Remember 1990?

The speed at which the situation is developing in the banks, and the lack of a plan for mergers and closings, create a tremendous amount of indecision everywhere except of course the rest of the market, which seems to think that these stocks are irrelevant, even though I am not buying it. It's a nice respite from the endless selling, but without a plan for the next set of shoes to drop, I don't want to get into the closet.

I just don't get how the federal government can put out that silly list of banks on the ropes when anyone in government from 1989 knows that once a bank has more than 2% of its assets in non-performers, that bank is in danger of being run over.

What I don't understand is why the government isn't more proactive. They can see what is happening at Nat City (NCC - commentary - Cramer's Take) and Washington Mutual (WM - commentary - Cramer's Take). Why don't they simply say, "Guys, put up more capital," instead of blaming someone like Sen. Schumer, who is telling the truth, as he did about IndyMac (IMB - commentary - Cramer's Take).

I think this administration doesn't have a clue about who and what is on the brink. I think that the FDIC has to come out and say, "We know what's going on and we have encouraged bank managements that unless they raise more money, they are in danger of being nationalized. They also have to give us a plan for what to do with the bad loans. Is the government just going to absorb them? Is the government prepared to own Washington Mutual, National City and First Horizon (FHN - commentary - Cramer's Take)? Why isn't the government trying to get banks to merge as it did in 1989? Why doesn't it bring some people back from that era so we have more confidence? Maybe the piece in TheStreet today about Goldman (GS - commentary - Cramer's Take) profiting from the tragedy of other banks says it best: The only plan is, again, a private-sector plan, because these government folks think that there is a private-sector solution for everything and that all they are allowed to do is cut taxes.

Right now there isn't a whit of confidence anywhere, least of all in the stock market.

In 1990, here's what we knew: The FDIC was on top of things, and you recognized that the Resolution Trust was anxious to take over properties and sell them down the road.

Now we just have a bunch of regulators telling us some small banks are in trouble.

Good grief!

Random musings: Ohio's really a black hole of banking, as this story we ran earlier tells you. ... Matt Nesto is raising some good points on CNBC about single-digit players in the S&P 500. I think many of them will come out and will be replaced by oil and gas companies, which are still under represented by the index.

At the time of publication, Cramer was long Goldman Sachs.

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Jim Cramer is a director and co-founder of TheStreet.com. He contributes daily market commentary for TheStreet.com's sites and serves as an adviser to the company's CEO. Outside contributing columnists for TheStreet.com and RealMoney.com, including Cramer, may, from time to time, write about stocks in which they have a position. In such cases, appropriate disclosure is made. To see his personal portfolio and find out what trades Cramer will make before he makes them, sign up for Action Alerts PLUS. Watch Cramer on "Mad Money" weeknights on CNBC. To order Cramer's newest book -- "Jim Cramer's Stay Mad for Life: Get Rich, Stay Rich (Make Your Kids Even Richer)," click here. Click here to order "Mad Money: Watch TV, Get Rich," click here to order "Real Money: Sane Investing in an Insane World," click here to get "You Got Screwed!" and click here for Cramer's autobiography, "Confessions of a Street Addict." While he cannot provide personalized investment advice or recommendations, he appreciates your feedback and invites you to send comments by clicking here.

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