Jim Belushi Reportedly Busted with Marijuana at Martha’s Vineyard Airport

Celebrities and marijuana are not something Martha’s Vineyard residents generally blink at. We’re used to both, and often in combination. So when TMZ released information today that Jim Belushi was caught last week at the with, “A marijuana cigarette on the actor's person,” there wasn’t much we were concerned with. Especially since that amount of marijuana has been decriminalized in Massachusetts and is more along the lines of a speeding ticket than an arrestable offence. Belushi was left with a warning and the joint was confiscated.

However, the fact that TMZ referred to our little airport as, “the uppity Martha's Vineyard airport” certainly has people talking.

“To be honest, that was the only part I took issue with,” said Martha’s Vineyard Airport manager Sean Flynn. “We cater to a very few famous people. The vast majority of folks who come through this airport are working people and visitors.”

According to Flynn, who was raised on the Island, getting over the image of being a well funded airport is a struggle when it comes time to apply for federal funds for projects.

“I spend more time demonstrating how we can’t afford to do major projects then anything,” said Flynn. “People who don’t live here don’t understand that we are not a rich, affluent community.”

According to the Island Plan, published in 2009 by the Martha’s Vineyard Commission states that, “The Island’s wages are 27 percent below the state’s average. The cost of living is about 70percent higher than the national average and 26 percent higher than Boston.”

As Flynn put it, “It’s hardly lifestyles of the rich and famous. Nobody's getting rich living on Martha's Vineyard year round.”