Gold Vs. Silver?

Sixthcents,

Consider this forum something akin to a site sports fans of a certain team might gather. Right now, you've rudely entered said site and essentially flamed the beloved Golds and fans have flocked to its defense post haste. Regardless of the accuracy of some of your comments regarding the metal's potential to suffer major price corrections like any other commodity, it won't make you many friends around here.


People who have lived long enough and invested in metals over the course of decades know that gold can fall much faster than inflation; but you still find many fans stating that they buy gold "as a hedge against inflation", as if this is some kind of truism. It really all about timing the market, right?

Anyway, I just wanted to welcome you to the forum and tell you all counter-culture opinions are welcomed and much appreciated by some of the more decadent and ill-favored posters around here who don't always toe the company line. Even as a fair-weather fan of the Golds, I know the team isn't perfect and has flaws that can be exploited on any given day, or even over the course of concurrent seasons.

A forum that wasn't would be far rarer than gold, I think; but you'll like it here if you stick around. Please don't let my inane ramblings steer you in the wrong direction. Besides myself, people on this site are truly gentlemen (and ladies) in the strictest sense of the word.

My post was said in a joking vein, anyway, Sixth. I already like reading your viewpoint. It's refreshing.

Thank's all!,

I just want to clarify, I was just using Aluminum as an example of a metal that was very expensive in the last hundred years when it's rarity made it more expensive then Silver.

I hope we never get to that point.

In my opinion, silver is obviously the best choice considering how it has performed in the past, plus, in the recent precious metal price rise, silver did better in percentage than gold.
I rest my case.

Not silly at all, we have thousands of new ways to spend money, much more competition for Gold then in the past.
Frankly, it's silly to think otherwise.

"It was never rare, it was just difficult to refine", the same can be said about Gold.
By "refine" I am including the act of mining, which is critical before you can refine.
Some estimates say as much as 95% of gold is still in the ground.
Gold is much easier to get now then in the past.

Heck, by 2001, ONE SINGLE ONTARIO AREA produced 67 million ounces of gold. 12 TIMES AS MUCH GOLD AS THE KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH!

Aluminum has only been available for a hundred or so years.- You can't predict how valuable it "would" have been because it was non-existent.

The marketplace has infinite new ways to spend money, compared to the past.

I feel I backed up all of my points of view with a reasonable explanation.

Or does the adage go "Buy high, sell low"

Again, one thing history tells us, is a value of metal is determined by its practicality.

You forget to mention the 500 year period in which only Royalty had copper tools.
It took a lot of gold to buy a copper tool at this point in history. This is the parallel you need to draw.

Stable gold prices over 5000 years is only good if you live 5000 years. ;)

Again, in the context of this thread and the OP's question, there are better, safer, more profitable investments then gold, at this point in time.

If you bought 5K in gold to day, you might make a couple hundred bucks, more likely you will lose a couple hundred or thousand.

Availability is what makes gold expensive. If you restrict the access to other metals, they will skyrocket.

You can build more electronics with copper, you don't "need" gold at all, it's just nice to coat connectors with.

If the SHTF, people will be instantly building crude electronics again. -This is what changes history folks.

Copper is the gold of our era, as in value, not "price". Sure golds expensive, I can by expensive wine to, but that is simply a luxury, that will give the same buzz as a $5 bottle of wine.

**In this day and age, price (in USD) is not a good indicator of real value.**

In a way, it's the same as when copper tools were "invented", it lead to an explosion of industry for 500 years.
The same thing is happening now, except we are not chipping rocks with copper, we use copper to communicate.

In less then 5 years you are going to see copper hit $10 - $15 a pound, 300% ROI easy, if you get 3% ROI on gold in that time your doing well.

Your total lack of looking into the future is breathtaking, sure the past is a guide, that is all.

The new mines opening up in my province alone will make sure you don't make any real money on gold. It's simple economics, increase the supply and the prices goes down. The fact that gold is "rare" is even more worrisome when my province dumps millions of ounces on the market. Add to that the "New" mines being opened, as well as opening the old ones.

The gold production we have today, has never been seen before in history.

Copper is an interesting metal. If you can buy it at spot and have the means to store the volume and weight needed to produce a sizeable return, it does look very good.

"Copper is the gold of our era, as in value, not "price". Sure golds expensive, I can by expensive wine to, but that is simply a luxury, that will give the same buzz as a $5 bottle of wine."

@sixthcents: Your argument about wines is fallacious in that you're comparing [cheap wine to expensive wine] and [copper to gold]. The properties of these 2 metals are not the same and taste has very little to do with it. There is a different process to making wines of age thAn, say, mouth wash. There's a very good reason that gold and diamonds are expensive and it has nothing to do with rarity but with properties.

It's very hard to argue against you because where does one even begin...?
Your points are interesting but the way you argue is just jumbled.
When you talk about copper tools, do you actually mean bronze?

From Gold or Silver and silver compared to gold.

Now copper/bronze compared to gold, Aluminum compared to silver.
What other metal we haven't compare to yet?

And on the other side, cheap wines vs expensive wines!

Maybe bring in plastic!