Just prior to abandoning the gold standard you could literally take US dollars and exchange them for gold at $35 an ounce, then take that gold to France or wherever and sell it for more than the equivalent of $35 an ounce. Take those now-devalued dollars back to the US, and repeat, without limitation. Of course that was preposterous and unsustainable. Once the decision was made there was no turning back.
I have a few old US silver certificates I use to draw attention to the fact it stated it could be exchanged for real currency, denominated at various points in history as gold or silver. The point being made is that governments always renege on their promises. Always always always.
We could discuss the constitutionality of the US code that established paper money as legal tender, but it's a moot point. It's all over. We just continue to play the game of pretending it doesn't matter.
I have a few old US silver certificates I use to draw attention to the fact it stated it could be exchanged for real currency, denominated at various points in history as gold or silver. The point being made is that governments always renege on their promises. Always always always.
We could discuss the constitutionality of the US code that established paper money as legal tender, but it's a moot point. It's all over. We just continue to play the game of pretending it doesn't matter.