But Bettina Bien Greaves who was a translator, editor, and bibliographer for economist Ludwig von Mises' works argues that there is no practical reason we couldn't return to a gold standard. The objections are almost all ideological. "If this basic obstacle could be overcome, however, a return to gold money would become a realistic possibility," she wrote.

Peter Schiff has argued the private sector will eventually bring us back to a gold standard. He doesn't think a new gold standard will be imposed by governments.

I think that the free market is going to reject the dollar and other currencies because they're a flawed form of money because they are no longer a store of value."

Greaves also believed market actions would be integral in any transition back to a gold standard. But there are steps the federal government could take — short of collapsing the entire monetary system, which is the path we seem to be on — to facilitate a return to sound money.