The 50 Best Inventions of 2009

The Consumer Financial Protection Agency is still just a bill, but if it winds up getting passed and created — as the Obama Administration has been pushing for — Americans will have a bold new ally every time they sign up for a credit card, write a check or take out a home loan. The goal: to make sure that financial products aren't rigged in favor of the firms selling them and that ordinary people have a shot at wading through complicated contracts and fee structures to really understand what they're getting themselves into.