part 3- meet the players

i thought that an introduction to some world politics was in order to establish how we as a planet got to the point we are at today- well into globalization and standardizing of the world. this movement has it's roots in the early part of the nineteenth century- probably before- but i decided to limit focus to the so-called modern age. i have a feeling that this will be a series within a series but hey- this isn't called life's journey for no reason. i am on a journey and i am not exactly sure where it is going to take me. i feel that many of these groups are the basis of our policies and the direction our country and planet is headed in. since i will be referring to some of these groups in later posts, i thought that i would introduce the players. so now for the recap:

intro- globalization
part 1
part 2

my observations about the groups that were founded were that they tended to be reactions to the world wars and the political climate during the cold war. that is fairly obvious. after the wars, manufacturing came into it's own and thus the rise of corporate structures as we have begun to know them.

federal reserve system- 1913

On December 23, 1913, the Federal Reserve System, which serves as the nation's central bank, was created by an act of Congress. The System consists of a seven member Board of Governors with headquarters in Washington, D.C., and twelve Reserve Banks located in major cities throughout the United States.

world war 1- 1914-1918

The First World War, also known as The Great War, The War to End All Wars, and World War I (abbreviated WWI) was a global military conflict that took place between 1914 and 1918. It was a total war which left ten million dead and shaped the modern world.

brookings institute- 1916

The Brookings Institution is one of the oldest and best known think tanks in the United States. Based in Washington, D.C., Brookings is devoted to public service through research and education in the social sciences, particularly in economics, government, and foreign policy." [1] It states as its principal purposes: "to aid in the development of sound public policies and to promote public understanding of issues of national importance."

league of nations- 1919

The League of Nations was an international organization founded after the paris peace conference of 1919. The League's goals included disarmament; preventing war through collective security settling disputes between countries through negotiation diplomacy; and improving global welfare. The diplomatic philosophy behind the League represented a fundamental shift in thought from the preceding hundred years.
council of foreign relations- 1921

world war 2- 1937-1945

World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global military conflict that took place between 1937 and 1945. It was the largest and deadliest war in history, culminating with the dropping of the atomic bomb.

united nations(26 nations against axis)- 1942

united nations(50 nations)- 1945

The United Nations (UN) is an international organization that describes itself as a "global association of governments facilitating co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, and social equity." It was founded in 1945 at the signing of the united nations charter by 51 countries, replacing the league of nations which was founded in 1919.

world bank- 1945

The World Bank Group is a group of five international organizations responsible for providing finance and advice to countries for the purposes of economic development and reduction, and for encouraging and safeguarding international investment. The group and its affiliates have their headquarters in povertywashington, d.c., with local offices in 124 member countries.

international monetary fund- 1946

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is an international organization that oversees the global financial system by monitoring exchange rates, and balance of payments, as well as offering technical and financial assistance when asked. Its headquarters are in washington, d.c.

nato- 1948

The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, the Atlantic Alliance or the Western Alliance, is an for international organizationcollective security established in 1949, in support of the north atlantic treaty signed in washington, d.c., on april 4, 1949. Its headquarters are located in brussels, belgium.

world trade organization beginning- 1948

General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (typically abbreviated GATT) functioned as the precursor to the World Trade Organization. GATT was created by the Bretton Woods meetings that took place in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, in 1944, that set forth a plan for economic recovery after World War II by encouraging a reduction in tariffs and other international trade barriers.

organization of american states final- 1949

The Organization of American States (OAS; OEA in the other three official languages) is an international organization, headquartered in washington, d.c. Its members are the 35 independent nations of the americas.

'bilderberg' group- 1952
The Bilderberg group or Bilderberg conference is an unofficial annual invitation-only conference of around 130 guests, most of whom are persons of influence in the fields of business, academia, media, or politics. The elite group meets annually, in secret, at exclusive, five-star resorts throughout the world, normally in europe, although sometimes in the united states or canada. It has an office in leiden, south holland, netherlands.

european community(first pillar eu)- 1957

The European Community (EC), most important of three European Communities, was originally founded on March 25, 1957 by the signing of the Treaty of Rome under the name of European Economic Community. The 'Economic' was removed from its name by the Maastricht treaty in 1992, which at the same time effectively made the European Community the first of three pillars of the European Union, called the Community (or Communities) Pillar.

ditchely foundation- 1958

The Ditchley Foundation is a British organisation based at Ditchley house near chipping, norton, oxfordshire which aims to promote international relations, especially Anglo-American relations, through a program of around fifteen annual conferences on matters of international interest. The foundation was incorporated in 1958 by Sir David Wills, descendant of the tobacco importing family, w.d. and h.o. wills of Bristol. At each conference, around forty invitees are drawn from senior levels of politics, business, the armed forces, media, and academia, with roughly a third of guests being American, a further third being British, with the remainder being of other nationalities. The director of the Foundation is usually a retired ambassador - the current director is jeremy greenstock, former British Ambassador to the United Nations.

opec- 1960

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is made up of Algeria, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela; since 1965 its international headquarters has been in Vienna, Austria.

trilateral commission- 1973

The Trilateral Commission is a private organization, founded in 1973 at the initiative of the heads of the Council of Foreign Relations and of the Bilderberg Group, among them David Rockefeller, Henry Kissinger and Zbigniew Brzezinski. It consists of approximatively 300-350 private citizens from europe, Pacific Asia (Asia & Oceania), and north america, and exists to promote closer cooperation between these areas. Membership is divided into amounts apportioned to each of its three areas. Members who gain a position in their respective country's government leave the commission.

swift- 1973

Supported by 239 banks in 15 countries, the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) starts the mission of creating a shared worldwide data processing and communications link and a common language for international financial transactions.

european union- 1992

The European Union (EU) is an intergovernmental and supranational union of 25 member states. The European Union was established under that name in 1992 by the Treaty on European Union (the Maastricht Treaty) in 1992. However, many aspects of the Union existed before that date through a series of predecessor relationships, dating back to 1951. ^[1]

nafta- 1994

The North American Free Trade Agreement, known usually as NAFTA, is a free trade agreement among canada, the united states, and mexico. NAFTA went into effect on january 1, 1994. NAFTA is also used to refer to the tripartite trading bloc of north american countries.

world trade organization- 1995

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an international, multilateral organization, which sets the rules for the global trading system and resolves disputes between its member states, all of whom are signatories to its approximately 30 agreements.

my theory is that most of these organizations advanced the notion that europe and north america should rule the world. with exception of perhaps opec, the same players belong in most of the groups and it is they who are putting forth policy and economic ideas. i am going to try and put together a graph or grid or something to make my theory clearer- but this is just an intro to the groups.