Creature From Jekyll Island by G. Edward

threat nor the enemy had to be real. They merely had to be believable.

Several surrogates for war were considered, but the only one holding real promise was the environmental- pollution model. This was viewed as the most likely to succeed because (1) it could be related to observable conditions such as smog and water pollution—in other words, it would be based partly on fact and, therefore, believable—and (2) predictions could be made showing end-of-earth scenarios just as horrible as atomic warfare. Accuracy in these predictions would not be important. Their purpose would be to frighten, not to inform.

While the followers of the current environmental m o v e m e n t are preoccupied with visions of planetary doom, the leaders have an entirely different agenda. It is world government.

Chapter Twenty-Five

A PESSIMISTIC

SCENARIO

The future portrayed as a continuation of present

trends including a hypothetical banking crisis,

massive inflation, collapse of the economy, domes-

tic violence, the issuance of a new UN money, the

arrival of UN 'Peacekeeping' forces, and the final merger into The New World Order, a form of

high-tech feudalism.

We are ready now for the final trip in our time machine. On the control panel in front of us are several selector switches. The one on the left indicates Direction of Time. Set it to Future. The switch on the right indicates Primary Assumptions. Set it to the first notch which reads: Present trends unaltered. Leave the Secondary- Assumption switch where it is. The lever in the center is a throttle to determine speed of travel. Nudge it forward—and hang on tight!

A BANKING CRISIS

It is 4:05 in the morning. While New York City sleeps, the computers on the fourth floor at Citibank are aware that a full-blown crisis is underway. It started in London—five hours ahead of the East coast—and within minutes had spread like an electronic virus to Tokyo and Hong Kong. That was an hour ago.

Alarms are now sounding on computer terminals in all the trading centers of the world, and automatic dialing devices are summoning money managers to their board rooms.

The panic started from rumors that one of the large U.S. banks was in trouble because of the simultaneous default of its loan to Mexico and the bankruptcy of its second-largest corporate borrower. Yesterday afternoon, the bank's president held a press conference and denied that these were serious problems. To reinforce his optimism, he announced that, on Friday, the bank will be paying a higher-than-usual quarterly dividend. The professional 538

THE CREATURE FROM JEKYLL ISLAND

money managers were not convinced. They knew that writing off these loans would wipe out the bank's entire net worth.

All American banks are now so intertwined in their operations that trouble for one affects them all. By 5 A.M., the money-center banks are facing heavy withdrawals from overseas depositors. By the time the sun peeks between the New York skyscrapers,

Americans are also taking their money. These are not small transactions. They involve other banks, insurance companies, and investment funds. The average withdrawal is over $3 million. The reservoir is draining fast.

It is now 7:45. The banks will soon be opening their doors, and already newspaper reporters and TV crews are arriving outside. A plan of unified action must be made quickly.

The Chairman of the Federal Reserve has arranged an emer-

gency conference call with the CEOs of all the major banks, including one who was located at great effort at his fishing lodge in northern Canada. The President is also tied into the telephone network but on a 'silent-monitor' basis. Other than the Chairman, no one else knows he is listening.

TO SAVE THE BANKS IS TO SAVE THE WORLD

The CEO at Citibank quickly summarizes the problem. None of the banks will be able to sustain withdrawals of this magnitude for more than about forty-eight hours. Perhaps less. The money is not in their vaults. It has been put into interest-bearing loans. Even if the loans were performing, they would not have the money. Now that some of the larger loans are in default, the problem is even worse. If the Fed doesn't provide the money, the banks will have no choice but to close their doors and go out of business. That would cause a collapse of the economy and untold suffering Would follow.

Americans would be thrown out of work; families would go

hungry; national security would be weakened. And it would undoubtedly spread to the entire world. Who knows what dire consequences would follow—chaos, famine, and riots here at home? Revolution abroad? The return of a militaristic regime in Russia? Atomic war?

The Chairman cuts the monologue short. He is well aware that the banks must not be allowed to fail. That, after all, was one of the reasons the Federal Reserve was created. He wants to get on with the details of how to do it.

A PESSIMISTIC SCENARIO 539

Yes, the FDIC is already broke, but don't worry about that.

Congress will authorize a 'loan' or some other mechanism for the Fed to create whatever amount of new money the FDIC might need. If Congress moves too slowly, the Fed has other technical means to accomplish the