“The worst is that new neighbors in the house behind me smoke all the time, and it wafts into my yard and bedroom like a frightened skunk,” says Jessica Lee, a financial professional in Washington, D.C. who says she “used to be for legalization” but changed her mind after seeing so many young people smoking. Once the threat of police sanctions disappears, many people feel free to light up without considering the spillover effects.

“The smell makes my stomach churn a little, so I even hold my breath when I have to walk by a dispensary,” says Joe Inglish, a software engineer in Portland, Oregon who describes himself as “decidedly pro-legalization.” His state supposedly bans public smoking, but observes fellow resident Nancy Rommelmann, “Portland reeks.”