My questions is when did the US take the large denoms out of circulation AND reduce their value???? If I had a $1000 US bill and I had to exchange it for the lower denoms, wouldn't I receive the lower currency to equal the amount I had to surrender? I don't recall ever hearing about large US denoms being devalued in the manner stated here.
I wont speak for Hopeful here but in my opinion he never stated that they devalued the larg denoms. Many of the larger denoms in the US were for bank to bank transefers and the gold certificates were only good to exchange for gold and it wasnt citizens doing that it was institutions and banks.
I think maybe there is confusion on the US large denom and Iraq large denom comparison. Really there is no comparison. Iraqs currency is in a hyperinflated state and the US currency wasnt. The large denoms in the US represented a country with mass amounts of wealth and the large denoms in Iraq represent a country that experienced hyperinflation. That is a difference of night and day and no Iraq doesnt have mass amounts of wealth, they have oil in the ground and zero economy.
One more thing. You said quote "If I had a $1000 US bill and I had to exchange it for the lower denoms, wouldn't I receive the lower currency to equal the amount I had to surrender?"
Yes you would. Same thing with a RD in Iraq. You will recieve the same amount as you had to surrender based on the exchange rate not the numbers on the face of the note. The numbers on the face of the note are irrelevant. They mean nothing. The only thing important is what that note can be exchanged for in another currency. So when they bring in a new currency with a new exchange rate then you will recieve the same amount of value that you surrendered. The US never went through this so there is no comparison.