Pubdate: Wed, 27 Aug 2014
Source: Colorado Springs Independent (CO)
Column: Cannabiz
Copyright: 2014 Colorado Springs Independent
Contact:  http://www.csindy.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1536
Author: Bryce Crawford

MARIJUANA COMMUNITY MOURNS TEEN, COUNCIL DELAYS ACTION AND MORE

A community loss

Marijuana supporters are joining together to celebrate the life of 
Kristie Wheeler's 16-year-old daughter Kathryn "Katy Bug" Mushak, who 
was killed in a car accident last Thursday.

"Please hold your babies tight tonight," reads a statement from 
Wheeler on flywithangelskaty.com, "you never know what will happen 
tomorrow." Wheeler is a marijuana advocate who runs Moving for 
Marijuana, but she and her daughter also appeared in our pages 
earlier this year in a story about "unschooling" ("The end of 
school," cover story, May 28).

Char and Bill Mayes, whose company TinctureBelle is fighting a 
lawsuit brought by The Hershey Company, says all funds previously 
raised for that effort, as well as those currently on hand, will go 
to Wheeler and to Mushak's father, Hossein Forouzandeh. A planned 
Oct. 4 fundraiser at Speak Easy Vape Lounge, which donated its 
weekend proceeds, will likewise shift direction.

"The TinctureBelle family and [advocacy group Coloradans 4 Cannabis 
Patient Rights] would appreciate all your support," writes Char on 
Facebook, "as Kristie, Hossein and their beautiful family have been 
such a huge support in the cannabis community."

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 28, at 
Grace Baptist Church (3500 N. Nevada Ave.). Wear bright colors.

Council delays RMJ, again

During a tense City Council meeting on Monday, the legislative body 
decided to wait two more weeks to vote on a resolution saying Council 
would refer a recreational marijuana question to the April ballot.

The problem resulted from the City Attorney's office saying Council 
needed to come to a consensus, and Councilors Jill Gaebler and Keith 
King not agreeing on whether the success of a related marijuana-tax 
ballot question should be tied to whether or not the RMJ question passes.

Frustration reigned, with King telling Deputy City Attorney David 
Andrews: "I met with you, asked you to come forward with something, 
and you didn't come forward with it."

Speaking for Mayor Steve Bach, Chief of Staff Steve Cox reiterated 
fears that RMJ would drive the military from our city. "The people 
that would like to have these issues on the ballot should go through 
the petition process," Cox said.

Breaking a tight mood, Councilor Andy Pico joked, "Dare I say this? I 
agree with the mayor on this one."

Effective or obnoxious?

The Colorado advertising campaign "Don't Be a Lab Rat," designed to 
keep teens off pot, hit a snag in Boulder, the Daily Camera reports, 
when the Boulder Valley School District announced it will not 
participate. "We had concerns about the use of human-scale rat cages 
being an effective tool for getting 12-to-15-year-olds," said a spokesman.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom