There has been discussion at Escanaba City Council (but no action to date) on the question, “Should Escanaba “Opt Out” of retail sales of marihuana in Escanaba?” Proposition One, passed in November, allows cities to forbid retail sales of marihuana by opting out. I have two thoughts on the issue:

1. The voters of Escanaba voted in favor of recreational marihuana. I am not inclined to substitute my judgment over that of the voters, even though I do not like and do not use marihuana myself. So, I am not inclined to vote to opt out of retail sales of marihuana.

2. The State of Michigan bureaucrats have almost a year to write the regulations controlling retail sales of marihuana. These regulations have not been written yet. Until these regulations are written, if city council voted to opt in or opt out, we would not know what we are voting on. My preference would be to delay action on this question until we see what regulations the state bureaucrats actually write.

Ralph B Blasier

Escanaba