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Canada, finally, is catching up with Washington state.

On Tuesday, Canada officially became the second nation in the world to legalize cannabis at a federal level (Uruguay was the first), when the Senate approved Bill C-45, otherwise known as the Cannabis Act. And, unlike here, Canada will have both medical and recreational weed markets and adults will be able to grow up to four plants on their own. The law, however, does not go into effect immediately, so you can put your passport away for the moment. While the government has said they'd like the law to go into effect by July, provinces and territories have to come up with their own rules for selling the shit and need from eight to 12 weeks to be up and running, as CNN reports.

Nationwide legalization is a good thing. According to 502data.com, Washington state has raised over $740 million in cannabis tax revenue since recreational weed was legalized here, and, despite what Jeff Sessions would have you believe, legalization has not led to an increase in youth potheads or sales of Bob Marley tapestries. And "the kids" were one of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's primary reasons for supporting legalization, as he tweeted today.


Or, at least, he says it's about the kids which is a very convenient talking point for batting down moralistic weed whackers when really all you care about is not risking arrest every time you get high. But regardless of the motivation, a hearty kudos to our neighbors to the north. Welcome to the club.