The dollar in your pocket is quietly melting.

For most of America's history, a dollar meant a fixed weight of gold or silver. You could walk into a bank and trade paper for metal. That kept everyone honest — you can't print gold.

In 1913 Congress created the Federal Reserve. In 1933 Americans were ordered to turn in their gold. In 1971 President Nixon closed the last window where foreign governments could trade dollars for gold. From that day on, the dollar has been backed by nothing but trust.

When new money is created, it doesn't arrive evenly. Banks, governments and big asset holders get it first and spend it before prices rise. By the time it reaches your paycheck, groceries, rent and gas already cost more.

Nobody votes for this tax. It never shows up on a bill. It just shows up as a smaller life.

• Savers lose — money in the bank shrinks every year
• Wage earners lose — raises trail prices
• Borrowers with big debts win
• Whoever prints first wins most

A money that can be created at will invites borrowing without end. Federal debt now runs in the tens of trillions of dollars, and interest alone is one of the largest lines in the budget.

Debts that size are rarely paid back honestly. History says they're inflated away — at the expense of everyone holding the currency.

From the Roman denarius to the German mark to the Zimbabwe dollar, money that can be debased eventually is. The dollar is still the world's reserve currency, but countries around the world are already buying gold and building alternatives.

You don't have to wait for the end to protect yourself. You can start holding — and using — honest money today.