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DISPENSARY WOULD HELP EASE MARIJUANA TABOOS

The Michigan Medical Marihuana Act, or MMMA, received 63 percent of the vote and the majority of the support of Michigan's 83 counties back in 2008.  Now, the East Lansing City Council is looking for resident input on how to deal with distributing medical marijuana to licensed patients. 

East Lansing residents and city officials will discuss options at a council meeting tonight.  The three proposals under consideration can be implemented singularly, in combination or drafted into new proposals as warranted. 

Proposal No.  1245A, B and C respectively allow a primary caregiver to grow, store and sell marijuana out of their homes, primary caregivers to deliver marijuana to the patient at the patient's home or some other place outside the city and the marketing of a public storefront or dispensary. 

Although a combination of private residence and dispensaries would fulfill both the needs of convenience and privacy, if an acting proposal had to be chosen, allowing dispensaries effectively meets the needs of the community and medical marijuana patients. 

Dispensing medical marijuana in a discrete storefront keeps everything out in the open, simultaneously making it easier to regulate and enforce. 

The location wouldn't be adorned with neon lights and a dancing mascot, but a publicly known dispensary could be monitored in a simpler, more uniform fashion; something that would be more difficult to do in residential areas. 

It also would help to serve as a mechanism to remove the stigma of medical marijuana in the community.  It allows residents and patients to know exactly where medical marijuana is distributed and how it can be accessed. 

In another sense, it would serve as an educational tool, where residents with reservations about medical marijuana could talk to a distributor and/or a patient and take the opportunity to address any concerns they might have. 

The point is to make medical marijuana less taboo so those who require it don't feel ostracized by the community. 

However, a storefront would remove some sense of personal privacy and force patients to announce their intentions to the world. 

In instances where patients wish to preserve their privacy, allowing home delivery would be helpful. 

Whatever the choice, it must be remembered that Michigan voters made this act possible and so, eventually, we must come up with a solution.  Our responsibility can't stop at the voting booth. 

Patients of medical marijuana and East Lansing residents have to reach a consensus. 

For the person that voted against legalization, take the time to educate yourself on the people that use, dispense and grow medical marijuana. 

For the person that voted for it, seek to understand the objections of those in the community who did not vote for legalizing medical marijuana and the reasons behind their choices. 

The point is to remain open-minded and never rest on what we think we know. 

If the point of this council meeting is for people to listen to each other, go the extra mile and actually try to understand.