What I'm reading about this weekend: The Government's stepped up investigations of bitcoin exchange sites, Silk Road 2.0 is Better Than Ever and the Fallen Kingpins of Silk Road.

Sounds like everything else in the drug world. Shut down production, processing labs and transit routes in one country and they pop up in another. Reduce demand for cocaine and demand for designer drugs takes its place. Shut down Silk Road, and others just take their place.

Is it even worth the effort? (Here is the 2013 UNODC World Drug Report.) Why not just legalize drugs, and re-apportion our bloated law enforcement, prison and prosecution budgets to things like education and health care? Instead of funding more local cops and drug task forces, why not help local governments struggling with the cost of sorely needed infrastructure fixes or use it for disaster relief?

This is an open thread, all topics welcome.

Fridays before three day weekends are always busy. I'm not done yet, so here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

Bumped: Thanks to all of you who have contributed. You've probably already received a thank you email from me. I'm going to keep this near the top until Friday, in case anyone else is interested in contributing. [More....]

The Rolling Stones are back in action. Their 14 on Fire tour resumes in Oslo, Norway in 5 days. This clip is from the opening night of their Abu Dhabi concert earlier this year. Welcome back, Mick.

There will be no execution in Missouri tonight for Russell Bucklew. (Background here.) The Supreme Court issued this order:[More....]

A federal judge has thrown out Pennsylvania's ban on gay marriage.

"We now join the 12 federal district courts across the country which, when confronted with these inequities in their own states, have concluded that all couples deserve equal dignity in the realm of civil marriage."

Our earlier open threads are filled. Here's a new one, all topics welcome.

I couldn't even begin to say what I did all weekend, instead of blogging. That's because I did absolutely nothing -- and it felt great.

Since there's nothing on TV besides The Good Wife, I may catch up -- but more likely, I'll start fresh again tomorrow.

Here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

I potted my very first plants today. This one is sweet basil. I also got mint, cilantro and italian flat parsley. [More...]

I've been writing briefs all day and I'm not yet done.

Here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

To all our readers who are Moms, we wish you a very Happy Mother's Day. And for those of you who are not, if your mom is still around, be thankful and don't forget to call.

Today is the 100th anniversary of the holiday -- it was President Woodrow Wilson in 1914 who declared the second Sunday in May would be Mother's Day.

Colorado is getting a big snow storm today -- there are already 16 weather alerts up from the National Weather Service.

Enjoy the day, this is an open thread, all topics welcome.

My posts all week seem mostly drug-related, even more so than usual. It may be because of work, or it may be the result of spending two hours a night watching El Capo 3 and La Viuda Negra. El Capo 3 actually takes more time, because the station comes in so weakly, even with an amplified antenna, I end up re-watching it online afterwards, courtesy of some sites in Pakistan, South America or Europe. [More...]

I have a lot of news to catch up on. Yesterday I gave a Continuing Legal Eduction lecture on the federal response to Colorado's marijuana laws. With all the new developments the past two weeks, (the new banking law and the new Spice and warehouse indictments) there was a lot to review.

I've also been following the kidnap and murder of 23 year old Yuriana Castillo-Torres, the former girlfriend or wife of "El Chino" Antrax (and mother of one of his children). El Chino is Jose Rodrigo Áriechaga Gamboa, the alleged sicario for Zambada-Garcia and Sinaloa, arrested in Amsterdam in January at the request of the U.S., which wants to extradite him to San Diego where he was indicted in December on drug charges.(More...)

I'm just getting home from work and haven't yet seen the news. Here's an open thread, all topics welcome