Is a gold backed currency all that it appears to be?

There has been much written at this site about how much better a gold based currency then our current faith backed system. I came across this article which I think explains very well the problems with using gold to back the currency and why it is not the pancea that supporters of this idea tend to believe:
The Gold Standard: Solid as the Paper It's Written On

This is how the gold standard life-cycle works: The government and/or citizens of a country spend beyond their means and acquire large debts. These debts are accounted for in units of the country's currency -- a currency which presently contains, or is convertible into gold at a legally fixed currency-to-gold ratio (exchange rate). The government, often encouraged by private debtors, decides to create new debased money containing, or convertible into reduced quantities of gold. Debtors, including the government, can now use the devalued currency to cancel their old obligations (acquired at the old currency-to-gold exchange rate).