If you search the net, there is a pretty good white paper you can find written by Alan Greenspan called “Gold and Economic Freedom” in 1966. He outlines very well what the deal is.
Trust me, “they” are not going to return to gold money, or a “gold standard”. Zero chance. They have done everything in their power to get rid of it, that was the whole point.
Also, for those who want to see a possible scenario of what will happen if the US doesn't a backup plan to return to sound money after the collapse, check out a novel called The Mandibles: A Family, 2029-2047 by Lionel Shriver.