[PLOlover]

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There's a strong correlation, for example, between how long a country hewed to the gold standard, and how badly it suffered from the Great Depression.

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I think this sums it up by this mischaracterization. there's fiscal policy (how much governments borrow/spend/tax), and monetary policy (how much governments inflate money/give credit.)

I think it's widely acknowldged that the great depression was created/deepened by the fed's tightening of credit (monetary policy).

it seems to me that you really can't have fractional reserve banking without a fiat money system.

I mean, what does a run on the bank meant in 1930's when US was on gold standard? basically the banks lent out money they didn't have, and so people lost faith that the banks would pay them back.