If there are going to be stark contrasts between pot pros and cons, we ought to be able to see it here

Maybe the current level of acceptance of the cannabis trade is as it should be: dependent on the values of the majority of constituents, as local politicians gauge it.

So: all in for the city of Marysville; all out for everywhere else in the Yuba-sutter area.

It’s going to be hit or miss, confusing, clumsy for a while ... but so be it.

Marysville leaders have an attitude toward cannabis different from all other government bodies in the area that we know of. In Marysville, medical marijuana dispensaries were long-ago accepted (during the depths of Marysville’s financial crisis). A lot of people looked at the city’s decision to allow two dispensaries to be licensed (and taxed) merely as a financial move.

But it continues. Maybe it’s more than just financial ... maybe leaders don’t perceive a moral dilemma.

But leaders make no bones about the revenue source.

Marysville council members more recently approved a cannabis testing facility in the city. Some council members are in favor of pursuing a change in city ordinances to allow for adult-use recreational sales and mobile deliveries.

Council member Bill Simmons said generating revenue and growth for the city tips the scales. He said in a recent report that it’s not a moral issue for him. Council members as a whole must believe revenue and moving Marysville away from the financial abyss is on top of their constituents minds.

Morality? Marysville officials seem to go as far as upholding and obeying the laws. Given that, they see it as a business decision.

Other entities – Yuba City, Live Oak, both county governments – have taken a “wait-and-see attitude” or have flat-out rejected any local activity that isn’t expressly allowed by state law. That must be from the belief that cannabis is still bad for society; because they surely see the benefit that licensing could provide in the way of revenue.

Yuba County Supervisor Randy Fletcher, representing the foothills, where illegal marijuana grows and all their problems and dangers keep popping up, is in favor of banning weed altogether from the county.

And he said he’s simply following the desires of constituents.

While Marysville officials speak mostly of the revenue potentials of week, Fletcher raises the concerns over the costs of weed – those illegal grows and the potential for more people driving and operating in dangerous situations while high.

Wait and see? It could take a while, but eventually, if there are going to be stark contrasts, we’ve set the stage pretty well to see – Marysville’s attitude versus the rest of Yuba-sutter’s attitude.

Our View editorials represent the opinion of the Appeal-democrat and its editorial board and are edited by the publisher and/or editor. Members of the editorial board include: Publisher Glenn Stifflemire and Editor Steve Miller.