I wonder if there is enough gold in the world to back the vastly increased wealth that has been created since the Constitution was written? I'm not an expert on economics, but I thought the move away from the gold standard was done to decrease volatility in currency markets. You've inspired me to do some research on this topic, as it does come up here on FR from time to time. Thanks for your post, and the pictures of the old currency are pretty cool.
Check out mises.org and review a few of the articles or online books. Several articles have exceptional histories of why we went off the gold standard and what the ultimate effect will be. It boils down to credit expansion of the economy. A free market is less easily subject to governmental manipulation than one controlled by a central bank. The central bank, once in charge of what 'money' is, can manipulate it through interest rates. Lower rates and, to a point, you get economic expansion and inflation, which makes excessive government spending more palatable and easier to repay. (Because it will be paid off in deflated currency.)
I might suggest first that if there isn't enough gold, then there certainly should be enough debt (that is what paper money is) but even with the massive amount of debt that has been created, GM and many other companies are indicating problems meeting their obligations to their pensioners. That shouldn't be. See there wasn't enough gold, so we started using debt based money, lots of it, and we promised it to the pensioners. And now we don't have enough? My take is when we use debt as money, that is when there is never enough. But that there is enough when we use gold, the right way. Get on the web and look at the growth of the cities in the 1800s to 1900, see the fine architecture. Some of the most beautiful fanciest homes were built, not the ugly MacMansions that pass for architecture today. There may have been some panics, some recessions, some banks closing, but that is normal and it does no one a favor artificially keeping a bank open that is run by incompetent management. Otherwise, a largely gold and silver oriented money economy with reasonable levels of private debt resulted in a magnificent growth of the American economy. There was a time when we did it right.
You might read, for your research, The Creature From Jekyll Island. In there somewhere is an explanation how JP Morgan arranged for much metallic money to be shipped out of the U.S. and to Great Britian because GB was hurting for money after the Great War. Then when our stock market bubble collapsed, we were starved for real money which we needed to reset the economy. GB had our money. FDR forced us on to debt based money after that and we accepted it because that was the only way out. If JP Morgan had not sent our gold to GB, we might still be using gold and silver today.
Yes, an economy can be starved for gold. There can be situations where there isn't enough gold. GB experienced it and we experienced it, the hard way.
But that is not the same thing as asking is there enough gold. See? Think of when we did have enough, 1800-1900.
First we have to make sure we have some gold, and enough however much that will be, but it will be within the limits of what we have. Done right....the market will determine how much everything is worth in terms of gold. Ratios will arise naturally, and you will know how much gold will buy a house, a car, groceries for the month, braces, private school, etc.
The nice thing would be that in order for the one world government people to get financing they'd have to take it from you and you wouldn't tolerate the taking. As it is today, they can force you, without your knowledge, to finance their agenda by borrowing unbacked credit from the central bank. You pay the silent insidious tax of inflation and do not connect it with what they are doing.
Which reminds me of your question: "I wonder if there is enough gold in the world to back the vastly increased wealth that has been created since the Constitution was written?" What? Our money is unbacked. All the wealth you are thinking of is unbacked by unbacked money. I'm not sure what you meant to ask but it wasn't the way you asked it.
For your research, start here: gold and economic freedom by Alan Greenspan