The basic goals of this federal initiative were to stimulate the economy while moving more Americans to eco-friendlier cars.

The premise: If you trade in your old, broken-down gas guzzler that gets <18 mpg and move up to a certain MPG-approved vehicle, the federal government would subsidize your trade-in, up to $4,500.

So, now, broken-down trucks sitting in a parts dump were potentially worth $4,500. Do you think any micro-economies developed over this initiative? For example, none of my cars currently get under 18 mpg. But, if I was in the market for a new car, purchasing an old junker at anything less than $4,500 would be worth my time.

With Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation to the Supreme Court, that brings the court's religious demography to six Catholics, two Jews and one lone Protestant. 1) John Roberts (C) 2) John Paul Stevens (P) 3) Antonin Scalia (C) 4) Anthony Kennedy (C) 5) Clarence Thomas (C) 6) Ruth Bader Ginsburg (J) 7) Steven Breyer (J) 8) Samuel Alito (C) 9) Sonia Sotomayor (C) As a white male Protestant, I'm pretty sick of being underrepresented in this country... But, more importantly, why are Catholics such a safe choice in terms of nominations?