And also consider...

http://www.marketminder.com/a/fisher-inv...

as I've often suggested before.

OK keep on keeping an eye on Dow Jones now. With the Republican wins it is spiking higher. Seems price of gold and silver always gets clobbered as a result. Question is will the economy actually improve now in order to justify market valuations (are the R's for real this time)? I'm going to wait a little more.

Yes, that does really help, thank you. I've been wanting to "invest" in gold for a long time, but now I have a clearer understanding of how gold buying should play into my savings/investing strategies. Thanks so much for the explanation!

Yes, its a long term savings account that you can tap by simply selling off what you need, when you need it. Unless there is some sort of supply shortage, demand bubble (like people all of a sudden want to buy it), or serious manipulation by governments, an ounce of gold should pretty much just retain its value in terms of purchasing power over the long haul. Dollars used to be tied to gold, so they were "as good as gold" until 1971 when Nixon took the precious metal backing away from the dollar. Now the dollar is worth whatever people at the time think it is. In 1971 it took about $40 to get an ounce of gold. Now its $1200 or so to get the SAME ounce of gold. That tells you how much of the dollar has been debased. If you had bought an ounce of gold in 1971 for your 40 dollars, it would be worth 1200 dollars today. If you just saved the 40 paper dollars in the mattress for all that time, you would still have the 40 dollars (but those dollars would buy now a fraction of what they were worth in 1971 ). Hope that helps

Thanks for that explanation, I've always wondered about the investment benefits of gold. You hear people telling you to buy gold, but I guess I never understood why. Is it basically like a safer savings account for your wealth than the bank? When I think of gold I think of the end of the world...

I've done pretty well with the Au I bought on the day after Obama got elected.

The price of oil is declining and likely to keep going down for some time to come. The central banks are likely to continue printing vast sums of worthless paper. Draw your own conclusions. :)

Not sure how this principle works for Gold. But a few years back. Someone showed me the price of food and gas from approx. 100 years ago vs the cost of an ounce of silver. Then they showed the current prices for all the same. IT was interesting to note that the same amount of silver bought the same amount of gasoline 100 years ago as it did when he showed me this.
I have been buying copper, silver, gold ever since.
Wouldn't it be funny (sarcasm) if Fort Know was empty, and all the security was just for show to try and fool all of us into thinking it was full of Gold. I have been wondering this for decades now.

I wouldn't touch the stock market with someone else's wallet let alone my own.

We need to return to a gold standard. I would like to see a Fiat parked somewhere... where the people who thought of it would not appreciate.

jdg,
i am,a simple business owner, a manufacturer of products. as far as i can tell the economy is far worse than the press and wall street are making it out to be. the government will not take gold out of the economy because it is traded like oil, and they aren't going to take oil out of the economy. they will continue to print money and the interest rate will stay where it is for a long time to come. one should realize that those who run the government are poorly educated, they went through the government school system and as a result they simply do not know how to think and they prove that each and everyday. i would love it if Ayn Rand were able to give her view of things today or maybe she already did and i read it but don't recall it at this time. in my opinion the usa is screwed!

I remember a saying that 1 oz of gold would buy you a brand new suit back in the 19th century and that that same oz of gold would buy a brand new suit today. Definately should use smaller denominations when buying that sandwich tho...

I was referring specifically to precious metals. Whether or not one chooses to look beyond this life for comfort is not the topic of this thread.

That description fits both gold and "God's word", so I won't ask to which you refer.

You're right that there isn't any gold standard today, and blarman is mostly right that you can't "spend" gold most places and get what it's worth. (Especially if it has collectors' value as coin. You'd want to cash it in at a coin dealer just before spending it.)

The upside of gold (and silver) is insurance against runaway inflation. Since 2008, under both Bush and Obama, the Fed has increased the official money supply by over 40% (mostly by buying treasury bonds with newly printed bills). This monetary inflation (mostly) hasn't shown up as increased prices and interest rates yet because of the ongoing depression, but it will -- and as soon as the treasury has to start paying more than 0.1% interest on the national debt again, that interest cost is going to be a BIG problem, which may well force them to print even more money. (Raising taxes won't help because we're above the hump on the Laffer Curve.)

A couple of big downsides to watch out for: The next president, whoever he is, may very well try to seize all gold and make it a controlled substance again, as FDR did in 1934. (So don't have a bank or anybody else hold your gold for you, and try to buy it without giving your name or paying by card.) And/or, he/she may find an excuse to have the EPA shut down gold mining operations. I would not want to be holding gold mining stocks if that happens, at least if the company's mines are in the US.

Excellent post.

Wow, any advice on my 3M Stock?

If I'm into gold and silver, I want real gold and silver or what's the point? It's not an investment, it is a fall-back that you may wish you'll never need to use.

Its really NOT an investment at all, unless the demand for it soars and there isnt more to be had. It IS a store of value which is much better than the fiat currencies we have to endure on a daily basis

The smart countries like China are accumulating gold big time. The fiat currency party cant go on forever.

If you're starving, it isn't going to keep you alive. If you're cold, it isn't going to warm you up. Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs.

i do not believe a gold standard exists today and i also think that we have gone so far off base that it will never exist again. our government as well as all other governments really like fiat money and will not ever change. so enjopy the jewelry while you are alive and leave to favorites when you die, that is all gold is worth. also buy it as cheap as you can.

you can not buy anything with gold and get the seller to give you equal value. if you take gold jewelry to a gold buyer you get the value of the gold only.the labor that went into making the jewelry is not considered. all over the world american dollars are accepted., as is gold but again not for its value. if it is trading at 1200 per ounce and you want to buy a sandwich at katz's deli in nyc for $20.00 and you give then an ounce of gold do you think they will give you 1180 back, think again. people who invest in gold lose as often as those who invest in oil. bad deal.