The 1984 takeover of Continental Illinois seemed to be a success on the surface. But then head of the FDIC William Isaac has caused a stir with his column in the Wall Street Journal arguing that nationalization wouldn't work today. He has some good points, notably that the scale we're talking about today is massive compared to Continental Illinois, then the seventh largest bank. Who would run these banks as government entities and how would Uncle Sam exit?

These are fair questions, which has brought out the pundits, including Portfolio's finance blogger. Many would argue that the various pieces of Citi and Bank of America and others might find ready buyers. All in all, it looks like the issue may be moot. We're rapidly moving to a point of no return. Some could reasonably argue that the government is effectively running Citi already.

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