Pubdate: Thu, 02 Feb 2017
Source: Penticton Herald (CN BC)
Copyright: 2017 The Okanagan Valley Group of Newspapers
Contact:  http://www.pentictonherald.ca/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/664
Author: Sandra Hall
Page: A7

AN UNEVEN PLAYING FIELD

Dear Editor:

I am writing today about having the power to be able to choose.

Who has to follow the law and who doesn't?

I am referring to the licenses that were given recently to the
compassion clubs (medical marijuana dispensaries). It surprised me
that city council actually did another vote, after months of
investigation.

It was news to me to learn city council has the power to draw up and
issue licenses. I am glad that our laws are made for everybody and not
for the chosen ones because one society would certainly result in
total chaos.

Two compassion clubs were granted a license to sell medical marijuana
but several others were denied.

The two compassion clubs that obeyed city council's orders to stop
selling medial marijuana while they investigated the matter further
received the licenses, yet the others did not.

When put into words, this may seem fair, but is it?

One of the compassion club owners decided to go against city council's
advice and continued to sell medical marijuana. This, I know
personally, was not for the money but because he dared to care.

I have known this owner for many years as I myself have lived in
Penticton for 46 years. I knew him long before he started the
compassion club. Seeing what he has and is going through, he would
have had a lot less headache if he had just stopped selling medical
marijuana.

Every day he is fined $500 for operating his business. Yet the two
businesses that were awarded a license to operate do not have to pay
that $500 fine.

This hardly seems fair to grant some, but not others, licenses because
they behaved the way council wanted during their investigation.

If city council passed it for one, they need to pass it for
all.

How much more power are we going to allow city council to have? With
great power comes great responsibility and the responsibility of the
city council is to be fair on all matters brought before them - not
just the ones they choose.

City council has again thought only about themselves and not the
people who elected them.

I thank Herbal Greens owner Jukka Laurio for taking a stand and
caring.

It's because of caring people like Jukka that I can live my life in a
little less pain.

Sandra Hall

Penticton
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MAP posted-by: Matt