How the Silk Road Shutdown Makes Everyone Less Safe
Editor’s Pick. Written by Cathy Reisenwitz.
It took someone named Dread Pirate Roberts to create a way for people to buy and sell illegal drugs without the threat of getting hurt and with little threat of getting ripped off. His deep website, Silk Road, was the eBay of the underworld until it was seized by the FBI last week. When the government shut down Silk Road, it kicked all its users back onto the streets, locking users out of the safest way anyone has ever devised for acquiring an illicit substance—whether a mind-altering substance or a not-yet-FDA-approved food or medication.