Authored by Frank Giustra,The Continental dollar, born in 1775, was meant to finance the colonies’ fight against Britain—the American Revolution. The Founders, having lived through the destruction of the Continental dollar, carried a deep suspicion of unbacked paper money into the constitutional debates. The cumulative effect on purchasing power has been substantial. Paper money untethered from hard assets removes the shackles that keep politicians from doing what politicians would always rather do—abandon fiscal responsibility. The result, over time, is the gradual erosion of purchasing power we’ve seen since 1971, punctuated by sharper episodes when political or geopolitical pressures intensify.