Colorado Girl Scouts barred from selling cookies outside pot shops

Published February 25, 2014
FoxNews.com
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/02/25/colorado-girl-scouts-barred-from-selling-cookies-outside-pot-shops/?intcmp=latestnews

The Girl Scouts of Colorado's decision to prohibit their members from selling the organization's classic cookies outside marijuana stores is generating mixed reaction on social media.

The organization issued a statement on its Facebook page Friday to dispel rumors of Girl Scouts setting up shop outside retail pot shops, effectively prohibiting members from selling at dispensaries in the state, where recreational marijuana is now legal.

"Girl Scouts of Colorado doesn’t allow girls to sell cookies outside of any adult-oriented business, whether that is a bar, strip club, casino, liquor store or marijuana dispensary. We recognize these are legitimate businesses, but we don’t feel they are an appropriate place for girls to be selling cookies in Colorado," the organization said.

Rachelle Trujillo, chief marketing officer for the Girl Scouts of Colorado, told The Huffington Post that the council for years has barred its members from selling cookies outside so-called adult-oriented businesses.

"There's a place for everything, and just like a liquor store or a gun show, a marijuana dispensary isn't a place for young girls to be selling cookies," Trujillo told the publication. "There are plenty of other options for customers of adult businesses to purchase cookies at other locations."

Some commenters on the council's Facebook page accused the group of hypocrisy for allowing sales outside of retail stores that sell alcohol and tobacco products.

"Grocery stores sell cigarettes and beer. Is it ok for them to sell the cookies outside of grocery stores?," read one response.

"While I do not agree with Colorado legalization of marijuana, I feel that this is a huge missed opportunity to increase our sales," read another.

Other commenters applauded the organization's decision.

"If you want your kid sitting in front of a liquor store to sell something, do it on your own time with your own name, but please don't make decisions for my child and drag the name of [Girl Scouts] down," one parent wrote on the Facebook page.

The feelings of Girl Scouts officials on the matter seem to vary state to state, but the organization is not surprised there are copycats after the story of 13-year-old San Francisco Girl Scout Danielle Lei went viral on social media and various news outlets.

Lei set up a cookie table last week outside The Green Cross, a licensed marijuana dispensary in that city's Mission district, and sold dozens of cookie boxes.

In Phoenix, 8-year-old Lexi Menees has sold cookies in front of marijuana facilities for two years but is just now getting attention for it.

Susan de Queljoe, a spokeswoman for the Girl Scouts-Arizona Cactus-Pine Council, said selling in front of marijuana dispensaries isn't something the organization would encourage, but that it's up to the parents.

"The girls' safety is our primary concern. So we give guidelines out to all the parents and hope that they will follow them," de Queljoe said.

Although it is indeed funny that the Girl Scouts thought of the marijuana stores as a good place to sell cookies, I agree with Colorado's decision to prohibit they sell them there, or any adult-oriented business. Its not the place for children.

Colorado should have had the insight to think out of the box, approving sales of marijuana may be a money maker for the state but now children have it in their homes in plain view, great idea. The girls selling at the pot stores obviously have a good understanding of the effects of pot aka munchies. Now the state is spending millions training their police officers on how to watch for drivers under the influence of pot while driving. Is pot really worth all this ??? I think not !

Is liquor worth it?

Its not about whats worth it, its about what logical and fair. Pot is not as debilitating as liquor, therefore if liquor is being sold legally so should pot be allowed. If you can convince the government to take all the liquor off the shelves then I'll gladly listen to your argument about pot. In the meantime if liquor is being sold legally so should pot be allowed.

Pot has benefits to some people with medical conditions as everyone knows from its legalization in some states to these people for that purpose, and is more reason pot should be considered to be legal to everyone even for recreational purposes if so desired. Liquor is sold for recreational purposes, so why not pot considering its less debilitating.

This will always be the age old discussion, I agree on alcohol to, but with the morals in the gutter in the country and pot flowing across the border in record amounts making it legal might stop a few drug runners from taking millions back to Mexico and South America they certainly aren't going to do any thing about them anyway. Guess it just depends on what is your choice of poison.

Well I've enjoyed both but do neither anymore. I can say with experience doing both liquor is WAY more harmful and destructive. I can't even say with any conviction pot is harmful, but it will distort your thoughts while smoking it. Liquor will destroy your health if taken in access and leave you addicted to it. Pot doesn't have that negative effect.

That is the key statement 'but it will distort your thoughts while smoking it.' so turning loose a couple of states with people legally smoking pot to drive around with distorted thoughts is just as dangerous as drinking and driving. People use marijuana just as they do alcohol to relax, to get a little buzz, to take the pressure off the day, the ones who run to light up a joint if there is a ripple in their world or run to the bottle for a drink are just alike it becomes a crutch, just as narcotics are a crutch from reality it all sets up an addictive behavior in the long run.