Doctor Doom Says It's Time to Nationalize

Nouriel Roubini thinks it will soon be time to nationalize the banks, and these days people listen to Nouriel Roubini. For years the NYU economist has been predicting financial catastrophe, earning the nickname “Doctor Doom,” so he’s now looking pretty prescient. “No one’s in favor of a permanent government takeover of the financial system,” he tells the Wall Street Journal, but temporary ownership is so "pragmatic" under the current circumstances, even fiscal conservatives ought to embrace it.

“Paradoxically, the proposal is more market-friendly than the alternative of zombie banks,” Roubini explains, and it’s much cheaper. That’s why some Republicans have already said they’re open to the idea. Roubini thinks it’ll really gain steam in six months, because naturally, he expects things to get worse. “Six months from now, even firms that today look solvent, are going to look insolvent,” he predicts. (More Nouriel Roubini stories.)