Remember the Pennsylvania judges that took $2.6 millions in payoffs from private detention centers for sending kids their way?

Today the Pennsylvania Supreme Court vacated hundreds of the convictions, and it's not done yet.

The state Supreme Court ruled that former Luzerne County President Judge Mark Ciavarella violated the constitutional rights of youth offenders who appeared in his courtroom without lawyers between 2003 and 2008.

''Today's order is not intended to be a quick fix,'' Chief Justice Ronald Castille said in a statement. ''It's going to take some time, but the Supreme Court is committed to righting whatever wrong was perpetrated on Luzerne's juveniles and their families.''

First Mexico, now Afghanistan. The Wall St. Journal has as breaking news at the top of its site right now:

The Obama administration will unveil a new Afghanistan strategy Friday that calls for devoting significant new resources to counter-narcotics efforts in Afghanistan and economic development in Pakistan.

Today, Obama's choice of Ambassador to Afghanistan, Lt Gen Karl Eikenberry, told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee at his confirmation hearing: [More...]

No surprise here, except for those who perhaps expected something different: President Barack Obama today rejected the idea of legalizing marijuana and taxing it:

The query, which received more than three million votes, was: "With over 1 out of 30 Americans controlled by the penal system, why not legalize, control, and tax marijuana to change the failed war on drugs into a money making, money saving boost to the economy? Do we really need that many victimless criminals?"

Obama.... kept his answer brief. "There was one question that voted on that ranked fairly high and that was whether legalizing marijuana would improve the economy and job creation," he said. "And I don't know what this says about the online audience, but ... this was a popular question. We want to make sure it's answered. The answer is no, I don't think that's a good strategy to grow our economy. All right."

[More...]

The winds have kicked in something fierce. I can barely make out the houses across the street. All I see is white blowing snow.

So far 200 flights have been canceled and most highways have shut down. The local news is telling people to stay off the roads and asking employers to send people home.

The snow and gusty winds will create whiteout conditions that will make driving anywhere extremely treacherous or even impossible. Travel on the roads are HIGHLY DISCOURAGED between noon and 9 p.m. today. Expect hazardous driving conditions all over the state but particularly on the Eastern Plains and along Interstate 25.

The Denver Post is now predicting 19 inches of snow for Denver. It won't be over until tomorrow. I hope the heat, cable and internet hold out.

This is an open thread, all topics welcome.

President Obama is holding a Town Hall meeting. Here's a thread to discuss it.

That's exactly right and it's way past time for the U.S. to make a serious effort to curb that demand instead of spending billions on incarcerating drug offenders.

Pew's recent study--"One in 31: The Long Reach of American Corrections"--provides a vivid picture of just how little we do to curb demand for drugs. [More...]

New York Governor David Paterson announced Thursday a deal has been reached with state legislators to repeal and revise much of the draconian Rockefeller Drug Laws.

The deal would repeal many of the mandatory minimum prison sentences now in place for lower-level drug felons, giving judges the authority to send first-time nonviolent offenders to treatment instead of prison.

The plan would also expand drug treatment programs and widen the reach of drug courts at a cost of at least $50 million.

It's not clear how many of those currently serving sentences will be able to apply for relief. Apparently, the legislators are willing to be more expansive in this regard than is Paterson. [More...]

The river in Fargo, N.D. continues to rise, threatening a first-ever evacuation of the town.

“I don’t care how old you are,” Mr. Walaker said. “You haven’t seen this in the valley.”....In this city of 90,000, the state’s most populous, political leaders, who met in an emergency session late Wednesday afternoon, said they expected to announce an evacuation plan on Thursday. The mayor said an evacuation had never been tried in Fargo, even after a major tornado more than half a century ago.

Colorado now has blizzard warnings for much of the state (and Denver.) It's 7:00 a.m. in Denver, and the snow here has just started to fall. Right now, there's less than an inch on the ground outside my house. But the news sounds dire, Denver could get up to 19 inches.

I'm taking a snow day and going to work from home. How's the weather where you are?[Hat tip to Skippy who made the picture for us during a prior year's blizzard.]

5.3 million Americans have Alzheimer's. Someone develops the disease every 70 seconds. In 40 years, it will be every 33 seconds. The numbers are grim.

It's now the sixth-leading cause of death for people nationwide, surpassing diabetes. Among people over 65, it's the fifth-leading cause of death. And while deaths from heart disease, stroke and breast and prostate cancers dropped from 2000 to 2006, the number of deaths from Alzheimer's grew by 47.1 percent.

An array of prominent Americans testified on Capital Hill yesterday, all with a personal link to the disease, including Maria Shriver, former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, former Senator Bob Kerry and Newt Gingrich.

Nightline did a special on it last night...Terry Moran, whose mother and grandmother died of the disease, had his DNA tested to see if he has the gene. [More...]

Adam Lambert on American Idol tonight.

We're waiting for the snowstorm of the season here in Denver ...more than 15 inches are expected, it's the only thing on the news.

Here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

Despite statements by the Obama Administration to the contrary, the DEA has not stopped raiding medical marijuana dispensaries in California where medical pot is legal.

The DEA raided Emmalyn's clinic tonight.

A protest quickly organized outside the clinic. The DEA says:

DEA spokeswoman Casey McEnry told CBS 5 the documents regarding the raid are sealed, so the DEA was not able to give many details.

"The documents relating to today's enforcement operation remain under court seal. Based on our investigation we believe there are not only violations of federal law, but state law as well. As of now we are prohibited from releasing further details of the case. Items of evidentiary value were seized and no arrests have been made. The investigation is currently ongoing," said DEA Special Agent in Charge Anthony D. Williams in a written statement.

But CBS News reports two people were arrested.

[More...]

Tonight's contestants on American Idol all will be singing Motown in honor of the record label's 50th Anniversary. Who would you like to hear them sing? My list: [More....]