The Dollar's Future

It wasn't very long ago that the Mexican government revalued its peso. Before that, the dollar exchange was something like 1: 3600; a boon for Americans. The last time I visited our southern neighbors, the exchange was around one dollar to ten and a half pesos. When I was a child, the dollar went much further in its purchasing power than it does now. A single dollar bill could buy a half gallon of milk, a loaf of bread, and a pack of cigarettes. Today, you'd be lucky to buy a cup of coffee for one dollar. What does this mean? It means the dollar's worth is far, far less, and has almost no purchasing power. A half gallon of milk, a loaf of bread, and a pack of cigarettes can cost upwards of ten dollars or more. When I first started driving, a gallon of gasoline was just 32 cents. Today, it stands at $3.65-some people consider that good today, but is it really? Where did the dollar's power go? Has it abandoned the People of this country? Billions have gone to buying goodwill and peace in the mideast; that is to Egypt and Israel to maintain a peaceful relationship. Billions have gone to the shakedown the Pakistanis have effectively maintained against us in exchange for using their overland roads into Afghanistan to fight their proxies, the Taliban-the Mafia would be so proud. Some of our foreign aid has been used for good purpose. It has fed millions of people, educated other nations' students, and has bribed friends to stand by us when they didn't want to help us invade a sovereign nation for no good reason. A good deal of our hard earned cash has gone to purchase superior weaponry that wasn't up to par, needed tweeking, or was junk before and after it was made for those that must use it. It used to be that the military didn't buy a product unless it proved its worth without cost to the government, but not anymore. The dollar's loss of value can be traced to poorly thought out and executed foreign policy; not to domestic spending. Had the dollar been spent on new American infrastructure built by American workers utilizing American products, the money would have stayed circulating among American citizens enhancing their standard of living. Instead, Americans are expected to drop their standard of living to meet the demands of American companies that have taken American jobs elsewhere to enhance their profits and the bonuses of their chief operating officers. Instead of the world's workers aspiring to our standard, we are expected to lower ours to theirs. The degrading worth of the American dollar will only get worse as long as our Congress continues to bicker and stall for the sake of petty politics. It won't be long before the Federal Reserve recommends its revaluation or worse, demands the floating of the dollar to meet the Chinese  yuan; currently trading inexplicably at 1 U.S. dollar to just 6.36 yuan Renminbi. Other exchange rates point to the dollar's troubling future. How is it that the British pound is worth so much more? Wasn't the British Empire broke after WWII? Where did all their money come from? I believe most of it was from our treasury, but really, how is it that the pound exchanges at a higher rate today at 1 dollar to 1.54 pounds? We lose about a half dollar in purchasing power when we visit England. I can understand the Euro's rise as it is a combination of many nations' wealth, but England is not a wealthy country, and if I understand right, isn't it in debt too? So what is the real worth of the American dollar? Seven dollars and fifty cents less than it was just fifty years ago. In other words, it costs roughly $8.50 to buy the same amount of goods today as $1.00 did fifty years ago. How much more will it degrade? I shudder to think.