Turkey's crisis could widen, and its options are running out

ErdoAan or the central bank have days to prevent a tsunami of selling and a collapse of the lira

The financial crisis a decade ago struck at the very heart of the global economy - the strategically important banks in the United States and Europe. But it took time to arrive. The "big one" of 2008 followed a series of mini-crises elsewhere in the world.

Over a 15-year period, problems in the emerging markets worked their way to the heart of the international system. Mexico, Thailand, Indonesia, South Korea, Brazil, Russia and Argentina were all warning signs that unchaining global finance would eventually prove costly to the rich developed countries as well. Unfortunately, the warning signs were ignored.