SandBox Comments: Glenwood Springs Post Independent "Valley teen: Marijuana is ‘widely available'"

Any one else noticing all the new reporter and outside contributors over on the Glenwood Springs Post Independent?

So far, they're terrific!  Over the past few weeks they've been rolling out with strong reporting, fresh content and features.  If the PI isn't careful, they just might become more than the filler for packing boxes and the first fast scan of the day before one reaches for the Times and the Daily.

'SandBox Nanny' dedicates her roundup of this story to the City of Glenwood Springs attorney Jan Shute, Glenwood Springs City Councilman Leo McKinney and local Mary Rippy.

McKinney  for what can only be described, if you watch all he has ever said on MMJ, as his rabid pushing and bullying to bring and keep medical marijuana businesses and operations alive in Glenwood Springs.

Shute for her utter and complete failure to meet, what should be her first and foremost concern in all she does, the security and protection from legal liability of the citizenry.  After spending literally a few years working on drafting law, Shute's work does not even cover the protection of city employees handling MMJ issues let alone protect the folks from liability.

And finally, to local Mary Rippy.  For not only being right.  But for standing up. 


Rebecca Jones:
Editor's note: The following article is part of a collaborative effort by HealthPolicySolutions.org, Education News Colorado and I-News Network that focuses on medical marijuana dispensaries and the use of marijuana in schools. The article below addresses the impact in the Roaring Fork Valley. For complete coverage, visit http://www.healthpolicysolutions.org/.

"...CARBONDALE, Colorado — If a friend hadn't turned him over to cops in November, 15-year-old Charles would most likely still be dealing medical marijuana.

As it is, the Roaring Fork High School sophomore has just completed a stint in juvenile detention, is back in school and is eager to get his life back on track. He's hoping to join the military after high school, and he knows a drug conviction could scuttle those plans.

“...But the DA worked out a deal where as long as I don't get in trouble for the next six to eight months, I'll be fine,” he said. “I'll be allowed to go in the military.”

Much has changed for the one-time honor student, who agreed to be interviewed on the condition that his last name is not used.

A year ago, he'd never smoked pot. But then came the night of the party. Someone offered him a joint and, when he didn't know what to do with it, showed him. “I took a hit,” he said. “I felt the high. I wasn't in love with the feeling. But I liked it.”

A week later, the older brother of a friend made Charles an offer. “He told me ‘Hey, if you're willing to sell for me, I'll give you money,'” Charles said. “I go ‘All right.' So he'd go down to the dispensary once or twice a week and get his marijuana, then give it to me and I would distribute it.”

The brother, who is in his 40s, had sold marijuana for decades, he said, but began selling medical marijuana exclusively after obtaining a state-issued registry card for back pain.

“They're really easy to get them around here,” Charles said of the cards. “You can get them for headaches....”  (Read more?  Click title)

"Unapologetically pursuing and tracking patterns within the news others make since 2010."

SandBox Comments: "Glenwood Springs to require fees for medical marijuana businesses"

“We've been waiting to see what the impact was from the new regulations,” Rippy said. “Now is the right time to convene a community group.”
(via Glenwood Springs Post Independent)


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"Truth goes through three stages. First it is ridiculed. Then violently opposed. Finally, it is accepted as self-evident."