Why can't our dollar be backed by what we produce???

Mods please move if need be, I didn't know where to post this.

Anyway I've been thinking. With the way our economy is and the way our dollar is collapsing all around us, and with more and more people pushing to have our dollar backed once again by gold. I was wondering why our currency the dollar, can't be backed up by the commodities we produce, or a combination of the commodities and precious metals, like, gold, silver, platinum?

We produce about half of the worlds corn, and I'm sure we can produce more. We produce, soybeans, wheat, hay, cotton, rice, sugar, grain, and countless other commodities as well as oil. We mine phosphate, coal, natural gas, and tons of other things.

All I'm asking is why can't our dollar be backed by these things or a combo of things? I think maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea to look into something along those lines.www.epa.gov...

It's against the Constitution, for whatever reason.

US Constitution, Article 1 Section 10

No State shall enter into any Treaty, Alliance, or Confederation; grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal; coin Money; emit Bills of Credit; make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts; pass any Bill of Attainder, ex post facto Law, or Law impairing the Obligation of Contracts, or grant any Title of Nobility.

Besides, the government can't use something as legal tender that doesn't belong to them. Just like they can't use your house as backing for legal tender.

That is our achilles heel. The US consumes more than it produces. Yea we have some food production and some minerals - but we consume more than we produce. That is why our debt is going up. Fairly simple.

reply to post by yoesse

I find it hard to believe we consume more then we produce. I think we might export a lot so there for it seems we consume more. Our debt continues to rise for a ton of reasons, but one isn't what you said. Hell we feed the world with what we produce.

Also if gold and silver coin is the only legal tender, then how come we have paper money. Shouldn't that be illegal?

I thought that our currency was based on the gross domestic product. This would be the same as what you suggest. Also, the government owns everything in this country, including your home, property and you personally. These assets are figured in the GDP. Strange how the state is supposed to pay its debts in silver coin, but they send me a piece of paper (check) when I get a tax return. Everything has a loophole and the government uses them all, if not straight out deception.

reply to post by lspilot6946


Now I slept through most of my economics classes I ever took, but it seems like I remember our money is backed by "the total faith and trust of the US Government." Or something like that. How that money is compared to other countries currencies...or it's worth is based on the Gross National Product, or more lately the Gross Domestic Product.

So basically, I think your idea is already somewhat in use. Then again..I have already freely admitted I got some of the best sleep I could get in high school and college in Econ classes....

it is, without our life of slavery...the money would be worthless
they are devalueing the money to enslave us economicly.

reply to post by lspilot6946


S&F I think this is an excellent question and although we may not come up with any good answers it is something we will have to start thinking about. Hot air is not much in demand although we have that in great and overflowing supplies.

reply to post by lspilot6946


...I might be missing something that you're trying to get at ..

But the US Dollar IS based on "what we produce"

It's based on faith that we can deliver, that it will always be accepted so by default it's based on the power of our economy.

Since our economy imports more than exports it's harder to base the reserve notes off just the economy, so for the USA it's a little different than other Reserve currencies (like the Euro, Ausie, Yen etc) the USA's is also backed by military power, and the Petro Dollar. That meaning everyone has to buy in Dollars. If you don't buy in Dollars the USA comes to you're front door and kicks your teeth in (Iraq).

But .. in theory .. all fiat currencies are backed by the nations ability to produce.

All I'm asking is why can't our dollar be backed by these things or a combo of things?

Simple answer: There is no form of monitization that is 100% safe, fool-proof or completely equal to the value of its weight. Money is an outdated, "barbaric" concept that will not sustain itself much longer.

Some day, when we grow up on planet Earth, money will be an obsolete relic of the capitolistic failures of Man. No advanced civilization would require money as trade for basic human needs and would realize that profit incubates greed......causing most of the problems we have today.

So your money is worthless, the inherant value is based on misconceptions and lies.....even if it's based on your pile of corn.

reply to post by Adyta


I thought our money hasn't been backed by gold since the 1930's....but please correct me if I'm wrong.

Originally posted by lspilot6946
reply to post by Adyta

 

I thought our money hasn't been backed by gold since the 1930's....but please correct me if I'm wrong.

You're right, I realized that after I posted my reply. Couldn't figure out how to delete my post >.

Our money is backed by our gross domestic product but we do import more than we export, in addition, the primary driver for the dollars decline is the Fed expanding the money supply by many means, i.e. they're effectively printing more dollars. So if there are more dollars they are all woth less. Law of supply and demand.

If time is money and money is just a note to describe value earned from work, why can't we set a standard based on time working?

reply to post by Rockpuck
I am sorry to inform you that the federal reserve note we currently use is based on NOTHING except the "full faith and credit" of the US government. It has zero intrinsic value.

Originally posted by fltcui
Our money is backed by our gross domestic product

Why does everybody believe this? It is not true. Our fiat currency is BASED ON NOTHING BUT THE BELIEF THAT IT HAS VALUE. There is nothing else backing it. The belief is derived from the statement that it is backed by the full faith and credit of the US government. This should really scare you if you stop and think while looking at our current economic situation.

Originally posted by The_Phantom
If time is money and money is just a note to describe value earned from work, why can't we set a standard based on time working?

Because different types of work are "worth more". Thus programmers make more than ditch diggers, and GOOD mechanics make more than teachers or telemarketers etc...

Originally posted by sonofliberty1776

Originally posted by The_Phantom
If time is money and money is just a note to describe value earned from work, why can't we set a standard based on time working?

Because different types of work are "worth more". Thus programmers make more than ditch diggers, and GOOD mechanics make more than teachers or telemarketers etc...

Yes, I agree that is the way things are done now, I'm talking about about a restructuring of the entire system including how we define what types of work are "worth more" then others. Why isn't a teachers job "worth" as much as a another? Ditch digging is hard work, why shouldn't it be worth as much as any other job? Yes, you will explain that a programmer goes to college to learn their skills and they have to pay for that, so they should benefit more. I agree in the system we live in now all of your arguments will make perfect sense and I do not challenge them. I only ask if it's possible that another system based on working as a means to gain in life could be built, one that has not been tried, one that encouraged gaining capital but satisfied everyone by keeping the playing field "fair" I'm not promoting the idea, I simply thought of it and wondered on a intellectual basis if such a system could possibly be built.

It is backed by the FULL FAITH AND CREDIT of the taxing power of the .gov