MrMinor, i agree with you on certain points and i think we have a very interesting dilemma that is going to be argued back and forth for a long long time. Neither side is going to have the best possible solution. In the end, everything is going to be a compromise.

I understand your points, my problem is still with the distribution model for "medicinal" marijuana in its current form. The medicinal part of the issue is a smokescreen. Everyone knows that there is abuse of the system and most people that are using the system have no real medical use for it. So the argument in favor should be based on whether you believe marijuana should become a legal substance, just as alcohol is. If you don't think the abuse of the medical card is an issue, then i assume you also believe everyone should have the right to smoke marijuana, regardless of medical condition? The easier it is to obtain, more people will do it. As it is now, it is prescribed for almost ANY reason.

Is it ideal to have people smoking marijuana for non-medicinal purposes? That's something that i think you might have a hard time convincing people of but i'm interested in hearing an argument for. By allowing it, we condone its use.

you are absolutely right though, even without the card, pot smokers will still get weed somehow. Should smoking weed be acceptable for everyone? Because with "medicinal" marijuana, in its current distribution model, we are on the road to allowing that.

In your opinion, the PROS outweigh the CONS, however that may not be the consensus. If someone really wants to open a dispensary in Downey, my advice to them is to do the work and convince people of it, put it to a vote and see what the people want in their community.

If marijuana becomes an established industry, what we are going to have is a total industrial complex, like tobacco, like alcohol, like prescription drugs, medical therapies. etc, whose sole purpose is to keep people on it and to get more people to use it.

Just because the City of Downey is "Historically" conservative doesnt mean times havent changed. I get offened when people catagorize every pot smoker into the same outcast group. Yes, people abuse the medical card for marijuana, but I dont think thats really an issue. If people didnt have the card they would still find a way to get it. Thus empowering the cartels and dealers who profit from illegal pot sales. That money should go to our Fire departments, Police officers, School teachers, and New school books. Too many people focus on the cons and that blinds them from the pros. California had 13 billion in marijuana sales last year alone... BILLION! That is just too much money to ignore and pass on. It doesnt matter if its alcohol or marijuana, there are always going to be people who misuse and abuse it, and there are going to be people who profit from it. Why not us?

MrMinorDefect, of course its an argument for debate. People forget that decisions in this country are IDEALLY made through discourse, and when two different positions are presented the best way to reach a conclusion is to debate. I welcome your opinions and hope that when the city council is ready to vote on these issues you go and speak your case.

i dont think there is any problem with marijuana itself. My problem is with the DISTRIBUTION models of marijuana that are currently in use today. I dont think marijuana users are dangerous, but i do think that marijuana is HIGHLY abused. It is by most still used as a recreational drug. These medical marijuana cards are not regulated and their distribution is being abused by young adults that have absolutely no need for any marijuana products besides just getting high. That's the truth I see going on and is also confirmed by other people who i know dealing with these issues in the city of Los Angeles.

Actually, I have been to dispensaries, some are done well and cater to the people that actually need it. Others are just fronts. I think that you need to take in lots of factors into account before you can just soundly give the ok to open up dispensaries in a town. West Hollywood seems to be doing ok with it, they have 4 dispensaries, LA has 900

Times HAVE changed, but that doesnt mean that people's principles have. You may not agree with me, but Downey IS a historically conservative community. This goes way back and is still a major part of the way the city is run and the culture that is embedded into this geographic area. If one tries to go against the grain too far, you will encounter more resistance, than undergoing more gradual change. For Downey to stay inline with its societal culture and allow the medical use of marijuana, it would need to become more socially acceptable as a true medical remedy, not a recreational drug that is still highly abused. Unless you want to try debating that marijuana should be accepted for ALL uses, not just medical, like alcohol or other substances?

My opinion is NOT that marijuana dispensaries should be banned, i'm saying that city's should be allowed to decide whether they want to allow this into their community because every geographical area has its own distinct culture and problems that may not be the same as in other areas. If it works in W Hollywood, great, but that doesnt mean we should automatically allow it here. There should not be some blanket clause that applies to every city. This is not an equal rights type of issue.

MrGeorge, it wasnt an argument but it looks like you have nothing better to do other than argue so you got one. I cant beleive you would compare a marijuana dispensaries to brothels and strip clubs... would you compare CVS and Rite-aid to a strip club? You could get legal meth and heroin at those places with a doctors RX but no one is trying to stop them from conduction business. Just because you and many other citizens have been brain washed to believe that marijuana users are dangerous shouldnt limit MY use as a responsible user and grower. Times have changed and your idea of "City Culture" is a joke. I make 6 figures, own a house, care for my grandmother, feed the homeless, go to church and smoke marijuana about 10 times a day ... Do I sound like trouble for our city? Everytime a liquor store or mini-mart opens up they get robbed or broken into, so what makes them any different from a dispensary? Because dispensaries sell marijuana or because you have no idea what you are talking about. Have you even been to a dispensary and seen all the AIDS and cancer patients who you would be shuting the door on? Dont fear the things you do not understand or are too narrow minded to understand. And dont ever compare a dispensary, a place that heals and offers compassion to sick people, to a brothel or stip club. It just makes you look ignorant.

minor defect > This argument doesn't stand. One can make the same argument about strip clubs, brothels and casinos. They all create a tax base as well, but we are not rushing out to bring in those industries. Bottom line, Downey should NOT allow dispensaries, AT THIS TIME, because it leads down a path that is counter to city culture.

Money can be made off much more productive industries without brining in the negative issues that are plaguing other towns that are dealing with this.

There are NO dispensaries in Downey. Not even illegal ones. Look at the map, the nearest to Downey is South Gate on Paramount Blvd. Just FYI Mr Pierce.

Downey needs to profit rather than our surrounding cities. Ive been a marijuana patient for over 4 years now and I have to go to Long Beach or Whittier to get my meds thus giving my tax money (yes, you pay taxes at the dispensaries) to the city of Long Beach. If the City of Downey doesnt approve the dispensaries, our schools and law enforcement could be missing out on alot of needed money.

i belive downey should put a moratorium on dispensaries. downey should start the process in implementing an ordance to allow dispensaries in order to regulated them. regulation and control is the only way to prevent our children from obtaining marijuana.