So, logically, we should seek a very cheap dollar. Then we can export...but everything we buy, and everything our citizens buy, is more expensive. Food, gasoline, clothing - it all gets more expensive. So a cheap dollar will reduce our people's standard of living, will it not?
Of course, if we can do this, so can (and should) everyone else. So as the dollar declines, other nations should do likewise - for the same reasons. Perhaps this is why China has tied the value of the Yuan to the dollar so that every time we devalue, they do, too.
If we follow this to its end, the dollar will be essentially worthless. Those who save will find their frugality rewarded with a loss of purchasing power. So we should spend and spend, go into debt, and never save a dime. Clearly, many have taken this message to heart. As we import consumer goods...most of which will be in the landfill in a few years or less...we also incur debt which will outlast the goods. That should have an interesting outcome.
On a completely unrelated note...gasoline used to be 35 cents per gallon, sometimes less during a "gas war". You could buy good hamburger at 20 cents per pound.
Isn't devaluation grand? 