HOPEY-CHANGEY: Bob Woodward Inadvertently Confirms The Coming Economic Apocalypse. “Suppose we have an auction and no one shows up?”

AT AMAZON, bestsellers in Mysteries, Thrillers & Suspense.

OUCH: Harvard law dean cited ‘affirmative action’ in 1994; Elizabeth Warren’s academic qualifications questioned.

BAH. KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON: Byron York: With GOP jittery, Romney faces test of resolve.

I recommend reading Sarah Hoyt.

IT DIDN’T FIT THE NARRATIVE: AP Exclusive: Memos show FDR likely hushed up Soviet atrocity.

GLOBAL TRADE not looking too vigorous.

AT AMAZON, Blu-Ray and DVDs as low as $5.99.

Also, today only: Up to 60% off Crucial and Lexar Memory.

HEADLINE OF THE DAY: Hey Andrew Sullivan, Stop Calling My Penis “Mutilated.”

REPORT: GM Loses $49K On Every Volt It Builds.

You know, this is kinda making me want to buy one.

UPDATE: Senator Blutarsky says that Reuters is wrong.

ANOTHER UPDATE: Popular Mechanics editor Jim Meigs writes:

Actually, Glenn, you’re exactly the kind of guy who might be interested in the Volt: A classic early-adopter who isn’t afraid to take a risk on new technology—even if the financial payback isn’t crystal clear. Didn’t you used to drive a car with a Wankel engine? And rumor has it that a Toyota Highlander Hybrid still graces your driveway….

It’s true that the Volt is falling far short of sales expectations. But calculations that GM loses $49K on each one it sells are a little over the top. Former GM exec Bob Lutz (no friend of squishy-minded environmentalists) unloads on that idea in this piece. Bob is always quick to remind critics that the Volt project long proceeded the Obama presidency. And whatever you think of the GM bailout—or the current administration’s energy policy—you have to admit that the Volt is a pretty impressive engineering achievement. True, it might not stand up to a sharp-pencil economic analysis in terms of consumer value. But neither do most high-performance or luxury cars. Does a Porsche 911 make economic sense? Does anyone really need an Audi A7? Some people passionately desire a car that goes 0-60 in under 5 seconds. Others might like the notion of going a month or two without filling the tank.

I’m happy to see both types of people indulge their preferences. (Sure, we can argue about the fairness about Federal rebates for EVs. I’m still looking for my horsepower rebate…) But the notion that the Volt was cooked up in the West Wing of the White House shows a limited understanding of how auto development works. The Volt might or might not be the future of transportation. But it seems churlish to cheer for the failure of such an ambitious experiment in automotive engineering. Who knows, if gas prices keep going up at the current rate, even a lot of Volt critics might be taking a second look.

Well, the original error was with Reuters, of course. But yeah. Meanwhile, reader Pat Dooley says the Ford Energi is a better buy. I was holding out for the plug-in Prius.

JOHN FUND: “None Of The Above” Should Be On Every Ballot. “Millions of Americans are tired of entering polling booths and having to choose the ‘lesser of two evils’ or even, as wags have it, ‘the non-evil of two lessers.’ In most election years, a fifth or more of House incumbents face no major-party opposition. Perhaps it’s time that entrenched incumbents in one-party districts actually had something to fear from voters.”

CHRISTINA ROMER: Democrats Need A Plan for Deficit Reduction. Ya think? Hey, didn’t some Democrat promise to cut the deficit in half by the end of his first term? How’s that been going?

ARE WE SEEING THE BURSTING OF A “NEWSPAPER BUBBLE?” Free-fall: Adjusted for Inflation, Print Newspaper Advertising Will be Lower This Year Than in 1950.

HOW TO HUMANIZE robot cars.

LEGAL EDUCATION UPDATE: The Declining Job Market For Law School Graduates, 2001-2011.

FRAUD? LOOK-ALIKE WEBSITES HOODWINK REPUBLICAN DONORS. Shady, at least.

NEWS YOU CAN USE: 8 Ways Sex Makes You Beautiful.

HISTORY: Rare Photo Of Emily Dickinson Emerges, Only Second Known Photo Of Her In History.

AT AMAZON, Best Sellers in Cell Phones With Service Plans.

HOW’S THAT HOPEY-CHANGEY STUFF WORKIN’ OUT FOR YA? (CONT’D): Younger generation awaits inheritance that won’t come, study says.

BRYAN PRESTON: Seriously, Don’t Panic About The Latest Polls.

HIGHER EDUCATION BUBBLE UPDATE: At Top Business Schools, An MBA Application Drought.

I wonder what those people have been reading?

WARFARE IN THE ERA OF HOPE AND CHANGE: Artificial Consciences for Autonomous Killer Robots?

21ST CENTURY PARENTING: Pot Made Me A Better Father.

EMPLOYMENT NEWS YOU CAN USE: Bank of America exec loses millions after court says you can’t moon your boss.

SUCCESS: How Nerf Became the World’s Best Purveyor of Big Guns for Kids. “For Jablonski, blasters are the most satisfying Nerf products to create, each one requiring the participation of about 15 Hasbro designers, engineers, marketers, product development specialists, model makers, model painters, and computer-aided design experts in both Pawtucket and Hong Kong. Over the years, Jablonski’s blaster work has made him to Nerf what Jony Ive is to Apple—an in-house guru, keeper of the brand’s look and feel. With each new blaster, he tries to surpass the one that came before. The key question, he says, is: How do you outdo yourself?”