Since the face value of some U.S.-minted gold and silver coins -- like the one-ounce, $50 American Gold Eagle coin -- is so much less than the metal value (one ounce of gold is now worth more than $1,700), some new sound money laws allow the coins to be exchanged at their market value, based on weight and fineness.

However, as Republican Senator Richard Shelby of Alabama says, “We live in a virtual world ... it’s not my world, we started out in pencil and paper.”

So if we are talking about sound money using gold and silver coins considered legal tender based on metal values another issue pops up. The issue is people aren't going to walk around with such valuable coins in their pockets.

Eventually we will be urged to use electronic depositories and accounts for the coins to make transactions easier making us use debit cards linked to gold holdings. Physical gold and silver coins would be transferred between accounts in privately-owned depositories (or vaults) based on the market value of the metals.