Can someone help me understand this...
Let's say the U.S. started using the gold standard again. Wouldn't that undercut the primary argument for using bitcoin?
Of course I understand how nuanced this is (for example. Btc is governmentless, permissionless etc.)
Yes and no.
Firstly it's too late. The U.S. went bankrupt on the 10th June last year.
Secondly the price adjustment needed for gold to cover M1 and M2 supplies and debt would not cope.
Thirdly Bitcoin has far more utility than gold. We moved on from seashells and rune stones centuries ago, we've moved on from gold now.
That's not to say that gold is going to be one of the hard assets that backs some monetary supplies, but it's going to take a combination of gold, Bitcoin and even the evil enemy CBDCs as well as many other asset classes.
