Life — January 26, 1922 — page 10: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Explanation for Modern Readers This 1920s *Life* magazine article satirizes Henry Ford's proposal to replace the gold standard with an energy-based currency system. The cartoon shows a money bag labeled with a dollar sign, illustrating the absurdist concept. The dialogue between **Fishbein** (pants manufacturer) and **Blintz** mocks Ford's idea by imagining government bonds "payable in pants" instead of gold—a reductio ad absurdum. The satire suggests that substituting any commodity (pants, horspower, kilowatt hours) for gold as monetary backing is equally ridiculous. The accompanying Treasury certificate (signed by "Hyman J. Firestone") reinforces the joke by treating the absurd concept as official policy. The piece lampoons Ford's unconventional economic thinking and his influence over public discourse.