MSNBC’s Dylan Ratigan gets profiled by the New York Observer, and the host seems very glad to be in a position to share his true feelings on world issues, something that he says he couldn’t do at sister network CNBC.

As for financial journalism’s role in the economic meltdown, he said, “It’s grossly disappointing.” He laughed. “What do you want me to tell you? It’s embarrassing.”

Mr. Ratigan left CNBC in April 2009. “I’m happy to not be a journalist,” he said, noting that the constraints of the profession had made it impossible to see the big picture. “My old style was, ‘Well, this is a sport [in which] we try and figure out what’s the best idea to put money into,’” he said. In his new role, he can step back and impart a larger point, namely: “This is a fundamentally corrupt global system that people don’t understand.”

Ratigan also talks about the Nucor incident, as well as his early life. You can read the entire profile here.