ALL that gold...
 

I was watching a program on Fort Knox on The Discovery Channel last night. I was AMAZED by the amount of gold bars that the US has stock piled there and has for hundreds of years. Here's my question...why aren't we selling some of that pile off to pay off the national debt, boost the economy and spread that wealth throughout government programs and schools? Why is that massive amount of money just sitting there, guarded 24/7 and doing nothing but gathering dust?

I thought that America's assets, like our stockpile of Gold, and other resourses, is what gave our Government the ability to print currency. I doubt that we could cover all the currency we are printing, but if we gave up the Gold and other assets, what would our money be worth??

per Wikipedia
 

"No country currently uses the gold standard as the basis of its monetary system, although several hold substantial gold reserves."