When people think of the 1940’s, more specifically 1944, they think of the Second World War—the largest conflict in history. It is without a doubt one of the most significant events in human history. Though there was another event that would set in motion a chain reaction that has shaped our world for the better half of the past century. In July of 1944, a month following the D-Day landings at Normandy, a UN financial summit was held called the Bretton Woods Monetary Conference. The conference lasted two weeks and established numerous international financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development. And most importantly, it established an international dollar-based, gold-backed monetary standard. The system worked fairly efficiently up until the financial and geo-political turmoil of the late '60s brought too much weight down on the system. In 1971, President Nixon took the dollar off the gold standard.

Two years later, in 1973, the United States and the government of Saudi Arabia agreed on a deal that every barrel of oil Saudi Arabia sold had to be based in dollars, in exchange for full-fledged military support from the United States to protect Saudi Arabia against her volatile neighbors, including Israel. In 1975, all the OPEC nations of the Middle East had agreed to these terms with the Saudis and the United States; this meant that any nation attempting to purchase oil from the OPEC nations had to first trade in their currency for US dollars—making the dollar the currency that in effect held up the world economy. As the demand for oil kept increasing due to human development around the world, the demand for dollars went up as well. As the Federal reserve of the United States kept printing dollars to keep up with the demand, inflation began to take hold and the dollar began to go down in value while going up in quantity. The US government has been printing money ever since they had an excuse to. Printing money is a great way for a nation to advance without really having to sacrifice anything—like benefit spending.

Now you may be asking, who would allow this to happen? Who could fail to foresee the consequences of this massive bubble? The best way to find out is to follow the trail of profit. The Federal Reserve Bank is a quasi-private banking cartel that loans dollars to the Federal Government, and, of course, with any loan, comes interest (which any college student knows). Only the Federal Reserve sets the interest rates and the massive profit margin they rake in from American tax dollars line the pockets of the FEDs executives. Along with being used to lobby congressional support for the FED, which they use to avoid audits of their records.

The first nations to detach themselves from this international banking scheme are better known as the Axis of Evil which includes nations such as: North Korea, Iran, Syria, Venezuela and, more recently, Russia. This is why these nations remain our geo-political adversaries. This phenomenon, known as the "petro dollar," is more than likely the real motive behind the first Gulf War in 1991 and the US invasion of Iraq in 2003. Propaganda and good ole’ American patriotism still contend it was a battle for freedom when, quite literally, it was a war for oil.

"Preparing for the Collapse of the Petrodollar System." FTMDailycom Geopolitical Analysis Economic Insights and Investing Ideas. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Aug. 2015.