So in anticipation of Devin The Dude’s new album, “Landing Gear,” I stumbled across the cover artwork and it made me giggle and it’s fly. Get it? I’m tired. “Landing Gear” drops October 7th. Get ready for it to BLOW YOUR MIND.

How much more American can you get? This is the Mall of America, combined with American’s love for both undermining Federal laws and mooching resources from others.

I can’t believe someone got away with this, but the mall is known for being unnecessarily huge with it’s 4 floors, 2.5 million sq. ft. and 500+ shops (half of which are Starbucks). There’s limited facts about the case, but here’s the overview:

MIAMI – The Drug Enforcement Administration discovered something unexpected in the Mall of the Americas.

DEA agents found a hydroponics lab with more than 200 marijuana plants, standing 3 to 6 feet tall in the air and worth millions of dollars, in a storage area on the second floor of the mall.

Authorities said the electricity that powered the lab was diverted from the mall’s main power supply.

No arrests have been made. Authorities said officials with the Mall of the Americas are cooperating with the investigation.

This guy is ridiculous PLUS he’s a COP. “What’s the score on the Red Wings game?”

The potency of marijuana increased last year to the highest it has been in 30 years. A report released by the White House said that this means there are greater health risks for those who view the drug as harmless. Analysis was done at the University of Mississippi’s Potency Monitoring Project to track the average amounts of THC. Levels have more than doubled since the 1980’s due to sophisticated growing techniques, like hydroponic systems.

John Walters, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, said there are risks of psychological, cognitive and respiratory problems and the potential to become dependent on cocaine and heroin. I just have to say I have never used marijuana then felt the sudden urge to pick up a needle but hey, whatever. There’s no data that shows the higher potency leads to more addiction. Marijuana withdrawl symptoms are said to be mild irritability, craving for weed and decreased appetite. Well then wouldn’t you just smoke some weed, be happy, end the cravings and eat a crapload of food? Being hungover from drinking way to many dollar beers or running out of coffee seems way worse. Like a psychology professor at the State University of New York said, “Stronger cannabis leads to less inhaled smoke.”

There was a huge drug bust at San Diego State today. Nearly 100 people arrested for selling drugs in “Operation Sudden Fall”. 75 of them were students, more than a few of them studying for a degree in criminal justice and homeland security. The DEA infiltrated seven frats, where students regularly bought coke from frequently enough for one of the Theta Chi bros to send out mass text messages to his “faithful” customers advertising a sale on cocaine.

Check out the confiscated items list: four pounds of cocaine, 50 pounds of marijuana and 350 ecstasy pills. Authorities also confiscated a shotgun, three semiautomatic pistols and $60,000.

DAMN! Kids these days!

Last week when I wrote about “Pancho and Lefty” I hadn’t realized that the man who made that song famous was having his birthday right around the corner. Today, American songwriter and Outlaw Country Music King Willie Nelson turns 75. NPR’s Fresh Air did a nice piece on Willie today, you can check it out here (audio available after 3 PM EST). They also played a portion of an interview and live set he did with Terry Gross from a few years back, and you can hear the whole thing here.

Willie Nelson will release a live album with acclaimed jazz trumpeter Wynton Marsalis on July 8th on Blue Note Records. Entitled Two Men With The Blues, the album was compiled from a two-night stand at the Lincoln Center in January of 2007. I got my advance press copy last week, and while the blues ranks kinda far down the list of my favorite genres, the disc is legit, showcasing two masters of American music. Here’s a teaser: