For anyone looking for the link to the continuously updated Global Incident Map of drug busts around the world that I mentioned in my talk today, here it is. It is searchable by country, drug and date. Just scroll down past the map. The number of persons extradited from Colombia to face criminal charges here is 1,600 since 1997, according to the State Department's International Narcotics Control Strategy Report, Volume I, Drug and Chemical Control, March 2014:

Remember the Colorado cake shop that wouldn't make a wedding cake for a gay couple? The Colorado civil Rights Commission has ordered Masterpiece Bakery to change its discriminatory policy and train its staff accordingly. It also must submit quarterly reports. The owner sounds just as clueless as ever:

I'm off to NORML's annual Aspen legal conference. My talk this year: "Federal Responses to Marijuana Legalization, Both Good and Bad." Here's the entire agenda, it's a privilege to be included with these impressive lawyers.

I'll be back Saturday night, after the annual Owl Farm picnic.

Enjoy the weekend, the weather is beautiful here. This is an open thread, all topics welcome.(I'll put up new open threads if this one fills up.)

(Date corrected from Friday to Thursday)

It's been raining and hailing here for 3 days now, but it cleared up enough tonight to grill. Here's my latest: A grilled New York Strip steak sandwich topped with sweet peppers stuffed with goat cheese, lettuce and tomato on a La Brea Bakery Telera roll, with a side of grilled asparagus. No pots needed, except to toss the peppers into boiling water for 2 minutes before stuffing and grilling. Chives would have been good to mix in the goat cheese, but I didn't have any.

Anyone else grilling this weekend?

This is an open thread, all topics welcome.

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.