history

What If We Had A Gold Standard System, Right Now?

What If We Had A Gold Standard System, Right Now?

By Nathan Lewis

For most of the 182 years between 1789 and 1971, the United States embraced the principle of a dollar linked to gold — at first, at $20.67/oz., and then, after 1933, $35/oz. Nearly every economist today will tell you that was a terrible policy. We can tell it was a disaster because, during that time, the United States became the wealthiest and most prosperous country in the history of the world.

This is economist logic.

The Unheeded Advice in George Washington's Farewell Address

The Unheeded Advice in George Washington's Farewell Address

When people remember or discuss the address, they most often recall his warning against political parties, his admonition to avoid entangling foreign alliances, and his insistence that “religion and morality are indispensable supports” to political prosperity.  But we often read right over an even more poignant warning in Washington’s address; a warning we failed to heed to our own detriment.