| Author |
 Replies: 59 / Views: 8,226 |
|
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
592 Posts |
The Hunt brothers not withstanding we live in a totally different time.
This article is spot on. Fiat currency is worth only the paper its printed on.
With the amount of US government debt, the only way to meet its comming obligations will be to monetize the debt, that is dollar devaluation, make it worth less & less so the debt becomes less.
As I get nearer to retirement & my "Investments" get the stuff kicked out of them, Silver & Gold that I already own look better & better.
Buy More. IMHO.
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
2600 Posts |
Three more things to think about:
First, unlike gold, silver is not typically mined as a primary product, it is usually a by product of other mined commodities. As industrial demand goes up, with a improving economy, silver supplies tend to increase. This tends to put downward pressure on silver.
Second, I have read that almost 55% of the cost of gold or silver is the energy costs to remove from the ground and to process it into a pure state. Pay close attention to what is going on in the gulf. Nothing more directly effects precious metals than energy cost and if there is a big spike, metals will be right behind.
What has caused the price of gold and silver to more than double in three yrs. Demand for jewelry is way up, NOPE, industrial demand is up, NOPE, the economy went into the crapper, YUP, and this causes investment monies to leave the usual markets and seek safe harbor. This artificial demand (no consumption) causes prices to rise. People see that metals are going up and decide to invest placing added pressure. Now, the "Billy Mays" hawkers come out of the wood work and start hyping the next big boom and the momentum causes the next big bubble. This is exactly what happened with the housing bubble, artificial demand that is not supported by need or equity to purchase it.
I ask you, what has happened to drive the price of gold and silver to such heights. Nothing but speculation and that is very very dangerous.
I bought silver and gold early as the economy headed south. I now have sold most of that and will be in and out of the market in a small way until something gives. Horrible energy prices will drive them up, a strengthening economy will move it down. Pick your brand of misery.
Jim
|
|
Valued Member
United States
232 Posts |
I agree with the folks that point out that gold and silver have already had a big run-up and thus are risky. That said, there may be a short term boost as folks get worried about the euro. If you buy in to precious metals in a significant way, my one piece of advice would be to have a firm idea of what conditions would lead you to sell it. You would not want to get heavily invested and then watch the price of metals slowly drop over a couple of years or so. Personally, I just don't think there are any good investments out there at the moment that do not carry a good deal of risk.
John Paul
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
1053 Posts |
any cool pennies lately anybody?
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
511 Posts |
Gold and silver are honest money with a limited supply. They can't be conjured out of thin air or printed by the boatload like FRNs and other fiat money.
Governments all over the globe are printing Monopoly money in record quantities. That make the metals a long-term buy even at today's higher prices.
Since every market(bull or bear) fluctuates, it's wise to wait for a dip to buy if you already have some gold and silver on hand. If you have nothing, at least get started with some silver.
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
1659 Posts |
I had to learn the lesson of diversification the hard way...
Before the big real estate boom, I bought a parcel of land here in Nevada. I then sold it 4-1/2 years later and after taxes and expenses, I walked away with tidy 25K in my pocket. My head inflated, and now emboldened by my investing prowess (insert sarcastic eye roll here!), I then invested that whole 25K into another single real estate project. About a year later, the market crashed (Nevada was hit especially hard) and I lost every penny. It was an expensive and humbling lesson about diversification.
While I do think it is a good idea to have some gold and silver, I would caution against having all your eggs in one basket. I had to throw away 25K to learn that lesson.
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
1934 Posts |
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
3098 Posts |
You know what? This sounds like a hard (or breaking) point, either good or bad. There has been a lot more articles recently on buying/selling gold or silver. What is happening? Is everyone scared again that the economy might go down or preparing not to miss the train on the economy's way up?
Anyways, when it comes to investing, I think the biggest rule is don't be greedy. I've learned this lesson many-a-times. If I want to protect my money for the really long run, I'd have no problem buying some gold or silver. However, if it's just going to be a 2-3 year thing, all I have to do is warn myself to not get too greedy.
|
|
Valued Member
United States
436 Posts |
I tried the silver bullion thing for a while last year. Bought at I think $14.00 an ounce spot and got charged $15.50 an ounce. I got further into numismatics, which I love, and realized that the bullion investment was for the kid when I'm gone anyways, so might as well add to the collection instead. When I checked spot price again, it was about $16.00 an ounce. The dealer would only give $15.00 an ounce, so while spot price went up a couple bucks, I actually stood to lose 50 cents an ounce. I later sold at a profit, but not the profit that spot prices dictated. Something to keep in mind. In my opinion, the whold thing is a rip-off, and I won't do it again. Diversity is the key to long term investments. Period. The people who think that their 401k's lost a bunch at the last downturn are not looking at the whole picture. I guarentee that, when dollar-cost averaging is figured for the years that people who are getting ready to retire have been investing, they've come out ahead. It just looked bad on paper to "lose" that much in o0ne year or so, but in reality money was still made, and the loss was just a portion (in most cases a 25% or less loss) of total profits. Most of which would have been made up over the last year or so. Patience is the key, not dumping everything for one popular investment. Just my 2 cents...
|
|
Valued Member
United States
54 Posts |
Our economy isn't going to come back if the powers that be keep doing what they're doing. There will be more turmoil in the future and gold and silver will be what people will turn to. If we get a real fiscally conservative president in 2012 then I'll consider selling. It would take another Regan to get me to even think about it, though.
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
6326 Posts |
Quote:
It would take another Reagan to get me to even think about it, though. There won't be another "Reagan" coming along any time soon sadly.....  That was once in a generation.......we seem to get the leaders we need only rarely....and in dire needs. Don't wanna start a political debate on a coin forum.......it's been done before....and that's usually a "topic hijack" as well, and would be moved to the "general discussion" area pretty quickly. But....back to topic....I'm glad that I only have bought 6 or 8 Gold pieces for my collection.....yeah....I hope when I'm old and grey, that they're worth some really good money, but I'm not sweatin' it at all. I have them mainly for numismatic interests.....at least for the next 30 years. Silver is the same theory with me. I just could never "play the markets" with precious metals....nor do I believe in "stocking wealth at home" with fears of the Govt./and or banks failing.......this sounds like the old misers from the early 1900's. The only thing in my walls and floorboards will be INSULATION ! ......  It's all going to end in the year 2012 anyway......so all this talk about the "devalued Dollar" and "economic collapses", and "hoarding Gold and Silver" ...... is all a moot point ! ......  Buy it just because it "glints in the light" and it's "beautiful".....and it'll be okay !...  |
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
3283 Posts |
I agree with most who have stated that diversity is the key. I have a few horror stories I could tell about loosing money in the stock market, primarily due to greed, as I'm sure a lot of us do. That's the beauty of coin collecting, a hobby that may end up being worth something if the need arises. Just don't leave the collection to a grandchild who will just go out and cash in and buy things that depreciate |
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
1547 Posts |
Quote:
Demand for jewelry is way up, NOPE, industrial demand is up, NOPE, the economy went into the crapper, YUP, and this causes investment monies to leave the usual markets and seek safe harbor. This artificial demand (no consumption) causes prices to rise. The standards of living increases we've been witnessing in just China and India alone means the answer to all three of those questions is a resounding, YUP, you ask me. We helped those formerly backwards economies along by outsourcing most of our manufacturing over there...then, followed by the retailing, to supply those huge, emerging markets we alone for the most part created out of thin air. Look at what got our economy out the hole in the 1930s. It was one thing, WWII. Why? The manufacturing jobs that war created. Contrast that to the Iraq War. All that war did was put our economy into further debt. Why? Everything that war needed was manufactured overseas. That war was an economic boon to every economy but ours. It didn't put anybody to work, here, but government regulators and paper-pushers. Those markets and economies are starting to roll, now. That's what's causing the demand to exceed the supply, and the prices to go up. And they haven't even hit their stride, yet, not by a longshot... IMHO; FWIW... |
|
Pillar of the Community
 United States
2424 Posts |
good point eddiespin..
i was watching a docu on WWII and how many manufac jobs were created and how much this nation made for the war - remarkable. women going to work on the homefront, men on the battlefields, and our contry becoming the power it "used to be"...
its a shame that everything happens overseas now...
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
1547 Posts |
Thanks, SD. Just as a little footnote, and not trying to hijack your thread, that documentary sounds as though it was right on, according to dear old Dad. He enlisted in the Navy, as a cadet, in September, 1942. He was 20, then, a "minor," and had needed his Dad's permission to get in. They didn't call him until January. In the meantime, he got a job at the Western Electric plant, in Cicero, IL. My grandmother worked there, too, after he had gone. During the depression, that plant was a virtual graveyard. By the time Dad got in there, they were going day and night, in successive shifts, seven days a week, and employing upwards of 60,000 people. That's a good-sized college football crowd! Before that, many of those very same people hadn't had two nickels they could rub together, as the expression goes. They manufactured the necessary communications equipment for the War effort, there.
|
| |
Replies: 59 / Views: 8,226 |
First Page
Posted 05/08/2010 11:31 am
