10/27+11/6: Challenge the Palm Desert Dispensary Ban

Medical marijuana dispensary banning jubilation
has come to Palm Desert where the city council
hastily passed a dispensary ban last Thursday. It
suffers the same problem that the Riverside
County ban and that is that it definitely bans
coops and maybe even home grows and they canít do
that. Fortunately for every one, including the
Palm Desert City Council, they have to vote on it
again to pass it into law. That vote comes on
Thursday, October 27 at 4 p.m.

Like the Riverside County ordinance, the ëNO
CONFLICT WITH STATE LAWî provision has to be
added. In order to get that done, someone has to
ask them to do it because you can bet your last
dollar they wonít do it on their own. Lay
citizens, especially those in Palm Desert, need
to get involved. It mainly means contacting a
city council person and asking them to meet with
us on the medical marijuana dispensary ban.
Please get hold of me as soon as possible if you
can help out. Either email me back or give me a
call at 760-799-2055.

I donít know how many people are going to come
forward and help out with the all-new-exciting
ban in Palm Desert, but dispensaries seem a risky
way of getting your medicine. Patients need more
reliable ways to obtain their medicine and the
only way to have a more reliable and safer legal
supply would be to grow your own. There are two
ways you can do this ñ you can grow your own by
yourself or you can join with other patients in
either a co-op or collective.

If you want to grow on your own, it just so
happens that one of our supporters is moving and
needs to depart with some of his cultivation
equipment. If you always wanted to grow on your
own, you might be able to obtain some good
equipment at a reasonable price. Give Craig a
call at 760-367-3696.

The other way would be to join a coop where
patients collectively pool their resources to
grow their own medicines. If you have heard about
coops and wanted to join one or want to learn
more, then be at the next MAPP meeting on Sunday,
Nov. 6 at 1:30 p.m. Note the time is 1:30, not 3
p.m. as this meeting is specifically for people
interested in forming coops and collectives. At 3
p.m. the regular MAPP meeting will begin focusing
on local city council races, the ID card and the
latest info on the medical marijuana dispensary
ban merry-go-round.

At the coop meeting at 1:30, we will discuss the
difference between coops and collectives and lay
out what has to be done to form them. It is this
meeting where you can meet other people who want
to form coops. REMEMBER, a coop is not going to
be created for you ñ no one is going to wave a
wand and magically there is a coop for you to
join. You have to work on forming it and that
means going to places where you can meet people
that want to work on forming them as well. If you
are not willing to put in any effort then, unless
you are coming strictly for intellectual
enlightenment, donít waste your time at this
meeting.

Please be advised also that coops are not free.
They cost money to set up and run and these costs
are not minimal. There is also a time commitment.
If you are still interested in joining a coop
recognizing that you will be expected to work to
form it, put your time into the running of it and
your hard earned dollars to finance it, then this
meeting is one that you will want to attend.

At the meeting, we will further detail what is
expected of coop members as to cost and time
commitments as well as discuss the legal
ramifications of being in a coop. After that it
is up to you ñ everyone else at this meetings
wants to work to form a coop, they all want to do
their share of work at the coop and they all have
money to put into it ñ so donít just sit there,
introduce yourself around and see what can be put
together.

The special COOP meeting will begin at 1:30 p.m.
on Sunday, November 6. The regular MAPP meeting
will begin at 3 p.m. Both meetings are being held
in the community room of the Cathedral City
Public Library at 33520 Date Palm Drive at the
corner of Date Palm and Dave Kelly, one block
north of Dinah Shore.

Lanny

--
----
Dale Gieringer (415) 563-5858 // canorml [at] igc.org
2215-R Market St. #278, San Francisco CA 94114