What is the true value of $1?
The true value of anything is what most people are willing to give you in exchange for it. If someone will give you a gallon of milk for a dollar, then it’s worth a gallon of milk. If you can get a euro for it, then it’s worth a euro. Since the dollar is “weak” now compared to euros, it would cost you more than one dollar to buy a euro (stated another way: a dollar is worth less than one euro). Currency in the US used to be based on the gold or silver standard, where the value was fixed to a certain amount of those precious metals. You occasionally run across bills that have “silver certificate” printed over the portrait where it states that you can redeem the certificate for the equivalent amount of silver. It is no longer tied to a standard, but is exchanged on the open market and has a value reflective of supply and demand, just like any other commodity.
