%20NFL%20Would%20Not%20Have%20Banned%20A%20Donald%20Sterling%20For%20Life%0A%0AThe%20Seattle%20Seahawks%20star%20and%20TIME%20100%20honoree%2C%20who%20just%20signed%20a%20%2456%20million%20contract%20extension%2C%20talks%20about%20the%20upcoming%20NFL%20Draft%2C%20the%20lessons%20from%20his%20famous%20post game%20interview%2C%20and%20why%20the%20NFL%20would%20react%20differently%20if%20it%20had%20its%20own%20Donald%20Sterling.%0A%0Ahttp%3A%2F% “,”omniture” rr partner , “url” “http / / /91893 /chinese journalist arrested crackdown tiananmen anniversary /”,”right now” true,”shortlink” “http / / /1jhj7jV”,”title” “Chinese Journalist Arrested Amid Crackdown for Tiananmen Anniversary”,”post type” “post”,”comments allowed” true,”short title” “Top Chinese Journalist Detained”,”excerpt” “Chinese journalist Gao Yu, 70, has been placed under “criminal detention ” since April 24 for allegedly leaking state secrets, ahead of the 25th anniversary of the June 4, 1989 massacre at Beijing’s Tiananmen Square”,”format” “article”,”time” “pretty” “1 31 AM ET”,”published” “2014 05 08 01 31 08″,”updated” “2014 05 08 05 31 08″,”minute” “1 31 am”,”short” “1 31 AM ET” ,”authors” “id” 208661111,”url” “http / / /author /charlie campbell /”,”name” “Charlie Campbell”,”twitter” “charliecamp6ell”,”gplus” “”,”email” “”,”thumbnail” null,”bio” “

TIME Writer Reporter focusing on Southeast Asia. n” ,”content” “

A veteran Chinese journalist has been detained by police in Beijing on charges of leaking state secrets to a foreign website, just weeks ahead of the 25th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre. n

Gao Yu, 70, was placed under “criminal detention” on April 24, China u2019s official news agency Xinhua said, after her home in the capital was raided. n

State broadcaster CCTV showed a woman reported to be Gao, but whose face was blurred, apparently confessing to the crimes and expressing remorse. n

“I think what I did touched on the law and endangered the interests of the nation. What I have done was very wrong,” the woman said. “I have sincerely learned my lesson and also wish to admit guilt.” n

Her arrest is the latest incident in a crackdown on dissident voices ahead of the politically sensitive June 4 anniversary. Gao was herself imprisoned immediately before the 1989 massacre of pro democracy demonstrators, in which hundreds of people were killed. n

Refillable electronic cigarettes face eu ban

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The European Union has struck a deal which could curb the booming market in electronic cigarettes and lead to an EU wide ban on a popular version of the nicotine device.

In hard fought negotiations between the 28 governments of the EU and the European parliament, both sides agreed on Tuesday that refillable e cigarettes could be banned across Europe if three countries decided on prohibition.

The parliament, under intense lobbying from the tobacco industry, took a more liberal line than the European commission, which proposed that e cigarettes be legislated for in the same way as pharmaceuticals. That was rejected in the compromise, but individual countries were left free to regulate e cigarettes as medicines.

Governments also took a more restrictive position on the issue and could still try to reverse some of the agreed elements. Ambassadors from the 28 countries will meet on Wednesday to decide whether to accept the compromise or return to negotiations.

The issue of e cigarettes quickly became the most contentious aspect of new EU rules on the packaging and sales of tobacco products, although the electronic devices contain no tobacco.

Public health warnings and graphic images of the damage done by smoking are to cover two thirds of cigarette packaging, and cigarette flavourings are to be proscribed, if gradually phased out.

Martin Callanan, leader of the Conservatives in the European parliament, said “This is a perverse decision that risks sending more people back to real, more harmful, cigarettes. Refillable e cigarettes would almost certainly be banned, and only the weakest products will be generally available. As many smokers begin on stronger e cigs and gradually reduce their dosage, making stronger e cigs harder to come across will encourage smokers to stay on tobacco.”

The key question centred on the impact of e cigarettes and whether they encouraged people to start smoking or whether they weaned nicotine addicts off tobacco.

“It’s inhaled. It’s direct inhalation of nicotine into the lungs. That creates an addiction very fast,” said a senior diplomat involved in the negotiations. “It encourages a switch to real cigarettes.”

The European e cigarettes market is currently estimated at 2bn ( 1.7bn), but it is growing fast, with approximately seven million users.

In the UK some 1.3 million of an estimated current 10 million smokers have switched to the electronic devices. Celebrity endorsements and social media are attracting young people to use e cigarettes in large numbers, according to a recent report commissioned by Cancer Research UK.

But public health experts are sharply divided about the devices some argue that they could substantially cut deaths from tobacco currently 100,000 annually in the UK while others warn they will only glamorise smoking, especially among the young.

One study of 657 smokers, published in the Lancet last month, found that e cigarettes worked as well as nicotine patches in helping people stop smoking within six months.

France, which has an estimated 1.5 million e cigarette users, is currently pondering a ban, but a mayor in Normandy has already introduced a local ban.

The EU agreement allows e cigarettes with a nicotine content below 20mg/ml to be regulated for general sale, rather than treating them as medicinal products. Governments had demanded a 3mg/ml limit.

The deal, however, lets individual governments regulate the cigarettes as medicinal products if they choose.

Refillable cartridges became the biggest sticking point, with the parliament threatening to veto the legislation if replacement sales were banned. On refillable e cigarettes, the compromise allows cartridges of 1ml of liquid containing up to 20mg of nicotine. But governments will be able to ban refillable e cigarettes and if three countries do so, then the commission is empowered to impose a blanket prohibition across the EU.

“This will lead to another ridiculous ban from the EU on the majority of e cigarettes which are better for the health of smokers and for British manufacturers of e cigarettes,” said Nigel Farage, the UK Independence party leader and MEP. “The EU should not be putting restrictions on a safer alternative to smoking.”

Carly Schlyter, a Green MEP and public health spokesman, said “Member states will be free to decide whether they want to subject them to authorisation as medicines or apply new rules that should ensure the quality and safety of these products. Either way should ensure that e cigarettes can be used safely to help smokers stop smoking, and not act as a gateway for non smokers.”

Rebecca Taylor, a Lib Dem MEP, said the possible ban on refillable cartridges could push consumers back to tobacco.

“This the exact opposite of what the tobacco directive is supposed to achieve. The fight is now on to show that it would not be justifiable to ban refillable cartridges on health and safety grounds.”

This article was amended on 19 December 2013 to change the word “will” to “could” in the subheading.