1971 Not backed by Gold.

This was a drain to the U.S. and in the summer of 1971, President Nixon therefore refused to exchange hundreds of millions of dollars from the Bank of England for gold. He decided to `close the gold window.`

This decision is seen as a U.S. default, since it no longer could fulfil its 1944 obligations. Since 1971 the U.S. dollar although held by most countries for trade purposes, has been backed by `nothing,` just America`s promise to pay yet with more unbacked dollars. This has seen America being able to purchase goods from all over the world and in return just pay with `paper.`

Over time countries are beginning to wake up to this and start to trade with other countries in their currency. For example, China and Russia use each other`s currency, and many other nations do the same. Thus the U.S. dollars are coming home to America and the time of living high is now turning to reality of having to pay their debts.

2007/8 Global Financial Crisis. (GFC)

Also as most of the nations of the world are in some way connected to the American dollar, then the whole economic system is subject to highs and lows. This we have recently seen in the 2007/8 Global Financial Crisis. However instead of letting the markets adjust, the governments printed more currency and made the `debt bubble` grow exponentially larger. And finally in 2020 the printing presses, (actually digital) have been running hot to fend off the gigantic collapse of the whole global economic & financial system.