World Conflicts
The Gold Standard
In 1971, Richard Nixon took America off the gold standard. The gold standard was a system which made the American dollar exchangeable for gold. The government had stockpiled a ton of gold, and the value of the dollar was in direct proportion to the gold value. When the gold standard was around, the government couldn't print any more money then the amount of gold they had, which meant that at any time, you could exchange your money for gold. For just one dollar, you wouldn't get much, but you would get way more for a thousand dollars.
Many people were upset when Nixon took the United States off the gold standard. That meant that the government could print as much money as they wanted, and there was nothing to stop them. People didn't like it because they were relying on the government's honesty to stop inflation.
The Oil Crisis
The oil crises was when Saudi Arabia, was in a conflict with Israel, refused to give the United States and other European countries that supported Israel oil. The Soviet Union supported Saudi Arabia. The oil embargo caused panic around America, and gas prices rocketed.