There is really a huge amount wrong with this article.<p>For instance, fiat currency has been around for hundreds of years, it is not a 20th-century occurrence.<p>The French used assignats which were similar to our Federal Reserve Notes, the Chinese used small silk sheets the Empereor imprinted his seal onto, etc.<p>Even during the time of Thomas Jefferson there was the Continental currency, which crashed (as did all other fiat enterprises) rather spectacularly:<p>"The annihilation was so complete that barber-shops were papered in jest with the bills; and the sailors, on returning from their cruise, being paid off in bundles of this worthless money, had suits of clothes made of it, and with characteristic light-heartedness turned their loss into a frolic by parading through the streets in decayed finery which in its better days had passed for thousands of dollars."<p>Secondly, he claims that eBay's main purpose is to allow for trade in collectible items. While I am sure there are many sales of Beanie Babies online, he quotes no sources to lend support to that argument. Myself, I have only ever bought computer equipment from eBay...