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Gibson, Hill, Tribune got it wrong

November 5, 2015
Dan Carpenter 6

San Luis Obispo Councilman Dan Carpenter

OPINION By DAN CARPENTER

After observing most of the public hearing including staff presentation, public comment, and deliberation by the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors, I believe the majority made the right decision in upholding the appeal of the Planning Commission to allow the dispensary.

Let me be very clear, this is not about the health benefits of using marijuana, but rather about public safety surrounding this brick and mortar location. Regardless of whether all land use/zoning policies are met by the applicant, your elected leaders always have the discretionary authority to deny a project if the safety of the community is at risk.

To not have used it in this case would have been irresponsible.

After listening to the testimony from the most respected law enforcement officials in our community, Sheriff Ian Parkinson, District Attorney Dan Dow, Santa Maria Police Chief Ralph Martin among others, Supervisors Adam Hill and Bruce Gibson ignored the safety concerns and digressed to their ideological agendas.

Sheriff Parkinson was very clear about not having the resources to adequately service this area at the fringe of our county if a dispensary were to open. Chief Martin expressed his concern regarding the potential impacts of the dispensary being on the border of his city, and District Attorney Dow illuminated the significant prosecutorial challenges his department would face should this move forward.

Every active or former law enforcement official that spoke, petitioned the board to hold off on allowing this use until the Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act, recently signed by Gov. Jerry Brown and due to take effect Jan. 1, 2016, is fully implemented with the necessary agencies, information systems, and regulations.

However, Hill and Gibson were salivating at the opportunity to move forward their agenda in spite of the professional testimony and demonstration of facts substantiating the risks. Their denial of the potential safety risks is complete ineptness and a dereliction of duty. It was an embarrassment to see them argue with the experience and professional acumen of our top law enforcement officials.

It’s obvious Hill and Gibson’s support for our pubic safety staff only holds true when they’re in cadence with the Hill/Gibson agenda.

After hours of testimony and common sense rationale from the other three supervisors, Hill and Gibson would still not break ranks from the Tribune editorial staff’s recommendation to allow the use. None of them acknowledged or took into consideration the potential for significant crime in the surrounding neighborhoods and communities.

The Tribune, Hill and Gibson all got it wrong.

Dan Carpenter is a San Luis Obispo councilman and a candidate for the District 3 San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisor’s seat.

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What patent nonsense. Just more bugaboo scare tactics.


IOW ….campaign BS.


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One has to wonder if Dan Carpenter is taking this position solely to score political points against his opponent, Adam Hill. I did not hear Carpenter’s position on the dispensary before the vote.


Oh well, guess I will vote for Debbie Peterson.


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Some credit on the Supervisor’s determination on this issue should go to CNN by highlighting — for the reading public — the facts bearing on this matter. CNN’s voice — and the inspired leadership of “journalist supreme” Karen Vellie — provides an enlightenment now vacated by the declining Tribune and once provided in the past by the New Times.Thanks CNN!


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I know it’s not April Fools Day… or is it?


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Sheriff Ian Parkinson, District Attorney Dan Dow, Santa Maria Police Chief Ralph Martin all have their own ideas about how they’d prefer the world to be.

But the criminal justice system does not define reality. It represses it, historically.


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keeping things illegal means guys like them can have a job, money and power. Not too mention legalized theft in asset forfeiture so they can have discretionary budgets.


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Because we all know if we legalize all pot it would eliminate all marijuana related crime, same thinking that if we take away all the guns it would eliminate all gun crime, bet you might even believe that.


They tried that once with alcohol and by outlawing it it eliminated booze and all it problems completely…..


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What a scam… you make the rules such that the only place you can have a store-front dispensary is out in the boonies. Then Parkinson and crew come out of the woodwork and state it would take 15 minutes to get to that location, a statements that plays into people’s fear and gives the BOS a great excuse not to support the measure. Let’s face it: the stuff is going to be legal soon, and your grape-growing world is going to collapse.


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Since there are no return policies in place for purchasing cannibis, I firmly support having standardized regulations to ensure that medical marijuana patients receive a quality effective product.


If it were not for the coming MMRSA slated for the first of January, however, I would have liked for this facility to begin operating in Spring with perhaps a shorter trial period.


Brick and morter facilities offer safe access for patients and alleviate the concerns associated with strangers entering patients’ homes. I am optimistic that the BOS will be open to reconsidering the Ethnobotanica application after reviewing this new legislation. It’s well worth the wait.


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I do not agree with their pipe dream. I do agree with accessibility when proven the need and safe distribution.


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More nonsensical verbatious spewing. There was no increase in crime in Morro Bay; this is just mindless inability to move out of the realm of fear, and pandering to a bunch of law enforcement agencies that want to keep the highly profitable, but unsuccessful war on drugs alive.


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I’m mostly in agreement with you, but if I’m not mistaken the Lynch dispensary was robbed, as was a Los Osos dispensary two years ago. There is a potential risk…


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Charles Lynch’s dispensary was never robbed. There was never a dispensary in Los Osos. Don’t muddy the waters with BS.


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Charles Lynch here, yes my dispensary was robbed alright by the SLO County Sheriff and the DEA. Compassionless bastards stole everything and are still trying to destroy me from closing my IRA, to giving me 5 years in prison, to making it so I can’t get a job. As for the SLO county Sheriff not having the resources to Serve and Protect Medical Marijuana Patients, I would say he is missing two things. And that is a set of Balls. SLO County Sheriff Pat Hedges didn’t have the balls to take me on himself so he called in the Feds. And I had high Hopes for Parkinson but I can see his cowardice shining through as he can’t even control nor help a bunch of sick people who need their medicine. Gibson, Hill and finally the Tribune got it right. You Dan Carpenter and fear mongering people like you are the problem, denying people access to a plant…what a bunch of un American cowards! Someday soon SLO county will have safe access to Marijuana, Medical and Recreational; your lies and BS can’t stop it for much longer.


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Here is hoping you trounce Adam Hill in November, we need another voice of reason for the regular citizens of our county. It is so tiresome to have to listen to the leftist drivel and confused morality coming from these types. (Aaron Ochs, troll this to Dee!)


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We all know Aaron Ochs is on Adam Hill’s payroll. His title is Adam’s Little Bit-h.


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Do you realize the resources that would become available with that business? In 2015 you really think that criminals are the users? It’s a Medical dispensary. Do you feel the same about Pharmacies? Bars? With clear documentation that Marijuana is a positive influence as far as revenue and as a patient myself I find it embarrassing that “we don’t have the resources on the fringe of the county” would be a reason to block a cash cow, a necessary business and I feel it is safer than pot carrying strangers going to random homes to make a clandestine sale. If you’ve ever visited a dispensary, you’d see a professional knowledgeable staff, security on premises and a much more robust economy.let’s also realize pot users tend to be more patient and rational.


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Safety is just a pretense, something to hide behind. No way it’s really about safety. You could have an armored car pick up cash as many times a day as needed. You could have armed guards on location, video up and down the street, alarms connected to the Sheriff’s department. And who’s safety is in such jeopardy? The people in the shop? All 2 of them? You could put them behind bullet proof glass in a locked room. We do it at the court houses. It’s not that expensive to buy that kind of glass. They could buzz people into the store just like gun ranges etc. etc. Instead of opening one store, you could have opened 100 stores across the county and spread the risk over 100 dispensaries just like liquor stores. Or better yet, just let existing liquor stores carry with the proper license. No crowds, no lines, no particular targets etc. Nothing more than any liquor store or any bank.


So, it’s not about safety. It’s about ideological viewpoints. Analogize to abolition of slavery, women’s’ right to vote, women in the church, de-segregation, gays in the military, gay marriage etc. etc. It takes a long time for the majority of people to change their viewpoints even when looking back we can laugh at how ignorant and wrong they were.


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Orale Vato!


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