Short fuse

Auto insurance: Unfair advantage
The Patrick administration is putting out the welcome mat for national auto insurers while trampling on loyal Massachusetts firms. Under the state's new auto insurance system, new companies will not have to cover the riskiest drivers for three years. Some competitive model this is turning out to be. Attorney General Martha Coakley, meanwhile, has panned the Division of Insurance website for giving inaccurate rate comparisons. And a recent study by the nonprofit Center for Insurance Research charges that the new system has plenty of loopholes in the prohibition against insurers using a driver's socioeconomic status to set premiums. Auto insurance reform got underway less than a month ago and already the brakes need work.

Legislating: Sleazy riders
Shame on the US Senate for loading up the Foreclosure Prevention Act with tax breaks for major businesses. Perhaps the senators could justify the rebates for homebuilders, and manufacturers such as Ford and General Motors, on the grounds that they have been hurt by the ailing economy, but these arguments ought to be made openly and not hidden in a bill intended to help struggling homeowners. The same conditions ought to be applied to another provision, which would provide tax breaks for producers of renewable energy. These kinds of insider games erode trust in Congress. The bill has been sent to the House, which ought to clean it up and focus on its prime objective.

Airlines: The merger non-solution
The proposed merger of Delta and Northwest will reduce airline competition somewhat, especially if it prompts similar moves by other carriers. But in light of the perpetually troubled state of the industry, coupled with high fuel costs that seem unlikely to drop anytime soon, the Justice Department, at least, is unlikely to stand in the way. What if the merger goes through? Delta and Northwest have wildly different airplane fleets. And the combined carrier will still be stuck with an antiquated air traffic control system and a business model that increasingly depends on nickel-and-diming passengers. Amid these industry-wide woes, a merger will offer scant relief.

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