A free jet, a grounded Boeing program, and a shopping spree for spare parts — Washington proves once again that nothing costs more than something we’re told is free.

There was a time, not long ago, when the American taxpayer was fleeced with a certain modesty — a sheepish decorum, as if the pickpocket at least tipped his hat after lifting your wallet.

Those days, alas, are gone.

We have entered a new era of plunder so brazen, so operatic in its stupidity, that it deserves not merely condemnation but a brass band and a commemorative plaque.

Consider the current aviation burlesque unfolding under the august banner of the United States government.