Gold used to back every dollar in your pocket. Then, in 1971, Nixon cut the cord and the dollar became a promise instead of a receipt. Half a century later, the question keeps coming back: was that a mistake? Gold bugs say fiat money is why your grocery bill doubled. Critics say a gold-backed dollar would chain the economy to a shiny rock dug out of the ground.

This week we put both sides on the table. Does the gold standard mean honest money and disciplined government, or a rigid system that turns every recession into a depression? We make the strongest case for each, then land somewhere you might not expect.

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