The problem I have with gold bugs who advocate a gold backed currency such as Rickards and Schiff is that gold backed currency has been tried and failed. It failed because of a central point of failure and in the US this central point of failure is the federal reserve and it failed to maintain a dollar peg to gold. Einstein's definition of insanity is "doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result." By that definition, all gold bugs who want a gold backed currency are insane because it has been tried and failed miserably. Don't try it again. Bitcoiners are the sane ones for trying something different.
A gold backed digital currency would be great but these three conditions cannot exist simultaneously for money:
1. Digital
2. Backed by gold
3. No third party risk (no central point of failure - decentralized)
The next best thing is to have 1 and 3 exist simultaneously, which leaves us with bitcoin.
With Bitcoin Specie, we get all three.
Bitccoin is not backed by gold so we don't get #2.
The problem with #2-#3 is when it is all kept in some central vault.
A gold coin standard with a flexible free market valuation gives all three.
Bitcoin does this now. You can buy gold or silver with bitcoin, and sell them for bitcoin.
This is not a true gold standard. If it were, then a fixed amount of bitcoin would be directly redeemable for a fixed amount of gold. This cannot exist in a trusless environment. What you speak of are just market rates. By your logic, the Argentinian peso is backed by gold.
Gold and silver provide pure anonymity in point of sale transactions. They are not so good at being sent over the internet as Bitcoin.
Bitcoin is not quite as good at point of sale. With both, you get Rickards dream coin. Its already here. Its called Bitcoin.
Gold and silver cannot be sent over the internet. Period. All you can do is send an IOU for gold or silver over the internet, which requires third party trust. Bitcoin gives us 1 and 3 but not 2. All 3 cannot exist simultaneously. Unless someone can make all 3 happen at the same time, then bitcoin is our best option.