re: #38 Lidane

It takes a special kind of stupid and some serious, weapons-grade economic illiteracy to think that a gold standard is a good idea in 2014.

Then it sounds like the conservatives will have an easy time selling this turd to their base.

Face it, it does not matter if the idea is a good one. It just has to sound elevating. Consider the words involved, “return to the gold standard”. “Return.” Hmmm, that sounds like a good idea, doing things the way we used to in the good old days. “The gold standard.” Well, that has got to be good because when something is truly top tier we call it the gold standard of whatever…..and besides, “gold” and “standards” are good things, obviously! (Luntz is probably creaming himself thinking about the possibilities.)

Adding to the obvious appeal to conservatives of a return to the gold standard will be the spectacle of a bunch of elite, ivy league, pointy-headed intellectuals decrying it as stupid and then the base will be really excited about it.

To explain why it is a bad idea is complicated and has a bunch of big words, complex concepts and charts. We are doomed unless the financially literate faction of the GOP can find the stones to stand up to this lunacy.