Risk of Double-Dip Recession Rising – (FT, Roubini) Why rising now? The liquidity can’t last, so another dip or other serious consequence is inevitable. Nonetheless, a good piece and one of the more bearish ones that will get any media coverage. Roubini makes good points, as always, but his solution is still flawed IMO (more cash injections, more stimulus). When it comes to solutions, I’m more with Taleb. Let the market work, don’t reward the bad actors.

Analyst Bove sees 150-200 more U.S. bank failures – (Reuters) “A prominent banking analyst said on Sunday that 150 to 200 more U.S. banks will fail in the current banking crisis, and the industry’s payments to keep the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp afloat could eat up 25 percent of pretax income in 2010″

Saving the big banks is not necessary to prevent depression – (Examiner) “The Fed,” she argues, “has gone about as if the problem is a shortage of liquidity. That is not the basic problem. The basic problem for the markets is that [uncertainty] that the balance sheets of financial firms are credible.”

The Banking Crisis Cometh – (DailyReckoning.com) – “There’s a backlog of at least a few hundred insolvent banks that need to be shut down and sold into stronger hands. Bank stock bulls are ignoring the credit losses yet to be recognized, so there are lots of shorting opportunities in the sector. Many banks will not be able to “earn their way out” of their credit losses.”

Reluctant Shoppers Hold Back Recovery – (WSJ) – Yes. It’s the consumers’ fault. Forget the fact that consumers cannot spend beyond their means forever. No need to worry about that. If only we could engineer a way for them to spend more. Oh wait, we are in countless ways. TALF provides consumers with 20-30% credit card loans, and bails out shopping malls who have been paying too much dividends and borrowing too much. Fabulous way to spend my taxes.