Quote:
Originally Posted by Wakeupcall  According to information that I have read...
The dollar was redeemable in gold. Then they got rid of that and made it "just paper" calling it "legal tender". Then they called in the gold that people may have had such as jewellary and watches. I also read there was a prison sentence if you didnt hand over your gold.
Pretty dodgy pattern if its true... |
That's pretty much what happened. It's why many people think of modern government money as counterfeit paper. If somebody printed paper and tried to pass if off as money in a strict gold standard, they could be prosecuted for fraud (or, if they admitted it was just paper, nobody would touch it.)