In the October issue of the Journal of Financial Planning, Craig Karmin, Wall Street Journal reporter and author of Biography of the Dollar, talks about privilege, power, and clout—the story of the dollar. And according to Karmin, there are few moments when we stop to consider the powerful force the dollar is and its role in global prosperity.

“Fewer still,” says Karmin, “are the times we stop to think: Is that privileged role something that could one day end?”

Our greenback has been in a slow decline since 2002, leading some investors to buy CDs in foreign currencies, including the euro, the yen, and the Chinese yuan to protect themselves from the dollar’s eventual “comeuppance.”

·         Should financial planners advise clients not to put all their dollars into…well, dollars?

·         What does our widening trade deficit and expanding foreign debt mean to the world’s confidence in the dollar—and to strategies for your clients?

·         What are your thoughts on the dollar and its somewhat-eroding place in the global markets?

·         How does the dollar’s six-year decline factor into your clients’ wealth?

·         How much attention should financial planners be paying to the dollar?

Discuss it here with your colleagues.