JUST SAY NO TO FOR-PROFIT POT SHOPS

For-Profit Pot a Mistake

In 2000, I voted for the constitutional amendment that allowed
marijuana to be used, with a physician's advice, as a treatment option.

Like many people in Colorado, I felt that those people who had a
debilitating disease such as M.S., Lou Gehrig's disease, HIV-AIDS or
the like should be allowed to use any treatment option that would
help to alleviate the effects of those diseases.

I was confident in the knowledge that should a loved one or friend or
any other Coloradoan truly need marijuana as a treatment option, they
could obtain it by growing their own or through not for-profit
care-givers as envisioned in Amendment 20. For seven years that model
of not for-profit care-givers and growing your own marijuana worked.

Up until 2007, the Colorado Medical Marijuana registry had
approximately 1,700 patients who were well served by the system in place.

Since 2008, when for-profit marijuana dispensaries started to open,
the Colorado Marijuana registry has swelled to 159,559 "patients" today.

According to the Colorado Department of Health Medical Marijuana
Registry, the majority (68 percent) of "patients" are male with an
average age of 41, and the fastest growing age group for debilitating
disease is the 22 to 35 year age group.

Over 83,000 "patients" have received cards for severe pain, followed
by 15,518 for muscle spasms, and 10,804 for nausea. All three of
these numbers are significantly higher than the total medical
marijuana patient count up until 2008.

Over the last 16 months there have been two instances where local
students were found in possession of marijuana that had originally
been purchased at the local Eagle dispensary.

Since a for-profit marijuana dispensary opened in Eagle, the number
of marijuana related police contacts has increased each year at both
area middle schools and Eagle Valley High School.

Adolescent use of drugs increases as acceptability and access
increase. I didn't and I don't believe most people envisioned a
for-profit dispensary system to deliver medical marijuana.

If the dispensary in Eagle is voted down on Jan. 3, patients in and
around Eagle will still be able to receive marijuana from
not-for-profit caregivers or to grow their own. I don't believe a
for-profit marijuana dispensary makes Eagle a better place.

I urge Eagle citizens to vote "no" on Jan. 3.

Kraige Kinney

Eagle