I think that Roger Fischer has answered my time-wasting question quite articulately.  It pushes me to wonder if perhaps the point is that people who like to think “in the open” (a process-point, ultimately; this iterative process of decision-making takes time to work out answers but a) such a process may have merit on its own terms and b) may get to a better result) benefit from taking the time to review other peoples’ ideas and to write up their own thoughts.  That gets back to an idea I had about whether or not blogs would help practicing lawyers or not.  I suspect that those more academically-oriented and/or academically-compensated may be better-positioned to use the tech than those who bill by the hour for the big firms.  But those who do engage may be better positioned to serve their client, whomever that might be.