Money - Why It Was NEVER 'Backed' By Anything
And Doesn't Need To Be

All goods which have been used as money historically were never BACKED by anything - they WERE the money. This did NOT change with the advent of  'Paper Money', which was (see above) until the decoupling of the US Dollar in 1971, legally a promissory note for a certain amount of gold or silver - i.e. in principle Gold was until then the money and bank notes were only a tool for an easy transfer of that metal. In effect this decison had the healthy effect of exposing the truth and calling the beast by it's name apart from opening the flood gates of uncontrolled money creation.

So the actual issue here is not 'backing' but 'controlling' the amount created limiting it to a sensible level. Inadvertendly the scam proved, that money does not have to be a commodity with a use on it's own. Although that quality has a certain utility especially in the case of rice, a pile of gold is rather useless for everyday use.

Also the limiting function of assets is not necessarily a blessing. While it in general it prevents inflation (with notable exceptions like the Haj of Mansa Musa), the lack of currency can be equally detrimental for an economy, when the medium of exchange is so scarce that it prevents the flow of goods and services. An excellent example for this are the early American colonies, which had a notorious shortage of metal currency on account of British trading policy creating a serious obstacle to economic growth. As remedy the colonies introduced a purely 'fiat' paper money, which fixed the problem and led to rapid economic growth. Since it made the colonies more independent, Britain quickly cracked down on the measure. This prohibition was - together with the 'Stamp Act' a major reason for the war of independence.