Some markets are more equal than others.

The subprime crisis may soon lead to a shortage of liquidity, but it’s already produced a surplus of unhelpful commentary. A happy exception is this little rant from MSN Money columnist Bill Fleckenstein, especially this bit:

Wall Street, the hedge-fund community and their lap dogs in the news media continually brag about how much they love capitalism and free markets.

Yet when the creative-destruction component of capitalism rears its ugly head, they want the central planners to bail them out immediately, before they take any pain. And the ones clamoring the loudest are the very same folks who behaved the most irresponsibly.

This isn’t just about central banks. In trying to manage the market, municipalities and states often resort to “targeted incentives” rather than ensuring a fair and transparent tax and regulatory climate for all. Not that the Commonwealth knows anything about this sort of thing…