The “Nixon Shock” Was Only the Final Nail in the Coffin of the Gold Dollar
Bob gives a brief history of money in the United States, explaining that the dollar was much “harder” in, say, 1810 than it was in 1910. This explains why there was significant consumer price inflation even in 1970, the year before Richard Nixon officially severed the dollar’s link to gold.
Mentioned in the Episode and Other Links of Interest:
- Bob’s chapter in the new book, Understanding Money Mechanics, discussing the history of the US gold/silver standards
- His chapter on Mises’ theory of the business cycle
Bob’s articles discussing the 50th anniversary of Nixon closing the gold window: (1) Basic intro, (2) discussing the different regimes of the US gold standard, and (3) explaining the different inflation rates and the connection to Austrian business cycle theory [Note that this third article hadn’t posted as of the original publication of the podcast episode; this link will be updated when available.] - Bob’s article in the Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics on Mises’ theory of the business cycle.
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