In a 1965 episode of the Robert Conrad-Ross Martin TV series The Wild Wild West that I watched yesterday, thieves break into the Carson City U.S. Mint and steal the printing plates. When it’s discovered, Secret Service Agent Artemus Gordon (Martin) explains the significance of the situation. If the crooks were merely counterfeiters, the counterfeit money could be detected and destroyed. By printing money using official government plates, however, they have the potential to destroy the entire U.S. economy. Funny how an escapist spy series from 43 years ago could recognize the danger of too much paper money in circulation, but today only one presidential candidate has the guts to say it–and is treated like a nutcase for doing so.