Not so fast: Could legalization in Canada spread slower than maple syrup? Pundits suppose it could take 2-3 years. The Liberal government backs this up with evidence of a deliberate attitude toward cannabis legalization. Says Trudeau: Just decriminalization is not an option.

A Washington Times op-ed blames drug liberalization for last year’s apparent spike in violent crime. In a surprise move, Robert Weiner and Ben Lasky exonerate the “Ferguson effect” and instead blame less anti-drug spots on TV.

“Just say no!”: Mississippi’s House of Representatives votes down a surprise attempt to change that state’s drug laws. In Maine, a citizen’s petition for legalization fails after 17,000 signatures are invalidated on (what supporters say is) a technicality. In a nice piece of doublespeak, Maine secretary of state Matthew Dunlap tells journalists, “Our goal isn’t to invalidate signatures. The goal is to make sure they are valid.” For comparison, the number of invalidated signatures equals, approximately, a third of the population of Portland, Maine’s largest city. Meanwhile, Portland, Oregon says no to drive-through dispensaries. And legislators in Vermont’s lower house are still not sure if the state is “ready to move forward with legalization,” meaning, presumably, that they will start a process to get the state prepared for the fulfillment of an extremely popular public policy measure…or they won’t.

In the yes column: New Hampshire says yes to legalization…or at least its citizens do…or at least those who participated in a recent poll. 62% approve of legalization for recreational use.