Letter to the Editor

Marijuana article misleads readers

Thao Le’s condescending article about marijuana vending machines (“Marijuana should stay out of public vending machines,” Jan. 30) is biased and ill-informed.

Although he includes the facts that a prescription and fingerprint identification are required and that there are security guards there at all times, he claims that they are similar to cigarette machines, which are rarely seen in the U.S. because they have no screening measures.

The article also asserts that children will see the vending machines and think it’s OK to buy pot. This makes it sound like the machines are plastered with pictures of giant marijuana leaves.

If he had done his research, he would know that the machines are plain black, heavily secured and located behind tinted windows in a room attached to the pharmacies that already sell medical marijuana.

The vending machines were developed to give convenience and privacy to customers that might be uncomfortable buying it in the store, not to trick kids into buying drugs.

I’m pretty sure the birth control vending machine he’s so worried about popping up in the future would exist to offer people the same comforts.

Kelly Delaney

Fourth-year, international development studies