UltragigagiganticSomebody do something. Somebody?
BeatTakeshi
WTF Happened In 1971?
https://inflationdata.com/articles/2022/08/10/u-s-cumulative-inflation-since-1913/ "I don't believe we shall ever have a good money again before we take the thing out of the hands of government, that is, we can't take it violently out of the hands of government, all we can do is by some sly roundabout way introduce something that they can't stop." - F.A. Hayek…
Clay_pidginWhat’s the answer?
Probably end of the gold standard
is that the best explanation available? i think that the 1973 oil crisis (which completely changed the dynamics of the global economy) and Regonomics in the 80s are much more impactful. I know neither of those happened in 1971, but the site shows graphs in which 1971 and 1973 would be almost basically the same, and most show a much steep change in the 80s
No. Just libertarian nonsense, ending the gold standard ended the Great Depression. 1971 marked the total abandonment of it but it was over in practice in the 30’s.
Possibly the final nail in the coffin of the gold/silver standards (Aug '71)? I'm not at all saying that we should have stayed on a commodity standard for currency, but switching that completely off without also having sufficient protections for financial shenanigans seems like it would create exactly the kind of increase in inequalities shown.
Nixon Ends Bretton Woods International Monetary System
some say computers/digitalization of work.
yboutrosEnd of the gold standard.
Before, if you didn’t get a raise, the minimum wage would at least keep up with inflation since it was tied to gold
Before, if you didn’t get a raise, the minimum wage would at least keep up with inflation since it was tied to gold
That’s…just not true at all. Commodity based currency is just as prone to inflation as fiat, the only thing it does is introduce volatility to your currency if the commodity market faults.
Gold does not have a definitional inherent worth, meaning if the government wants to “print” more money while on the gold standard, they just change the monetary value of gold, as Roosevelt did in 33’
In the United States, prior to 1933 for example, $1 meant 1/20th of an ounce of gold. In 1933, in the depths of the Depression, President Roosevelt redefined $1 to mean 1/35th of an ounce of gold. That is, a $1 bill was now worth less gold, about 60% less. In other words, the government was able to expand its supply of paper bills by 60% without changing its reserve of gold. This single act resulted in a significant decline in the purchasing power of paper money and shows how it is possible to generate inflation even under a gold standard.
Jack Welch.