Overview

From financial crises, to pandemic price-spikes, to recurring cycles of inflation, everyone agrees: the economy has seen better days.

But as soon as pundits and politicians start discussing economics, things get murky. Most books ask more questions than they answer.

Most books...but not this one.

Judy Shelton—Senior Fellow at Independent Institute, former Chairman of the National Endowment for Democracy, and critically acclaimed monetary economist—has written a book with answers.

And not a moment too soon.

With clarity and moral courage, Shelton charts the course to a brighter future. She’s one of the few economists bold enough to challenge the inflationary policies of the Federal Reserve, emphasizing how today’s policies enrich elites at the expense of—you guessed it—poor and middle-class Americans. This, Shelton insists, must end. And it can end—easily.

But Shelton doesn’t stop there. Her vision is for not only America but also for people around the world. Global, economic upliftment, she insists, need not come at the expense of domestic prosperity. We can have both—but not without a sound and stable U.S. currency.
And history is very clear on this point. When the U.S. dollar is backed by gold, America prospers, and so does the rest of the world. In this book, Shelton casts a powerful vision that is as revolutionary as it is time-tested...a vision that shows how the future American dollar can perform as good as gold...

...or even better.

But this is no curmudgeonly demand to return to the gold standard of yore. Neither is it a demand to return to the Bretton Woods era. Instead, Shelton offers something new: an explanation of how we can use gold for a new international monetary order. Step by step, she lays out how gold can provide a universal measure of value across borders, create new financial opportunities, and dramatically increase prosperity around the world.

If you care about the poor, rich, and everyone in between, you have to read this book ... and discover:

• how price stability functions as the foundation for productive economic growth;
• how political freedom and economic freedom are fundamentally linked ... and how one cannot exist without the other;
• how to reconcile the stability of America’s domestic currency in a global context;
• the proper role of government in the economy;
• and much, much more ...

Writing with a sober but hopeful voice, Shelton is no ordinary economist. With grace, intellectual rigor, and unmatched passion, this book is a must-read for anyone invested in the future of the American—and global—economy. You'll walk away with more answers than questions—a rare experience for anyone who reads about monetary policy.

Contents

Preface
Introduction

Part One: Building Consensus

1. Central Planning Doesn’t Work
2. Stable Money Fosters Productive Growth
3. Money Should Work Across Borders

Part Two: Taking Action

4. Fix What Broke
5. Golden Link to the Future
6. The Leadership Imperative

Epilogue
Notes
Index
About the Author

Praise

“In her book Good as Gold, Judy Shelton explains what was lost after the gold-backed Bretton Woods system was abandoned by the Nixon administration. Stable money is a pillar of the supply-side agenda for achieving productive economic growth. We need a dollar that is a world currency, that’s for sure—one that provides a reliable store of value at home and is recognized as the world’s most respected monetary standard for international trade and investment. Judy Shelton shows us how to achieve both.”
—Arthur B. Laffer, PhD`

“A book more than worth its weight in gold. Shelton obliterates the wrong-headed, opportunity-killing ideas that currently have a vice-like grip on central bankers and economic policymakers. Then she lays out a new way forward to achieving sound money—the absolute requisite for a genuinely prosperous, free-market future. A masterful achievement.”
—Steve Forbes, chairman and editor-in-chief, Forbes Media

“In 1997, Judy Shelton’s mentor, the Nobel laureate Robert Mundell, proclaimed that ‘gold will be part of the international monetary system in the twenty-first century.’ In a clear and persuasive way, Shelton’s Good as Gold provides a road map for the United States to follow, leading the way to Mundell’s promised land.”
—Steve H. Hanke, professor of applied economics, Johns Hopkins University

“Judy Shelton’s brilliant plan for the redemption of the U.S. dollar couldn’t be timelier. A 24-karat broadside in the service of sound money, world prosperity, and—who dreamt it was possible?—the ennoblement of American politics.”
—James Grant, publisher, Grant’s Interest Rate Observer

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