Without explicitly saying so, @Lyn Alden explains on page 275 of Broken Money - exactly what Bitcoin fixes.

Prior to the chimeric event of 1/3/09, no hard money could keep up with fiat in terms of salability or settlement speed.

This just enabled the crackheads who rule us to print the shit ad-Infinitum. No limits, no control.

Satoshi ensured that this stops now. Now a hard money can not only keep up but exceeds every fiat and commodity money in every way - no government can beat it.