The U.S. dollar is not in good shape. In fact, that’s quite an understatement. As the dollar has been experiencing a sharp decline in recent years, other countries have been moving away from the American dollar standard – Russia, China, Iran. The failing U.S. currency system, which has reigned supreme for a century, may just be the elephant in the room that many Americans feel is there but are too afraid to acknowledge. Or perhaps the fear arises from a sheer loss of understanding about what it would mean for the dollar to seriously plummet, since American standards of living are the highest in the world. Yet, the country is more than $16 trillion in debt with no escape plan.

What will happen if the dollar dies? Some are already anticipating this scenario and are investing in gold as a hedge fund against economic collapse. Gold will always hold value, and unlike the bursting of the 1980 gold bubble, people are not just buying to make a quick profit; investing in gold now means securing wealth for a possible future when the elephant in the room charges and many are left suddenly unprepared for their assets to be worth much less than they are now. Gold is being increasingly recognized as a much safer investment than any other global currency.