Timeline: The Decade from Hell
by Stephen M. Apatow: Founder, Director of Research and Development, Humanitarian Resource Institute.

Humanitarian Resource Institute was formed in 1994, with domestic relief efforts our emphasis until 1999.   Transitioning from domestic relief efforts to international preparedness and policy development encompassed the formation of the International Disaster Information Network [1] and Global Preparedness and Response Network, [2] in conjunction with global infrastructure analysis and contingency planning for the Year 2000 Conversion [3].  Contingency discussions and emergency appeals, that started in 1999, were directly related to the factors that caused the collapse of the global financial system and our current international humanitarian emergency.  The timeline is as follows:

1. 1999: The Year 2000 Conversion represents a once in a lifetime event that required global central bank coordination and a mass liquidity infusion to support remediation efforts in every United Nations member country.  In conjunction with this event, legislative efforts in the United States [4] were advanced to repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act of 1932, [5] established following the crash in 1929 to separate the commercial and investment banks.  This was the first step in comprehensive deregulation of the OTC Derivatives Market and supporting legislation of the Commodity Futures Modernization Act. [6]  Global Shadow Banking/OTC derivatives [7,8] market coordination exemplified a new reference point for globalization.

2. 911 combined with the Global Technology Crash in 2001-02, provided the world with it's first glimpse of the devastation caused by speculative trading supported by the Year 2000 liquidity infusion and open access of the investment banks to the central bank funding.  

3. Following the Technology Crash, the housing market provided the fuel for increased consumer spending and rapid recovery from the 01-02 recession. This was accomplished through removal of legal oversight of the mortgage industry that included widespread predatory lending, mortgage and appraisal fraud. The housing bubble continued to inflate until the housing market crashed in 2007. [9]

4. In conjunction with the housing bubble was the securitization [10] of the mortgage instruments through the OTC derivatives market and shadow banking system  (2005-2007). [10]  The  OTC derivatives market ballooned to over $1.4 Quadrillion, [11] creating hyperinflationary distortions at every level of the global financial system, resulting in the global market crash in 2008.

5. 2008- Present:  The removal of the 1932 Glass-Steagall Protections that separated the commercial and investment banks has still not been reversed and distortions caused by interrelated financial market crimes continue to intensify.  Central bank efforts to support recovery, while ignoring the variables that caused the 2008 global market crash, remain a perplexing mystery.  

6.  The resultant national foreclosure crisis has intensified due to the sale of mortgage notes for securitization in the OTC derivatives market.  Legal review encompasses whether banks and non bank financial institutions had the legal right to sell the mortgages, and once sold, whether they had a legal basis to foreclose on the properties after the market collapsed and countries entered into a national economic emergency.

7.  The events during this last decade may well be recorded as the largest intercoordinated series of global financial crimes in word history....  It is time for global infrastructure analysis and contingency planning for restructure from the national to the grassroots level in every UN member country, in an effort to provide a future for our youth and future generations.

Consumer protection and humanitarian appeals were initiated during each phase of this crisis period through United Nations, NGO and intergovernmental communication networks. [12] Despite the intensity of these efforts, the crisis continues to cascade.

References:

1. International Disaster Information Network: Humanitarian Resource Institute. Url: http://www.humanitarian.net/idin
2. Global Preparedness & Response Network: Humanitarian Resource Institute. Url: http://www.humanitarian.net/gprn
3. Global Infrastructure Analysis & Contingency Planning: Year 2000 Conversion. Humanitarian Resource Institute. Url: http://www.humanitarian.net/contingency.html
4. The Warning: Frontline, PBS. Url: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/warning/
5. Glass-Steagall Act of 1932: Wickpedia: Url: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glass%E2%80%93Steagall_Act
6. Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000: Wickpedia. Url: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commodity_Futures_Modernization_Act_of_2000
7. Derivative: Wickpedia. Url: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derivative_(finance)
8. Shadow Banking System: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shadow_banking_system
9. House of Cards:  David Faber, CNBC. Url: http://www.cnbc.com/id/28892719/
10. Securitization: Wickpedia. Url: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Securitization
11. Remarks by Jill Considine: At the joint European Central Bank/Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Conference on “Issues Related to Central Counterparty Clearing” Frankfurt, Germany, April 4, 2006. Url: http://www.ecb.int/events/pdf/conferences/ccp/Considine.pdf  
12. Pathobiologics International - The Consulting Arm of Humanitarian Resource Institute and the Humanitarian University Consortium. Url: http://www.pathobiologics.org/groundzero.html


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