The Gold Blog

Numismatic Gold Coins

2010-12-07T09:09:00.001-08:00

Numismatic gold coins are one of many ways a gold buyer can invest in actual physical gold. Any gold coin that is seen as a collectible to many investors can be classified as numismatic. Gold bullion coins are any coin made of gold that is valued usually a little above its weight in gold. In some cases a bullion coin can become a numismatic coin. One way how a bullion coin can become numismatic is if a bullion coin goes through a circumstance that makes it more valuable to investors.

One other way a bullion coin can become numismatic is if it was mistakenly manufactured abnormally. Mints tend to inspect every coin before selling them, making the chances of finding an abnormal coin rare and valuable. The rarity of a minted mistake can make an abnormal coin worth more than a normal one. Some coins are minted with a special process to give them a different look from their bullion counterpart. These coins are called proof coins. Proof coins if produced in limited numbers can be valued more than the bullion coins they are based on.

One final way how a bullion coin can become numismatic is if it stops being produce. If a bullion coin stops being produce over the span of time it will usually become rare. When a piece becomes rarer it will usually be valued more than bullion coins of the same size. It is recommended that an investor research any numismatic coin to know how much it’s likely to increase in value over time. One way a buyer can do this is by researching how much a piece increases in value from one year to the next. If done correctly investing in numismatic gold coins can be a good way to invest in physical gold.

Find more information on this topic at Numismatic Gold Coins, it is informative and a great resource.

Why Gold Is Valuable

2009-11-20T02:15:00.000-08:00

The thing that makes gold valuable in essence is the same thing that makes anything valuable. It is desired work. If something is desired by most individuals but takes little work to obtain like oxygen, its perceived value by most individuals will be low. The only thing that will change this perception is if oxygen is still desired by most individuals and the work that it takes to obtain it becomes more difficult. Something can take a lot of work to accomplish; an example is digging a one hundred foot hole in the middle of the desert; but if this task isn’t desired by many individuals or is not a process to produce, cultivate or obtain something that is desired by many individuals; the perceived value of the task will be low.

It takes a lot of work to obtain gold because of its rarity. Some of this work is finding it, mining it, refining it, shaping it and shipping it. All this work by itself is only half of the equation that gives gold its perceived value. The other half of the equation is gold’s desirability by many individuals. One reason why gold is desired by individuals is gold’s resistance to corrosion. Gold because of its resistance to corrosion is used in the jewelry industry. Gold doesn’t rust or tarnish and is ideal for making jewelry that will last the test of time. Another reason why gold is desired by individuals is gold’s ability to conduct electricity. Gold because of its resistance to corrosion plus its ability to conduct electricity; makes it ideal for tasks where copper can not be used. Some of these tasks are producing microchips and professional sound equipment.

Some last reasons why gold is desired by many individuals is gold’s uniformity. Pure gold is the same quality no matter what year or place it was mine. Another reason is gold’s ability to store, divide and combine wealth; Gold’s six thousand year old track record of preserving wealth; Gold’s low to no maintenance cost to keep it as an investment; Gold’s ease to liquidate; Gold’s density and difficulty to counterfeit. All these reasons and many more, that makes gold desirable to many individuals, coupled with the work it takes to obtain it; is the reason why gold is perceived as valuable to many individuals.

Having Gold In Case Of An Emergency

2009-08-14T13:29:00.000-07:00

Gold because of its ability to store wealth with little to no maintenance is one of the best assets to own in case of an emergency. Gold has a six thousand year track record of holding and protecting wealth. Also gold because of its resistance to corrosion can be stored in most secured places for little to no cost. Gold has such an ability to store wealth over time that when gold is lost at sea and recovered years or centuries later, the wealth of the gold found is always intact.

Another reason why gold is a good asset to have in case of an emergency is gold’s ability to reduce impulse buying. Since converting the gold to currency is an extra step, it will give most savers time to think if what they want to purchase is really worth it. Also if a saver does spend the gold, knowing how much gold they had to liquidate can give then motivation to replace it.

One last reason why gold is a good asset to have in case of an emergency is; gold’s ease to liquidate. Gold can usually be converted to any currency. Also most places that sell gold will usually buy gold. Gold coins and gold bars because of their known weight and purity are the recommended forms to store gold. It is also recommended that the largest gold coins or bars to buy are one troy ounce. The reason for this is if the gold coin or bar is larger than one troy ounce, it may become more difficult to find a buyer; making it harder to liquidate. Gold because of its ability to store wealth, reduce impulse buying, and its ease to liquidate, makes it one of the best assets to have in case of an emergency.

Why Fiat Currency Is Accepted More Than Gold

2009-07-01T11:18:00.000-07:00

One question one may ask is; if gold is so good at storing wealth why don’t most businesses accept gold as payment. There are many reasons why businesses accept fiat currency over gold. One reason why most businesses accept fiat currency over gold is legal tender laws. With legal tender laws usually an individual can not refuse to be paid in currency that has legal tender status. Legal tender laws give an advantage to fiat currency over silver or gold.

Another reason why most businesses accept fiat currency over gold is tax laws. If a business pays its employees or does most of its transactions in gold; it is most likely that the government would go after that business for tax fraud or some other charge. Since governments and central banks do not like competition to their authority, they put laws in place to limit; if not eliminate competition. Most businesses would not want to use the extra resources it would take to understanding complicated tax codes that can change from year to year; in order to use and accept gold in transaction on a daily basis.

One last reason why most businesses accept fiat currency over gold is central banking. Most banks in a nation are usually controlled by a central bank. Since in most cases the central bank is the issuer of the currency, it is in their best interest to make sure all the banks they have control over accept their currency and their currency only. This makes it difficult for a business to accept and use alternative forms of money. Governments and central banks with their laws and practices perpetuates the acceptance of fiat currency; but history has shown that when there are no legal tender laws and central banks most individuals prefer gold and silver over fiat currency.

Gold Investment Advice

2009-06-17T12:39:00.000-07:00

Investing in gold has many benefits that are hard to find in other investments. Some of these benefits are gold’s low to no maintenance, gold’s low counterparty risk and gold’s ability to hold wealth. One important piece of gold investment advice an investor should take into account before investing, is their main goal for investing. If an investor’s main goal is to preserve their wealth with low risk of losing all of their initial investment; usually physical gold bars or coins will coincide with their main goal.

Another important piece of gold investment advice an investor should take into account before investing is where is the most safe and convenient place to buy physical gold or which gold instruments or gold companies to invest in. Whether an investor is investing in physical gold, ETF’s or gold stocks, it is important for an investor to research the companies they are buying from or investing in. By researching an investor can save them self from the trouble of dealing with or investing in the wrong company.

One last piece of gold investment advice an investor should take into account before investing is where to safely store physical gold coins or bars. Physical gold unlike gold stocks or ETF’s must be stored in a safe place. A safe that can hold physical gold is usually inexpensive compared to the gold it can hold. Once an investor owns a safe, storing physical gold will usually cost nothing. Investing in gold can be daunting for a first time investor. Hopefully with some of the gold investment advice one reads here the task of investing in gold will become an easier one.

The Dollar, Euro, Pound And Gold, What Is The Ultimate Currency

2009-06-01T13:05:00.000-07:00

Currency that is not backed by anything is not a new concept; in fact history has been riddled with many cases of this concept. In all cases where a nation tries to have a medium of exchange not backed by anything; that medium of exchange becomes worthless in less than one hundred years. This will be the faith of the Dollar, the Euro, the Pound, or any other currency not backed by anything. The Dollar being a significant percentage of some nation’s reserve currency will likely cause a chain reaction when it does eventually collapse.

Also those who lose their wealth because of a currency collapse of a widely use fiat currency will tend to distrust lesser used fiat currencies. If the Dollar the Euro the Pound or any other fiat currency does not anchor its self to something that is time tested to hold wealth, they will all eventually become worthless. The laws of economics doesn’t change, what was tried in the past and failed will fail again in the future.

Gold being something that was time tested to hold wealth can be used as a temporary way to shore up a failing system. The ultimate goal should be to decentralize the monetary and banking systems. Anyone should be able to issue their own currency once it’s back by their goods and services and valued in silver or gold. Also every one should be able to refuse any currency that they haven’t issued themselves. Having governments issue gold backed currencies can solve some of the problems some nations face today, but it ignores one of the biggest ones; having the power of the issuance of currency in the hands of a selected few.

Gold Coins And Gold Bars, The Differences

2009-05-20T12:10:00.000-07:00

Investing in physical gold is one of the safest ways to invest in gold. The reason for this is once an investor has possession of the physical gold, they are not dependent on the solvency of an organization to preserve the wealth stored in the gold. The two most popular forms of physical gold the majority of investors invest in are gold coins and gold bars. There are some differences between gold coins and gold bars. One difference between gold coins and gold bars are the manufacturing cost. Gold coins are usually more expensive than gold bars of similar weight. The reason for this is because gold coins tend to be more expensive to manufacture compared to gold bars.

Another difference between gold coins and gold bars are gold coin’s ability to build numismatic value over time. Gold coins are usually struck with the year it was manufactured on it; this gives investors an idea on how old a coin is. If an investor’s main goal is to purchase the most physical gold for their money, they will tend to invest in gold bars because of gold coins higher manufacturing cost and its build up numismatic value. On the other hand if an investor’s main goal is to invest in physical gold and get a higher return than just holding gold, they will tend to invest in gold coins.

One last difference between gold coins and gold bars are the sizes in which they are manufactured in. Gold coins are usually only manufactured up to one troy ounce; though there are some limited coins that are much larger. Gold bars can come in a variety of sizes, even as large as four hundred troy ounces. Investing in gold coins and gold bars has its similarities and also its differences. The differences and what an investor is looking for, will determine which one an investor will choose at a given time.

Is Gold A Good Long Term Investment

2009-05-19T09:53:00.000-07:00

Gold is one of the best investments when it comes to investing on a long term basis. The reason for this is some of the properties gold possesses. Some of these properties are gold’s ability to store, divide, combine, and transport desired work; i.e. wealth. One reason why gold is a good long term investment is gold’s track record. Gold has a six thousand year track record of storing wealth, in fact gold coins and gold bars have been shown to preserve its perceived value even when the organization that minted it ceases to exist.

Another reason why gold is a good long term investment is the fact that physical gold has no counterparty risk. Once an investor has physical possession of the gold, their wealth is independent of the solvency of the mint or the dealer they purchase the gold from. Stocks or bonds on the other hand are dependent on the solvency of the organization that issued them. The aspect of having no counterparty risk is one of the main reasons why gold is ideal as a long term investment.

One last reason why gold is a good long term investment is gold’s low to no maintenance cost. Gold because of its properties of being resistant to corrosion and tarnish makes it one of the easiest assets to store. In fact once an investor owns a safe the cost of maintaining gold is virtually zero. Gold because of its track record, its lack of counterparty risk and its low to no maintenance cost, makes it one of the best assets out there to have as a long term investment.

Tips When Buying Or Investing In Gold

2009-05-18T11:52:00.000-07:00

When investing in gold there are some steps you can take to make your experience of investing in gold a bit safer. One tip to follow to make your experience a good one is researching what you desire most in a gold investment, and what kind of gold will most likely fulfill what you are seeking in a gold investment. If you are looking for the most uniform form of physical gold for your money, gold bars may be the best kind of gold to invest in. If you are looking for the most returns and yet still hold physical gold then numismatic coins may be your best choice.

Another tip to follow when buying gold is to research any business before buying from them. By doing this it will save you from dealing with businesses that have a bad reputation when it comes to customer service or any other complaints that gave them a bad reputation. By doing this research it will also give you an idea on which businesses have a reputation of pleasing their customers needs. This will help to give you the best experience when investing in gold.

One last tip to follow when buying gold is to know the return policy of any business before purchasing anything from them. The reason for this is if there is some misunderstanding and you some how receive the wrong product, it will not take a lot of research or work to return it. It is recommended to only buy from businesses that have a return policy you are comfortable with. Investing in gold is one of the safest investments out there, if you follow the tips you read here it will become an even safer investment.

How To Get Started Investing In Gold

2009-04-09T22:24:00.000-07:00

When first deciding to invest in physical gold, it is important to know the kind of physical gold to invest in. This decision will be determined by what is expected from an investment. If you are looking for an investment to protect your wealth from inflation and get the most gold for your money, gold bars would be a good investment. If you are looking for an investment that can protect your wealth from inflation but still have a chance of increasing your wealth through numismatic value, gold bullion coins would be a good investment. If you are looking for an investment that can increase in value over time but not the risk of losing all your money over night like a stock, numismatic or collectible coins would be a recommended investment.

When you have decided on what kind of physical gold to invest in, the next step is to research the specific gold coins or gold bars that have the qualities you are looking for in an investment. The next step is to research what businesses or websites are selling the coins or bars you are interested in. After finding a number of businesses or websites that are selling the gold coins or gold bars that you are interested in, it is important to research the businesses to see if they are trustworthy and have a return policy. When you narrow down the gold dealers that fulfill all these criteria, buy from the dealer with the lowest price.

It is important to also calculate the shipping cost and insurance if any. Getting started investing in physical gold does take a bit of research when first starting off, but the research can save you time and money the next time you are purchasing physical gold. Gold is one of the easiest investments out there, but by following some of the information you read here; investing in physical gold will become a bit easier.

Investing In Gold Bullion, Gold Coins Or Gold Bars

2009-04-08T19:44:00.000-07:00

tremendously to make the right decisions. If your main goal of investing in gold is to protect your wealth from inflation, it is recommended to invest in gold bullion. Gold bullion is gold bars and gold coins that are usually a little above spot price. If you do decide to go with gold bullion you also have to decide if you will want the most physical gold for your money or if you want to invest in a form of gold that can build numismatic value over time.

If another goal is to get the most gold for your money, it is recommended that you invest mostly in gold bars. Gold bars usually cost less to produce than gold coins, and in turn is usually less expensive than gold coins. One of the major differences between bullion gold bars and bullion gold coins is not only the price, but gold coin’s ability to build numismatic value over time. Gold Coins because of the date struck on them, can easily be dated. Older gold coins will usually cost more than newer coins of the same kind. Over time this price difference can become significant.

As an investor you can choose to invest in both gold coins and gold bars. Gold bars will give you the most gold for your money and gold coins will give you a chance to increase your wealth through the increase of its numismatic value. If the main goal for investing in gold is to protect your wealth from inflation, gold bullion whether it is gold bars or gold coins is the way to go.

Gold And Financial Independence

2009-04-07T22:51:00.000-07:00

Gold as a store of wealth is independent of any government or organization. Gold unlike fiat currency is independent of any nation’s financial policy. This means if a nation all of a sudden started to implement unsound fiscal policies, your wealth being in gold would have a better chance of escaping any bad repercussions. With fiat currency you are dependent on the state or the central bank not to inflate or collapse the currency. With the perfect track record of all fiat currencies becoming worthless in less than one hundred years, it’s a dependency that will eventually fail.

Gold because of its six thousand year old track record of holding wealth means its one of the safest ways to store wealth. Gold is not even dependent on the organization that minted it. If a mint that made gold coins or gold bars went out of business the gold coins or gold bars would still be worth something. In fact in some cases when a gold coin is not being produced anymore, it starts to build numismatic value more rapidly.

Another aspect of gold and financial independence is the financial privacy you get with gold. By having financial privacy it will be easier to transfer wealth to your love ones or anyone else without state impose restrictions. Without financial privacy you will be dependent on the state laws to be just. If the laws are not just and you don’t have financial privacy, you could have your wealth confiscated. Gold because of its time tested reliability will remain one of the best ways to become financially independent.

Why Gold Is A Good Long Term Investment

2009-04-06T22:07:00.000-07:00

Gold is one of the best investments to own on a long term basis. The reason for this is some of the properties gold possesses making it ideal for the long term. One of these properties is gold’s durability. Gold does not rust or tarnish making it suitable for long term storage. In fact when gold is lost at sea and found years or centuries later, it comes out of the ocean just as good as new.

Another property that gold possesses that makes it good as a long term investment is gold’s ability to hold wealth. Gold has a six thousand year old track record of holding wealth. All fiat currencies become worthless in less than one hundred years, in fact no fiat currency can buy the same amount of gold it could of the day it was first issued. A chart of any nation’s currency purchasing power over time will have a downward trend. By investing in gold on a long term basis it will protect an investor’s wealth from erosion due to inflation.

One last property that gold possesses that makes it good as a long term investment is gold’s portability. Gold because of its ability to store a large amount of wealth in a small package makes it ideal to transport from place to place. An added bonus is gold is more private and has less counterparty risk than a bank account. Gold because of its durability, its ability to hold wealth, and its portability, makes it one of the best investments to own on a long term basis.

The Different Shapes Of Gold Bars

2009-04-03T03:42:00.000-07:00

Gold bars are manufactured in a variety of different shapes depending on the manufacturer. One shape gold bars are manufactured in is rectangular minted bars. Minted bars are made by cutting blanks out of sheets of gold. After the blank is cut out the name of the manufacturer, the size and the purity of the bar is struck on the bar.

Another form of rectangular gold bars is cast bars. Cast bars are gold bars that are made by pouring molten gold into a mold. When the gold cools and solidifies, it is usually immersed in water to bring to room temperature. After the bar is room temperature, the name of the manufacturer, the size and the purity of the bar is struck on the bar.

Cast gold bars because of the process it is made can be any shape. The shape is determined by the shape of the mold the molten gold is poured into. Another shape gold bars are manufactured in is squared bars. Some Gold Tola Bars depending on the amount of gold it contains can be manufactured in a square like shape.

The last two shapes gold bars are manufactured in are boat shaped and doughnut shaped. The gold bars that are made in these shapes are known as Gold Tael Bars. Not all Gold Tael Bars are manufactured in these two shapes; some are also manufactured in the common rectangular shape. Gold Tael Bars are usually manufactured in East Asia. Gold because of its ability to take many shapes is one of the main reasons why gold bars come in a large variety.

Why Gold Is A Good Asset

2009-04-01T23:45:00.000-07:00

Gold as an asset has many qualities that are beneficial. One of these qualities is gold’s ability to store wealth. Gold has a six thousand year old track record of holding wealth. In fact gold coins and gold bars can hold wealth even if the organization that minted it goes out of business. Stocks and Bonds on the other hand are dependent on the solvency of the organizations that issued them. Fiat currency is another debt based instrument that is dependent on the solvency of the entity that issued it.

Another quality that gold has that’s beneficial is gold’s low to no maintenance. Gold coins and gold bars once you own a safe, will cost nothing to keep and over time can appreciate. Other assets like real estate will cost money to maintain and if it appreciates can require more to be paid out in taxes. Also governmental policies can change which in turn may cause property taxes to increase or tax breaks to be cut.

One last quality that gold has that‘s beneficial is gold’s ease to liquidate. Gold coins and gold bars are one of the easiest assets to sell. In fact most places that sell gold will usually also buy gold. With the recent economic events and the problems with companies owning illiquid assets, owning an asset that has been time tested to be easy to liquidate under most economic situations is truly beneficial. Gold because of its ability to store wealth, its low to no maintenance cost and its ease to liquidate, will always be a good asset to possess.

The Different Units Gold Is Weighed In

2009-04-01T02:26:00.000-07:00

Depending on what part of the world a gold bar is manufactured or the manufacturer’s preference, the weight unit a gold bar is weighed in can vary. In most nations where English is the first language, manufacturers usually will use the troy ounce as the unit in which gold is determined in. One troy ounce is equal to 31.1034768 grams. The troy ounce is distinct from the avoirdupois ounce which is 28.349523125 grams. The spot price of gold is what one troy ounce of gold is selling for at a given time.

Another unit which gold bars are weighed in is Grams. Gold bars that are weighed in grams can vary from one gram to a thousand grams (one kilo gold bar). Some of the most common sizes of gold bars that are manufactured in grams are 1, 2.5, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 250, 500, and one kilo. The next unit which gold bars are weighed in is Tolas. Some nations that use the tola to weigh gold are India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Singapore. The tola was the weight of the silver rupee coin issued by the British East India Company. One tola is equal to 11.6638038 grams or 0.375 troy ounces.

One last unit which gold bars are weighed in is Taels. The tael was used in many eastern Asian nations and can vary from nation to nation or region to region. In China and Taiwan a tael is equal to 37.5 grams; in Hong Kong a tael is equal to 37.8 grams. Gold tael bars usually come in three shapes biscuits, doughnuts, and boat shape. The unit in which gold bars are manufactured and weighed in can vary from culture to culture, but thanks to the metric system gold bars can be compared a little easier.

How To Save Money When Buying Gold Coins And Bars

2009-03-30T20:47:00.000-07:00

When investing in gold coins or gold bars there are some things you can do in order to save money. One thing you can do in order to save money when buying gold coins or gold bars is buy as much gold as you can afford at a given time. The reason for this is some places or websites offer discounts depending on the amount of gold you buy at a time. Another reason is by buying most of your gold at the same time, you will save in shipping cost if you are buying online and buy most of your gold from the same place.

Another thing you can do in order to save money when buying gold coins or gold bars is buy larger sizes. The larger the size of gold coins or gold bars you buy the more gold you will get for your money. The reason for this is when you buy smaller gold coins or bars; you are paying a higher percentage in manufacturing cost compared to larger coins or bars. It is recommended if you do buy gold bullion larger than one troy ounce, that you know some places you can liquidate it when or if the time comes.

One last thing you can do in order to save money when buying gold coins or gold bars is research and compare prices before buying. It is important to research any business before purchasing gold from them. By comparing the cost of gold coins and gold bars between the businesses you trust, you will get the lowest price and still maintain safe shopping practices. Some other things to keep in mind when comparing prices are the shipping cost and insurance if any. Investing in gold is a good way to protect your wealth; if you follow some of the things here you will save money when buying gold.

The Benefits Of Saving In Gold

2009-03-27T21:48:00.000-07:00

Gold is not only one of the best ways of preserving wealth; there are also many benefits when saving in gold compared to fiat currency. One benefit of saving in gold bullion is gold’s ability to protect your wealth from inflation. With today’s economic uncertainties and governments around the world creating more currency out of thin air to bailout banks and other institutions; the possibility of unprecedented inflation is more prominent then ever.

Another benefit of saving in gold bullion is it reduces the chances of using savings for impulse buying. If the saver knows that in order to spend some of the savings they will have to sell some of their gold, the process will usually give them more time to think. If the good or service that they want to purchase is not worth the trouble of selling the gold, it can usually be classified as impulse buying. Also it will give the saver more time to assess and see if the good or service is really worth tapping into savings.

One last benefit of saving in gold bullion is the investment aspect. Gold just like any other investment does not have a guarantee to always increase in value, but it is a possibility. With the chances of inflation increasing, gold’s price may increase in terms of currency but remain the same in purchasing power. In the case where gold’s purchasing power remains the same but goes up in terms of currency, the saver would have lost that purchasing power if just holding cash. Saving in gold may be a unique practice in today’s society, but it does have its benefits.

What Kind Of Gold Bars To Buy

2009-03-26T22:49:00.000-07:00

When deciding on what kind of gold bars to invest in, there are some things that are important to know. One of these things that are important to know is which gold bars are respected by investors in your area and investors worldwide. By knowing which gold bars have a good reputation with investors in your area and worldwide, it will give you an idea on the kind of gold bars to invest in. Also if the gold bars that you buy have a good reputation worldwide, it will be easier to sell when the time comes to liquidate.

Another thing that is important to know when deciding what kind of gold bars to buy, is the size of gold bars you want to invest in. The larger the size of gold bars you invest in, the more difficult it will be to sell. Also the smaller the size of gold bars you invest in, the more you will pay in manufacturing cost. It is recommended if you do buy gold bars larger than one troy ounce that you know some places you can liquidate the bars. Smaller gold bars like chip gold are only recommended if you want to own physical gold but can’t afford to buy gold in a larger size.

The three sizes of gold bars that are popular with many investors are the one troy ounce bars, the ten troy ounce bars, and the one kilo bars. As stated before if you buy gold bars larger than one troy ounce, it is important to know some places you can liquidate the bars. Some gold bars that are recommended are the Swiss Pamp Gold Bullion Bars; the Credit Suisse Gold Bars; the Union Bank of Switzerland Gold Bars; the Johnson Matthey Gold Bars; and the Engelhard Gold Bars. It is important to research any mint or business before investing in their bars. Gold bars are one of the most popular ways to invest in physical gold. If you follow some of the information here, deciding on the right kind of gold bars to invest in will become an easier task.

Why Any Fiat Super Currency Is Doom To Fail

2009-03-25T22:31:00.000-07:00

Many central banks around the world would like to implement a policy of using a super global currency in an attempt to fix their economies. The reason why any fiat “super” currency is doom to fail is the fact that most of the economies around the world are in a mess for similar practices. These practices are central economic planning, fiat currency, legal tender laws, central banking, fractional reserve banking, and unstable tax rates. Of course the governments and central banks would never voluntarily give up some of their power, and allow its citizens to have an option to opt out of this insolvent planned system; for a freer and less centralized one.

Another reason why a fiat “super” currency is doom to fail is the mind-boggling idea of fixing problems due to centralization with even more centralization. The individuals who control the central banks around the world and the governmental servants who forgot that they’re servants and not masters, will never own up to the fact that it was their meddling in the market that was the underline cause to this mess. In fact they blame the market and the lack of control they have over it as the problem. If all banks in a nation were not controlled by a central bank some of them could of set their interest rates if any, at a rate that was determine by their reserves. Also if there were competing private currencies backed by goods and services and valued in silver or gold, these currencies would not be prone to inflation and banks would not have to find risky ways to make profits. One of the main reasons why banks engaged in risky practices was the fact that holding the currency and doing nothing with it meant losing profits through inflation.

Some other reasons why a fiat “super” currency is doom to fail is the fact that fiat currency all fail within one hundred years. Also another reason is that two of the major causes of the problems with the economy are the centralized banking and the centralized monetary systems most nations have in place. Introducing another fiat currency to operate within their systems would prolong the inevitable at best. The inevitable being the failure of most nations banking and monetary systems. The best a government and its central bank can do is to allow competition to the banking and monetary systems. By allowing its citizens to opt out of these failing systems for the competition, it will alleviate some of the pain when the old systems eventually collapse. A super currency whether controlled by the IMF or any other organization not only is doom to fail, but is ultimately a step in the wrong direction.

To see why a free market alternative is superior to the centralized banking and centralized monetary systems most nations have in placed today, I recommend Why The Gold Standard Is Not Enough.

Can Gold Confiscation Happen Again

2009-03-24T22:31:00.000-07:00

To answer the question can gold confiscation happen again, we have to look at the first example of gold confiscation in the United States of America. The first gold confiscation Executive Order 6102 was signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on April 5, 1933. This order roughly said that most gold coins, gold bullion and gold certificates were to be turned in to the Federal Reserve before May 1, 1933. If an individual didn’t comply they would be fine up to $10,000 (gold was $20 per troy ounce back then) or up to ten years in prison; or both.

Also individuals were allowed to own up to 5 troy ounces of gold each. The government back then and now didn’t have the resources to enforce this order (Not to mention the order was and is unconstitutional); and only one person was ever indicted for not complying with the order. Frederick Barber Campbell who had 5000 ounces of gold deposited in a bank, tried to sue the bank for not allowing him to withdraw his 5000 ounces of gold. After this lawsuit being filed, the federal prosecutors knew that Mr. Campbell didn’t comply with the order. The prosecution failed to put Mr. Campbell behind bars, but his 5000 ounces of gold was never returned to him.

The truth is most of the gold that was confiscated in 1933 was voluntarily turned over. There is no practical way of knowing how much individuals refused to comply with the order. Today just like in the 1930’s the government does not have the resources to indicate how much physical gold an individual may have. That being said if the government did order the confiscation of gold again, like the first time most of the gold they would collect would be voluntarily turned over. Gold because of its ease to hide would cost the government more resources going after the individuals that refused to comply, than the gold they would collect from them. Gold confiscation even though tried in the past, was impractical back then and would be impractical today.

Can Gold Tarnish

2009-03-23T19:36:00.000-07:00

The answer to the question, can gold tarnish is an unequivocal no. This means if your gold coins, gold bars or gold jewelry are made of pure gold, these items will never change color or show any signs of discoloration. Pure gold is known as 24 karat gold. 24 karat gold will be softer than the other forms of gold with lower karat ratings. Pure gold because of it softness is usually alloyed with other metals to increase the hardness of the gold. All reputable gold bars are made of pure gold. Some gold bullion coins like the South African Krugerrand and the American Gold Eagle are made of 22 karat gold.

The lower karat ratings of gold, because of the mixture of other metals can show some signs of discoloration. The discoloration is due to the other metals mixed in and not the gold. In most places on earth, gold alloys that are 18 karat or higher usually do not tend to tarnish. In India in some rare cases, gold alloys that are as high as 22 karat are known to show some signs of discoloration. It is recommended if you live in a place that has some rare cases of high gold karat showing signs of discoloration; that you only invest or buy physical gold items that are 24 karat.

Pure Gold because of its ability to never tarnish is one of the best ways to invest or buy gold. If you are not sure if you live in one of the places on earth where higher karat of gold show signs of discoloration, you can ask other investors or jewelry stores. Also you can limit yourself to only investing or buying 24 karat gold. In most cases gold that’s 18 karat or more will tend not to tarnish, but the only form of gold guaranteed never to tarnish is 24 karat; in other words pure gold.

The Counterparty Risk Of Gold Compared To Other Investments

2009-03-21T02:07:00.000-07:00

Gold as an investment has little to no counterparty risks compared to other investments. This means if you have physical gold coins or gold bars you don’t have to depend on another person performing certain duties for the investment to remain sound. On the other hand investments like stocks will inherently have a higher counterparty risk. Some of the things that can add to the counterparty risks associated with stocks are the managers of the company not doing a competent job; the shares of stocks in the company being diluted; or dubious accounting giving false sense of profitability.

Some of the things that can add to the counterparty risks associated with real estate are, the property taxes rising too fast, the cost of maintaining the property increasing, fires and natural disasters, (if you have your gold in a fire proof safe that is bolted down to the foundation of your property, your physical gold will usually be safe from most fires and natural disasters.) or governmental laws changing making it easier to take away property. (In the past governments did pass laws to confiscate gold, but gold coins and gold bars are easier assets to conceal and is also harder to confiscate than real estate.)

Some of the things that can add to the counterparty risks associated with holding fiat currency are, the government defaulting on its debt obligations, the central banks that issued the currency inflating the currency, or the people of the nation or other nations refusing to accept the currency as a medium of exchange. (Some may say; well couldn’t people refuse to accept gold as a medium of exchange? The answer is yes, but gold has a six thousand year track record, compare that to fiat currency that always becomes worthless in less than one hundred years; no exceptions.) Physical gold because of its low to no counterparty risks; makes it one of the safest and soundest investments out there.

How Are Gold Bars Made

2009-03-20T02:11:00.000-07:00

Gold bars are one of the most cost effective ways of minting gold. It’s not unusual for gold bars to cost less than gold bullion coins that contain the same amount of gold. The main reason why gold bars a usually less expensive than gold coins, is the fact that gold bars are less expensive to manufacture. Another reason why gold bars are usually less expensive is the lack of numismatic value associated with gold bars. Gold coins are usually struck with a date on them. The older a coin is, the more it will usually be worth. With gold bars the price is usually uniformed no matter when it was manufactured.

There are two main methods used to manufacture gold bars. The first method of manufacturing gold bars produces gold bars known as Minted bars. Minted bars are made by cutting rectangular blanks out of sheets of gold. After these rectangular gold blanks are cut the weight is then checked. Depending on the mint’s procedures, the blanks weight can be checked manually or through an automated process. In the last process the blanks are struck with the name of the mint, the size and its purity.

The next method of manufacturing gold bars produces gold bars known as Cast bars or Ingots. Ingots are made by pouring molten gold into molds. The molten gold is then allowed to slowly cool. After the ingots are solidified they are then usually immersed in water to bring them to room temperature. Next the weight of the ingots are then checked, and like minted bars the ingots are struck with the name of the mint, the size and its purity. Gold bars are not only one of the most cost effective ways to invest in physical gold; it is also one of the most cost effective ways of minting gold.

Gold And Silver, The Differences When Investing

2009-03-19T00:38:00.000-07:00

As this being a gold blog, it could be fairly said that silver is underrepresented. Some investors that invest in gold will usually also invest in silver. Investing in gold and investing in silver is almost identical in nature. Gold and silver both have been historically used as money, they both can be combined and separated, and they both have been time tested for thousands of years to store and hold wealth.

The most significant difference between investing in gold and investing in silver is the fact that over time silver can tarnish. The tarnish of silver known as silver sulfide is cause by the small bits of hydrogen sulfide in the atmosphere. Silver sulfide can cause silver to become darker or even black over time. Silver sulfide is not permanent and can usually be cleaned off with certain products or certain household chemicals. In fact in some cases cleaning the tarnish off of a silver coin can make it less valuable to investors.

This small difference between gold and silver can make owning silver a bit more complicated than gold. In some cases you should clean your silver bullion once a year if needed and if applicable. Also it is recommended that you try your best not to let silver get in direct contact with materials like rudder or stainless steel. Some of these are not a concern when storing or holding physical gold. All in all investing in physical silver is just as safe and just as wise as investing in physical gold. The only difference is physical silver may take a little more knowledge and maintenance.

Why All Fiat Currencies Eventually Become Worthless

2009-03-17T20:37:00.001-07:00

I hear from time to time people equating fiat currency to gold or things that took desired work i.e. wealth to produce, perform or cultivate. There is a big difference when it comes to fiat currency and real wealth. The most significant difference is the fact that there is no human shortcut to producing, performing or cultivating desired work i.e. wealth out of thin air. On the other hand with the advent of computers it is possible to create fiat currency out of thin air. In fact with the banking system most nations have in place today, the process of creating currency out of thin air is institutionalized with fractional reserved banking.

The reason why all fiat currencies eventually become worthless is human nature. It is human nature to seek the maximum amount of benefits for the least amount of work. Fiat currency gives the person or persons in charge of it the ability to covertly steal the desired work i.e. wealth of anyone who puts their trust in it as a medium of exchange. Since it is human nature to seek the maximum amount of benefits for the least amount of work, the people in charge of that fiat currency will inflate until all trust in the currency is eventually lost.

The reason this scenario plays over and over again in history is the fact that when first inflating a currency the benefits are easy to see compared to the drawbacks. After a while prices rise as the growth of currency out paces the growth of goods and services. Governments rather than see the inflating of the currency that gave them the initial benefit as the cause to the high prices; will usually blame the private sectors greed and continue to inflate until the currency becomes worthless.

Gold unlike fiat currency can not be conjured out of thin air at the whim of bureaucrats or an insolvent banking system, so its ability to hold desired work i.e. wealth is independent of government or banking and is time tested. This is one of the many reasons why gold has and is used as money. The equating of fiat currency to gold or any other thing that took desired work i.e. wealth to produce, perform or cultivate is a mistake done by many in history; and sadly many today.

Buying Gold From A Dealer, Important Things To Know

2009-03-16T14:12:00.000-07:00

Before buying gold coins or gold bars from any dealer whether online or offline, some things are important to know. One thing that is important to know is the return policy of any place you buy from. The last thing you want is to have some misunderstanding with a gold dealer and end up with a product that you did not want. It is recommended that you only buy from gold dealers that have a return policy in case of any misunderstanding.

Another thing that is important to know before buying gold from a dealer is the gold dealer’s reputation. By knowing a dealer’s reputation it will help you to stay clear of dealers that have a lot of customer complaints. Also by knowing a dealer’s reputation it can give you some ideas on what to expect if any problems may arise. The more you know about a gold dealer, the easier it will be to do business with them.

One last thing that is important to know before buying gold from a dealer, is to know if that dealer also buys gold. The more places that you know that buys gold the more options you will have if you ever decide to liquidate. Also the more places you know the higher chances you will have of finding a dealer that will pay more than the other places. Buying gold coins and gold bars are some of the best ways to invest in gold. By knowing what things to look for in a gold dealer, investing in gold will become easier.

The Goal Of Investing In Gold

2009-03-12T19:27:00.000-07:00

When investing in gold it is important to keep in mind your main goal for investing. The reason for this is your main goal can give you some ideas on what you expect from an investment. Also on the aspect of investing in gold it can help you to know what form of gold investments will tend to give you the most desired results. If your main goal for investing in gold is to preserve your wealth from inflation, it is recommended to invest in gold bullion. Gold bullion is gold coins and gold bars that are closest to the spot price of gold. Gold bullion will tend to be a little above spot price because of manufacturing cost.

If your main goal is to invest in physical gold and yet get the highest return you can, it is recommended that you invest in numismatic gold coins. Numismatic gold coins will take more research than gold bullion for the fact that not all numismatic coins will increase in value at the same rate. Just like any other investment when you invest in gold the more return you expect the more risk you will likely have to take. If you invest in the wrong numismatic gold coin, there is a chance of losing some of your investment. With numismatics the best approach is to know which coins performed well in the past. This will give you an estimate on how it is likely to perform in the future.

If your main gold is to invest in gold without holding any of the physical metal, and yet get the highest returns; it is recommended to invest in gold mining stocks or ETFs. Investing in gold stocks just like any other stock will take a lot of work researching which companies to invest in. The reason you should research diligently is the fact unlike physical gold if you invest in the wrong stocks, there is a possibility of losing all your investments over night. Also if you invest in the wrong companies you can end up losing money even if physical gold goes up. The positive thing about gold stocks is if gold goes up and you invest in the right stocks, you are likely to get a higher return than physical gold. By knowing your main goal, your decision will be easier when determining what form of gold to invest in.

The Price Of Gold, The Ways To Determine It

2009-03-11T20:30:00.000-07:00

The Most popular way to determine the price of gold is the spot price of gold. The spot price of gold is the amount one troy ounce of gold is selling for at any given time. The spot price of gold is volatile and can change from second to second. Most dealers that sell physical gold will use the spot price of gold as one of the major indicators on how much to charge. Gold bullion is one of the forms of gold most influence by the spot price.

Another way to determine the price of gold is a gold futures contract. A gold futures contract is a contract in which a specific amount of gold is to be bought or sold at a given date in the future for a given price determined on the date the contract was created. The price of gold can rise or fall but the holders of the contract must buy or sell for the price on the contract before the date stated on the contract, known as the delivery date. This contract is divided up and bought and sold, the price of the contract at the end of a day’s session is known as the settlement price. The settlement price and the amount of gold in the contract divided into one troy ounce is the amount some investors will look at to determine the price of gold.

One last way to determine the price of gold is to research the price of a specific gold coin or gold bar. Some ways of doing this is to research businesses that buy that specific coin or bar and see how much they are offering for them. Another way is to search auction sites to see what the specific gold coin or gold bar sold for on the most recent date. These two ways may be less accepted than the spot price or the settlement price, but these are two of the best ways to determine the price of a specific coin or bar. By determining the price of gold, it can help an investor to know the right price to buy or sell gold.

Keeping Your Gold Safe From Theft And Confiscation

2009-03-10T14:47:00.001-07:00

There are certain things you can do as an investor of physical gold to keep your gold safe from theft or governmental confiscation. One thing you can do if possible is buy some of your gold with hard cash. The reason for this is if you buy some of your gold with hard cash, there is no paper trail leading to you owning that gold on some unknown database. With the new events of governments hinting of nationalizing banks, the little financial privacy one may have had in the past is rapidly evaporating.

Another thing you can do to keep your gold safe is not to tell every one the amount of gold you have. It’s good to help others by letting them know some of the benefits of investing in physical gold, or even recommending them to dealers, places or websites you purchase from in the past; but telling others how much physical gold you have and how much it is worth may have some unintended consequences. The person may be a trustworthy person, but there is no telling if that person may end up talking about it with the wrong person.

The last thing you can do to keep your gold safe is to keep your gold in a safe. Safes are relatively inexpensive and can really keep your personal items safe. If you do buy a safe it is important that it can be bolted down to something secure like the foundation of a house. It will deter most burglars. The reason it will is the work it would take to unbolt it means a greater risk of getting caught. Keeping your gold safe is an easy process. If you follow some of the things you read here, keeping your gold safe will become an even easier process.

How Are Gold Coins Made

2009-03-10T01:13:00.000-07:00

The process of manufacturing gold coins is a complicated one. First an artist or artists will sketch the designs of the obverse and reverse sides of the gold coin. After the two sides are decided on, a master sculptor or master sculptors; engraves the two designs on two or more round plaster molds that are usually five times larger than the actual gold coin. This process is painstakingly long, the reason for this is the master sculptors must keep in mind the right depth and detail to make a well design gold coin. After the obverse and reverse sides are sculpted to perfection, the plaster molds are used to make a rubber resin mold. The rubber resin mold is then used to make an epoxy resin mold. Plaster is first used and then transferred to rubber because any mistakes on the plaster mold can be corrected by the master sculptors; these corrections are not practical to perform on the rubber molds.

Next the epoxy resin molds are mounted onto a pantograph. The pantograph traces the details of the epoxy resin molds onto master dies made of steel. The details of the master dies will be the same size of the actual gold coin. The steel master dies are then heated to a very high temperature and then rapidly cooled. The process of heating and then rapidly cooling the steel master dies makes it hard enough to strike gold coins. The diameters of the master dies are then shave down to the required size to strike gold coins. The master dies are then polish to perfection to be in an ample condition to strike the coins. Usually the master dies are used to make matrix dies; matrix dies are larger then the master dies and usually the same size of the original round plaster molds. The matrix dies are used with the pantograph to make duplicates of the master dies known as working dies. In most cases the master dies are used to help make working dies. The reason for this is dies after striking numerous coins starts to wear and must be replaced. The process of making master dies and working dies are similar in nature.

In the final process gold sheets are punch into circular blanks the same size of the gold coins to be struck. These blanks are then fed into an upsetting machine. The upsetting machine raises the rim of the blanks. A blank that is fed through an upsetting machine and have a raised rim is known as a planchet. Planchets are then polish using steel beads and water; after being polish each planchet weight is checked. The planchet is then struck with the polish working dies on the obverse and reverse sides with over one hundred tons of pressure. The working dies will have a negative image to make a positive imprint on the gold coins. The gold coins are then manually inspected for any imperfections. The gold coins that pass this inspection are then sold. The process of manufacturing gold coins is a complicated process; but it is this process that gives us the beautiful gold coins we have today.

What Are Proof Gold Coins

2009-03-06T21:35:00.000-08:00

Proof gold coins are gold coins that are manufactured using a special process. This process usually involves the coin being double struck with specially treated dies. This gives the gold coin more detail and sometimes a mirror like finish. Proof coins are usually considered to be collectibles and are often rarer than its generic counterpart. Proof gold coins because of the process it takes to manufacture them, are more expensive than its generic counterpart.

Some gold bullion coins that also have proof coin versions are The American Buffalo, The American Gold Eagle, The Canadian Maple Leaf and The South African Krugerrand. The proofs to these versions are made in limited quantities compared to the bullion versions. As mention above the proof versions sell for a higher mark up compared to the generic bullion versions. Investors that invest in proof gold coins are usually coin collectors whose main reason for buying them is for the beauty and numismatic value.

Proof gold coins because of its collectible status can often be sold in proof sets. Proof sets usually consist of a book like case that displays the different sizes of gold coins. Proof sets also usually come with a certificate of authenticity. The certificate of authenticity will usually have information like the name of the coins and where they were struck. Some proof coins like The China Panda Gold Coin will come in a single plastic case if each coin is purchase separately. Proof gold coins because of its beauty and rarity are one of the best coins for a collector to have.

Gold And Financial Privacy

2009-03-05T22:18:00.000-08:00

With today’s world of central banking and central bank issued fiat currency the concept of financial privacy may seem alien to many. Some may even think the aspect of wanting financial privacy means that you are someone doing something illegal or devious at best. This can not be further from the truth; the aspect of wanting financial privacy is to protect the individuals who may engage in activities that may be legal but counterproductive to the state or any of its agendas.

Also not all laws are created equal; history has shown that governments can often create laws to enhance its own power even if it means violating the rights of its citizens. If there is no financial privacy what is to stop a power hungry government from seizing the assets of a peaceful opposition to their power? Also what is to stop a government from seizing assets unjustly? Some may point to constitutions or any other documents that governments are to follow. But when is the last time a government servant with any real power been indicted, tried, and jailed for violating any constitution.

Gold bullion is one of the best ways to have inflation proof savings outside of central banking or fiat currency influence. Gold coins and gold bars is also a good way to privately pass down wealth to your progeny without state interference. There are many reasons to advocate for financial privacy; one of the most important ones is the fact that governments are our servants and not our masters.

How To Tell If Something Is Made Of Gold

2009-03-04T18:27:00.000-08:00

There are many ways to determine if something is made of gold. If the item in question is something like a gold coin or a gold bar one of the easiest ways to determine this is to weigh it. Gold’s density is something hard to counterfeit. You can research the weight of most popular gold coins or gold bars. By knowing its weight in grams it will be easy to spot if the coin or bar does not have the right weight.

If the item is something which the weight can not be research, it is recommended to use an electronic gold tester. Some electronic gold testers are so sophisticated they can not only determine if an item is made of gold, but also indicate the number of karat of gold the item is made of. If an item is made of pure gold it will be 24 karat; if an item is made of seventy five percent gold and a mixture of other metals it will be 18 karat; if an item is made of fifty eight percent gold and a mixture of other metals it will be 14 karat; and if an item is made of forty two percent gold and a mixture of other metals it will be 10 karat.

A mixture of gold and other metals also gives gold some of its different colors. Some examples of this are rose gold which is usually a mixture of gold and copper; and white gold which is usually a mixture of gold and nickel or palladium. Electronic gold testers will usually be able to detect the amount of gold in these alloys. Finding out if something is made of gold is easy if you have the right tools or know the right techniques to do so.

Gold And Fiat Currency

2009-03-03T19:58:00.001-08:00

Gold in history has been used as money. The reason for this is the properties gold possesses to make it ideal as a medium of exchange. Some of these properties are gold’s ability to hold wealth; the fact that gold does not rust or tarnish; gold’s rarity, gold’s ability to be combined, gold’s ability to be divided and the fact that pure gold is the same no matter when or where it was mined.

Fiat Currency on the other hand when used in history was always for a short time and ended up becoming worthless in less than one hundred years. The reason for this is the issuer or issuers of fiat currency can never know if they are issuing too much or too little currency until it is too late. Also when fiat currency was used rulers or governments had to use coercion to keep people from rejecting it as payment.

Gold takes desired work to get out of the ground and this keeps the purchasing power of gold relatively stable. If there is too much gold mined at any given time the price or purchasing power of gold will temporarily go down. This in turn will cause less gold to be mined because of the smaller profit margins. If there is too little gold mined at any given time the opposite will happen.

Gold has been used as money because of its time tested reliability to keep its purchasing power. Even when a manufacturer ceases to exists, the gold coins or gold bars they produce will still hold wealth. This feat is something that fiat currency usually can not follow. Gold is not only superior to fiat currency; history has shown if a people have the liberty to choose between the two, gold will usually come out the winner.

The Benefits Of Investing In Gold

2009-02-27T20:38:00.000-08:00

Gold is an investment with many benefits. One benefit of investing in physical gold is the low to no maintenance cost. Gold unlike many other investments can be kept without paying any additional funds. If you have your own safe, keeping the gold is basically maintenance free. Another benefit of investing in physical gold is the low risk compared to other investments. Gold has intrinsic value and will not become worthless because of mismanagement or a company going out of business.

One other benefit of investing in physical gold is the privacy of gold compared to other investments. In most nations you don’t have to disclose how much physical gold holdings you have or where you store your physical gold. By having a private investment like gold the risk of it being confiscated because of a change in law or any other situation, is lower compared to other investments.

One last benefit of investing in physical gold is its ease to liquidate. Most places that sell gold usually also buy gold. Another reason why gold is easy to liquidate is the fact that the spot price of gold is easy to find out at any given time. The spot price usually can give buyers and sellers a rough guess if their getting a good price or not. An investor can also do research on a specific gold coin or gold bar to know the current fair price for the item. Physical gold not only is a safe investment, it is also an investment with a lot of benefits.

Can Gold Become Worthless

2009-02-27T03:40:00.000-08:00

To answer the question can gold become worthless; it is important to understand the nature of wealth and value. The essence of wealth is desired work. If a person’s only wealth was currency, but no one was willing to trade any services (it takes desired work to perform services) or trade any goods, (it takes desired work to produce or cultivate goods) for that currency, as long as that person isn’t willing to do any desired work; or as long as anyone isn’t willing to do any desired work for that person, that person has no wealth. On the other hand if a person had no currency, but people were willing to perform services or give goods to that person, as long as people are willing to do those things; or if that person did do desired work and traded it, that person has wealth.

The nature of value is subjective and not objective. Just like beauty value is in the eye of the beholder. One person can look at a product and see it as too expensive. In that case that person values the money it takes to buy the product more than the product itself. On the other hand if another person looks at the same product and sees it as a good deal; that person values the product more than the money it takes to buy it. Since people’s views and perceptions can change at any given time, their value of something can also change at any given time.

Gold’s value like any other product is in the eye of the beholder. There are a number of reasons why gold was and is valued by many cultures and individuals. Some of these reasons are gold’s durability (gold does not rust or tarnish), gold’s beauty (gold has a distinctive color), gold’s rarity (gold is rare enough to be used as money but not too rare to make it impractical), gold’s weight (gold is dense and hard to counterfeit), gold’s uniformity (pure gold is the same no matter where or when it was mined), gold’s fluidity (gold cam be made to be any shape and can be divided or combined), gold’s ability to hold wealth (gold has held wealth for over six thousand years).

These qualities and many more are some of the reasons why people value gold. To answer the question can gold become worthless; anything can become worthless if no person is willing to do or trade desired work for it. Gold with its six thousand year track record and the fact that no civilization that accepted it ever turned around and then rejected it; shows that gold becoming worthless is highly unlikely.

The Different Categories Of Gold Coins And Gold Bars

2009-02-25T23:47:00.000-08:00

The different categories of gold coins and gold bars can determine the price of the physical metal. The categories can be differentiated by several factors. One factor is the way a coin or bar is manufactured; another factor is the rarity or what circumstances a coin or a bar has been through. The first category of gold coins is gold bullion coins. Gold bullion coins are gold coins that are usually a little above the spot price of gold. Gold bullion coins are the best way to buy the most physical gold for your money in a coin form.

The next category of gold coins is numismatic gold coins. Numismatic gold coins are coins that for a number of reasons are worth significantly more then its weight in gold. Some reasons can be the way the coin is manufactured, the age, the circumstances the coin has been through or the rarity of the coin. Gold bullion coins can also become numismatic coins over time depending on its age, rarity or the circumstances it has been through. The last category of gold coins is proof gold coins. Proof gold coins are gold coins that are struck with specially treated dies to give the coin a detail and mirror like finish. Some proof gold coins are even double struck to give the coin more details. Proof coins are usually collectibles and is considered a kind of numismatic coin.

The first category of gold bars is gold bullion bars. Gold bullion bars are similar to gold bullion coins in the aspect of usually being a little above the spot price of gold. Most gold bars will usually fall under the category of gold bullion bars. Gold bullion bars are also one of the best ways to buy the most physical gold for your money in a bar form. The next category of gold bars is ingots. Ingots are gold bars that are manufactured by pouring molten gold into a mold. Ingots can come in sizes as large as four hundred troy ounces, to as small as one gram.

Ingots that are one to twenty grams are usually known as chip gold. Chip gold usually comes in a credit card like seal to make it easily more identifiable. The last category of gold bars is numismatic or rare gold ingots. Rare gold ingots are usually not for sale and can be found in museums. Some aspects that can make these gold ingots special are the historic significance they hold. Gold coins and gold bars are the best ways to invest in physical gold. By knowing the different categories, it can make investors aware of the many options they have.

Gold And Currency Collapse The Worst Case Scenario

2009-02-24T14:31:00.000-08:00

There are many reasons why it’s a good idea to invest in physical gold. One of these reasons is the historic fact that gold is one of the only assets that can hold its value during a currency collapse or a systemic economic breakdown. In the wake of current events many governments around the world are creating an unprecedented amount of currency to prop up insolvent institutions. The consequence of this form of governmental intervention in the markets is not only making investors leery of these institutions, but also is one of the main reasons why every nation’s currency is falling when compared to gold and other physical assets. The essential problem with the world economy is nation’s monopolistic adoption of fiat currency and central banking. These two unsustainable practices have been so integrated and institutionalize in most nation’s economies, that the notion of insinuating that they are the cause of the problems can not be fathom.

The worst case scenario is nations with their attempts to prop up an unsustainable central banking model, will hastily collapse another unsustainable model; fiat currency. As more and more currency is created in an attempt to keep trust in the banking system, and as businesses find it more difficult to secure credit; governments will likely adopt rules for banking institutions to loan out money. These rules will apply to banks that got loans from the government. This will cause banks to loan out money that they otherwise would not have because of the economic situation. With this scenario banks that did not take any government loans will have to also make loans or take government loans to compete. This will cause inflation, and as prices of goods and services rise rapidly and more banks ask for government assistance; the trust in the currency and the banking system will ultimately collapse.

This scenario being the worst case scenario is more likely to happen than governments allowing its citizens to opt out of the central banking and fiat currency systems. Some ways governments can allow it citizens to do this is by allowing free market competition to these systems. The only way to opt out is to invest in assets that are independent of these two systems. Gold bullion is one of the best ways to store wealth independent of fiat currency, central banking or governmental institutions. In fact history has shown when all fails only things with real value remain, be it time tested institutions or assets. Extra Ecclesiam nulla salus.

What Makes Gold Unique

2009-02-21T10:52:00.000-08:00

Gold has played a large part in human history, from ancient Egypt to the Roman Empire. The reason for this is the unique qualities that gold possesses. One quality that gold possesses is its resistance to corrosion. Gold does not rust or tarnish, this is one of the reasons why gold has and is used by many cultures as jewelry. Another industry gold is used because of its resistance to corrosion is electronics. In fact most computers have some traces of gold in them.

Another quality that gold possesses is its ease to shape. This is also another reason why gold is popularly used as jewelry. One other industry gold’s ease to shape comes into play is the striking of coins. Gold because of its softness is the main reason why some gold coins use an alloy of other metals. These other metals make the gold coin harder and more resistant to scratches. Gold because of its ease to shape was use by many civilizations to make statures and other figures. In fact most religions today use gold in some way to help with their ceremonies.

One last quality that gold possesses is its rarity. This is one of the reasons why gold was and is used as money. Gold’s rarity is unique that it is rare enough to be seen as special but not too rare to make its implementation as money, jewelry, in electronics and other applications viewed as impractical. Gold because of its resistance to corrosion, its ease to shape, and its rarity, makes it one of the most unique metals ever to be used.

Why No Stimulus Package Will Ever Work

2009-02-20T14:12:00.000-08:00

I see from time to time talks of governments needing to spend money on various projects to help the ailing economy. The tragic part of this belief is that it allows governments to continue to practice the same policies that got us in this mess. What got us in this mess are things like central economic planning, fiat currency, fractional reserve banking, central banking, legal tender laws, over taxing and overgrown government. It is hard to imagine governments giving up some of its power for the good of its people, who ultimately are their masters. The problem is caused by governments and central banking, so there for the solution is not for them to solve. In fact all seven things I mention above that got us in this mess can be solved by governments doing less not more.

The reason why no stimulus package will ever work is the fact every time governments collect revenue and spend it, it is more wasteful and less effective than people spending it or saving it for themselves. Imagine every time you got paid your money was given to a person to spend it for you. If this person charge you for every expense plus took a ten percent fee for every product they bought for you; would this arrangement be more beneficial to you than you buying the things for yourself?

This is roughly what governments do. Governments have to pay the people who collect the taxes, the people who spend the taxes, the people who supervise them, the people who decide how the taxes should be spent and more. Even if you have a government that was less wasteful and had no corruption, it still would not be as efficient as people spending their money for themselves. Another problem is even if governments reduces its size and collect fewer taxes, it still will use fiat currency and central banking. The system of central banking, fractional reserve banking and fiat currency is unsustainable and doom to collapse. Instead of stimulus packages what governments need to do is get out of the way and allow people to opt out of these failing systems.

Why No Nation Uses The Gold Standard

2009-02-19T06:48:00.000-08:00

There are many reasons why no nation uses the gold standard today; one of them is not that the fiat, central banking system that most nations have in place today is superior. In fact a gold standard would work better than any fiat system for the simple fact that gold back money would never become worthless. So if the gold standard is superior why no nation uses it today? You ask; there are two reasons for this. The first reason is that fiat currency gives the government the ability to inflate the currency. This in essence gives the government the ability to secretly tax its citizens through inflation. The other reason is that the gold standard alone is not enough to stop governmental manipulation of the economy.

If a nation has a gold standard and some people within or outside of government wanted it gone for their own benefit, there are three options they can do. The first option is to raise taxes; by raising taxes businesses will in turn raise the price of goods and services in order to stay profitable. The price increase would cause less goods and services to be able to be purchase at that given time. Next step is to blame it on the gold standard and say things like “we need a more elastic kind of money, to help the people of course”.

The second option is to get the government to implement a central bank. Use the central bank to raise interest rates. By raising interest rates high, people would spend less and invest less, because the better option would be to keep the money in the bank and get a higher return. Also businesses would have less income; some may even go out of business if implemented long enough. Like the first option, blame it on the gold standard and say things like “we need a more elastic kind of money, to help the people of course”.

The last option is to slow the minting of coins and printing of certificates to a stand still (in this case it is necessary for the government coins and certificates to be the only legal tender). After a while less and less money would be in the system, causing businesses to have less income and like mention be for some would even go out of business. You can guess the rest, blame it on the gold standard and say things like “we need a more elastic kind of money, to help the people of course”.

All three of these options do one thing, soak up the money supply. All a government has to do is to implement all three simultaneously and blame the gold standard to get the system that is most beneficial to them. The devious part is that most of the time the new system is even easer to manipulate than the gold backed system. With the gold back system banks have a shorter time limit on how high or low they can keep the interest rates. The reason for this is if banks keep interest rates too high for too long the bank’s gold would be paid out to the customers. If too much of the bank’s gold is paid out, the bank would start to default on the interest rates they pay to their customers and then they would most likely go out of business.

If interest rates are too low for too long less people would keep their money in the bank and the banks would take in less profits or even take a loss. With a fiat currency, central banking, fractional reserve system the banks can manipulate the economy easier by creating money out of thin air anytime someone takes out a loan. This also would allow banks the ability to keep interest rates too high or too low for a longer period of time compared to money backed by gold.

Government benefits because of the ability to grow larger without having to overtly raise taxes. If this is not bad enough, the fiat currency, central banking, fractional reserve system is not sustainable, it will eventually implode on itself when the fiat currency becomes worthless. The main reason why no nation uses a gold standard is it can be made to look bad, and governments love a system that gives them more power no matter how unethical, unsustainable or unstable that system might be.

Buying Gold Coins And Gold Bars Online

2009-02-18T00:14:00.000-08:00

With the rapid growth of the internet buying gold coins and gold bars online has become easier than ever before. Before buying from an online dealer there are some things you should know. One thing you should know before purchasing physical gold online is the reputation and the reliability of the person or the site you intend to buy from. The reason for this is it will save you from doing business with a company or a person that has a reputation of unreliable or unethical business practices.

Another thing you should know before purchasing physical gold online is the kind and size of the gold coin or bar. It is important to carefully read any description of the gold coin or bar to make sure that you are indeed buying the right kind and size. The reason for this is some gold coins may look alike, but be different because of certain features. An example of this is proof coins. Proof coins from an online picture may look similar to its generic counterpart but one may be classified bullion and the proof coin classified as a collectible.

One last thing you should know before purchasing physical gold online is the kind of return policy if any a site may have. It is recommended to only buy gold from people or businesses that have a return policy. The reason for this is for your own safety. It is recommended to know the weight and weigh every gold coin and bar you buy online as soon as it is shipped to you. With a return policy if there is some misunderstanding, you will always have the option of a trade or getting your money back. Buying gold coins and gold bars online is relatively safe to do, but if you follow some of the things here it will become even safer.

Protect Your Wealth With Gold

2009-02-17T01:50:00.000-08:00

Physical gold is one of the best ways to protect your wealth from any economic downturn. The reason for this is gold has a track record that spans well over five thousand years of holding wealth. Gold has the property of holding and storing wealth because it takes desired work to mine more gold. Desired work is, in essence wealth. The reason why any good or service has any perceived value is the desired work that it takes to produce, cultivate or perform that good or service. Fiat currency and anything that is backed up by fiat currency is subjected to government and central banking policies to keep and hold wealth. Since fiat currency can be created independent of desired work, usually more fiat currency will be created than the production of goods and services. When more fiat currency is created than the production of goods and services it causes inflation.

Gold being a good that takes desired work to mine has a limit on how much that can be produce at any given time. Also if more gold is produce at a given time than the growth of other goods and services, the price of gold will fall and less gold will be produce. If less gold is produce than the growth of other goods and services the opposite will happen, keeping gold’s relative value stable. Fiat currency doesn’t keep its purchasing power for long compared to gold and other precious metals, in fact history has shown that once a government unties its currency from any physical asset the currency becomes worthless in less than one hundred years.

With physical gold your wealth is not subjected to government and central banking policies, barring an all-out governmental theft of gold. If the main reason for investing in physical gold is to protect your wealth it is recommended to invest in gold bullion. Gold bullion is gold coins and gold bars that are usually a little above spot price. With gold bullion you get more physical gold for your money compared to numismatic gold coins and any other uniform forms of physical gold. Protecting your wealth from inflation or any other economic downturn does take some planning; with physical gold you will have an asset that has a track record of protecting wealth.

What Size Gold Bullion To Buy

2009-02-14T02:42:00.000-08:00

Gold coins and bars are two of the best ways to invest in physical gold. A question that comes up from time to time is what size gold bullion to buy. If you buy bullion in small sizes you will usually pay a higher markup for manufacturing and if you buy bullion too large it will be more difficult to liquidate when the time comes.

It is recommended that you buy gold bullion in one troy ounce. The reason for this is one troy ounce is the size that’s popular with most investors. If you buy the kind of gold bullion and the size of gold bullion that is popular with investors in your area, the easier it will be to liquidate when the time comes if you ever decide to sell any of your gold bullion.

Another reason why one troy ounce is recommended is the fact that one troy ounce is the size that the spot price of gold is measured in. If you know the spot price and know the markup for all your one troy ounce bullion, it will be easier to calculate the worth of your investment in any currency. One last reason why one troy ounce size is recommended is usually that’s the largest size most gold bullion coins are manufactured in. No matter what size or kind of gold bullion you decide to invest in, the most important part is to know what will be the easiest to liquidate when the time comes.

How To Stimulate The Economy

2009-02-13T02:05:00.000-08:00

To understand how to stimulate the economy it is important to know what some of the restrictions that hinder it. I will try my best to shine some light on the two major problems and not the symptoms. The two major problems are a centralized monetary system and a centralized banking system. There is no way to have a sustainable economic recovery if these two systems alone are in place. The major flaw with a centralized monetary system is that there is no way that the organization behind it can tell if there is too little or too much currency in the system until it’s too late. If there is too much currency in circulation, prices go up and individuals on a fix budget will usually have to lower their standard of living or go into debt to maintain their current life style. If there is too little currency in circulation, prices go down and businesses profits shrink which in turn causes layoffs.

There is a similar major flaw with a centralized banking system. With a central banking system dictating the actions of all banks in a given nation, the centralized organization can control the money supply. Some ways they can do this is by raising or lowering interest rates or reserve requirements. It is impossible to have a free market if the medium of exchange and the supply of it is control by a central organization. What should be proposed to stimulate the economy is the decentralization of the monetary and the banking system. Some ways of doing this is to allow any individual or business the ability to practice the right of issuing their own currency once it’s backed by their goods and services and valued in silver or gold. Since it would be valued in silver or gold and backed by goods and services, its purchasing power would not be so easily manipulated by the issuer. Also with this anyone should have the right to reject any currency they did not issue themselves (even government currency).

The other thing that should be proposed to stimulate the economy is to allow any individual or business the ability to start up their own bank like entity. This bank like entity should be unregulated by government or the central banking system. The only government involvement in these two activities should be in the case of fraud, which then it should be handled by the court system. Also these two activities should be tax exempt. Private currency and decentralized banking should not be forced on everyone, but the people who wish to opt out of the centralized system most nations have in placed today, should have the opportunity to do so.

What I believe would happen is the private currency would allow businesses to use their production of goods and services to build up equity and be more independent of the banking sector. Also with these more stable and independent businesses, the decentralized banks would have to compete and come up with the best and safest services to attract capital. What needs to happen to stimulate the economy is not governments and central banks involvement; but to them to get out of the way and allow individuals and businesses the ability to opt out of the centralized monetary and banking system that is the root of the problem.

Is Gold A Safe Investment

2009-02-11T23:18:00.000-08:00

Gold is one of the safest investments out there; the reason for this is gold has intrinsic value and will not become worthless because of human error unlike a stock. In fact gold coins and bars still retain value even when the organization that minted it goes out of business. Physical gold unlike other assets does not take any additional funds to maintain if you store it yourself. Also some gold coins can build numismatic value over a period of time.

Another reason why gold is a safe investment is gold’s ability to protect wealth from inflation. Since it takes desired work to mine more gold there is a limit on the amount of gold that can be added to the gold supply at any given time. Other assets that can be duplicated without desired work are prone to being diluted and can become worthless because of increased volume.

One last reason why gold is a safe investment, is gold’s ease to liquidate. Gold is one of the easiest assets to sell. Most places that sell gold will usually buy gold. With the advent of the internet there are many sites you can sell gold to. Also with auction sites and classified sites, finding investors to sell your gold to has never been easier. Gold because of its intrinsic value, its ability to protect wealth from inflation, the limit on how much that can be mined and its ease to liquidate, makes gold one of the safest assets an investor can have.

Gold Coins Or Gold Bars, Which To Invest In

2009-02-10T23:11:00.000-08:00

Gold coins and gold bars both have different advantages over each other when it comes to investing in one or the other. To some investors these advantages are the reason for choosing one over the other. To other investors these advantages may be miniscule and will invest in both. Gold coins and gold bars are the most popular ways most investors invest in physical gold.

One advantage an investor may choose to invest in gold coins over gold bars is gold coins ability to build numismatic value over time. Since gold coins are struck with a date on them, the older a coin is usually the more numismatic value it will build. Another reason an investor may choose to invest in gold coins over gold bars is the governmental status of a coin. If a coin is minted by a government it will usually be widely accepted by investors in that nation.

One advantage an investor may choose to do the opposite and invest in gold bars over gold coins is the lower manufacturing cost to produce gold bars. Since gold bars are less expensive to manufacture investors usually get more gold for their money compared to gold coins. Another reason an investor may choose to invest in gold bars over gold coins is the ability of buying older bars with out paying for numismatic value. Gold coins and gold bars are both great ways to invest in gold; it is ultimately up to the investor if they choose to prefer one over the other.

Buy Gold Ingots, Is Gold Ingots A Good Investment

2009-02-09T20:41:00.000-08:00

Gold ingots are gold bars that are made by pouring molten gold into a mold. Gold ingots come in many different sizes from one gram to four hundred troy ounces. The smaller gold ingots are known as chip gold. Chip gold usually comes in a credit card like seal. This seal is one of the ways the manufacture of the ingot can authenticate it. It is recommended that you never remove the gold ingot from its credit card like seal.

Chip gold sizes usually range from one gram to twenty grams. Since chip gold comes in smaller sizes compared to other forms of gold bullion, it is more affordable for someone to purchase that doesn’t have a lot of capital to invest. The drawback with chip gold is that compared to larger bullion you are paying a higher mark up for manufacturing. Chip gold is only recommended if you can not afford the larger bullion but want some gold in case of an emergency.

Just like any other form of gold it is recommended that if you do decide to buy gold ingots that you research any company you buy from before you purchase. Gold is a good investment if you are looking to protect your wealth from inflation or any other economic downturn. Gold is also one of the easiest assets to liquidate when the time comes. With the advent of chip gold even if you don’t have a lot of money to invest there is still a way to purchase physical gold.

A Solution To The Economic Crisis

2009-02-07T04:11:00.000-08:00

The main reason for the economic crisis is central economic planning, central banking and fiat currency. Once these three things are in place, anything a nation does to try to fix the problem will ultimately fail. To the contrary of conventional thinking this is not a problem with the free market, no nation in the world has anything close to resembling a free market. Once a nation has a central bank, the ability to raise and lower taxes at will, a monopolistic control of the money supply, legal tender laws and fiat currency its economy is anything but free.

The solution is to abandon central economic planning, central banking and fiat currency. Ways of implementing this solution is not just to teardown the old system but to allow individuals to opt out of it. A way to opt out of the central banking system and the fiat currency system is to allow individuals to create independent and autonomous “bank” like entities; also to allow individuals the ability to issue their own currency once it’s back by their goods and services and valued in silver or gold. (Individuals would have the right to refuse to be paid in any currency they have not issued themselves).

To stop government from interfering with these two activities they should be both tax exempt and unregulated. The only exception is in the case of fraud which then it should be handle by the court system. These two activities being tax exempt and unregulated should always be caveat emptor "Let the buyer beware" or in this case let the user beware. It would be up to individuals to assess a business goods, services and practices before accepting its currency; also it would be up to individuals to assess a “bank” like entity services and practices before using them. As mention before in cases of fraud there is the court system but to save time and trouble caveat emptor.

The results of implementing this solution would be businesses having the ability to produce goods and services and create equity. Businesses would know longer depend on banks; banks would now depend on businesses. Another result of implementing this solution would be that “bank” like entities would compete with each other to be more open and transparent to show potential customers that their currency would be safe in their hands. This solution would revitalize local economies when local businesses circulate and accept each others currencies; also “bank” like entities would likely create debit cards to make online and off line shopping more convenient. The economic crisis would slowly dissipate and become a thing of the past with this permanent, innovative and most importantly free market solution.

For more in-depth details on this subject I would refer to two older posts Why The Gold Standard Is Not Enough and Why Everyone Should Be Able To Issue Currency , they are long reads but do go into great detail.

Gold And The Death Of Centralization

2009-02-06T02:30:00.000-08:00

Gold coins and gold bars for the pass eight years have been going up consecutively compared to the US dollar. Meanwhile The Federal Reserve is trying all the tricks they can to try to save its insolvent central banking system. What is being witness is the slow death of anything over grown and centralized. The reason for this is fiat money, fractional reserve banking, and central banking is not sustainable and never will be. Naturally any institution that benefited the most from this system or depend on it will also be affected by its slow demise.

Physical Gold and any other assets that can hold wealth even when the economic situation is deteriorating is some of the best ways to protect yourself. Centralization is one of the results of central banking. With central banking comes the growth of government and the overly dependence on government. The reason for this is when governments can borrow at will the people within government are usually tempted to use the power to borrow to “solve” problems that governments have no business solving.

Also with a fiat system any money that is borrowed or created is a tax on everyone through inflation. The institutions that have been prosperous artificially because of easy credit or government subsidies will have to find a way to produce real profits or become insolvent. With the climate of looking to government for help and not looking how to become independent of it, I think a lot of overgrown and overly centralized companies will not adapt but like most central banks reach their slow demise.

Why Everyone Should Be Able To Issue Currency

2009-02-05T07:30:00.000-08:00

As an advocate of allowing anyone to issue their own currency once that currency is backed by goods and services and valued in silver or gold, I see some people are reluctant to agree with this concept. The reason for this is the notion of others creating currency and not backing it by anything. In a free market where anyone can issue their own currency once it fits the criteria mention above and people are allowed to reject any currency they have not issued themselves; such a system would be for the most part self-regulating. Naturally like every other aspect of commerce if there is fraud involving private currency it should be resolved in a court of law. The reason a system like this would be self-regulating is the fact that it would be beneficial for any business or person to have the ability to use their inventory or man power as a liquid asset to acquire even more goods and services. The last thing a business or person would want is to have people reject their currency and have people accept their competition’s own. The disadvantage would mean the competition having the ability to expand and grow faster.

Some other reasons why people would be reluctant in allowing anyone to issue their own currency is the amount of different currencies that would be floating around. These currencies would be valued in silver or gold, so it would be fairly easy to compare them to each other. Also companies or private institutions would spring up that would rate or ask businesses to voluntary abide by certain guidelines in order to receive a stamp of approval or a certification for their currency. An example of a system like this is the privately owned Underwriters Laboratories Inc. and their testing and certification of products most of us used today. Other companies or private institutions that would spring up would document which businesses accept each others currencies.

Some last reasons why people would be reluctant in allowing anyone to issue their own currency is the thought that it would lead to inflation; the belief that government currency would be superior; the belief that gold or silver backed currency would be superior; the thought that a business would go out of business leaving people holding the bag; or the risk of counterfeiting. I will try my best to address all of these. The occurrence of inflation would be unlikely because these private currencies would be backed by something, also businesses would be limited to the amount and value of their goods and services they have or can produce pertaining to their worth in silver or gold . If a business or person did decide to issue more currency than the goods or services they have or can produce in a timely manner, two things would likely happen. One they would have to raise the prices of their goods or services to soak up the extra currency, or two have long lines or empty shelves. Both scenarios would hurt the business in the long run and allowed their competition an advantage.

The aspect of believing that government, gold or silver backed currency would be superior can be answered with one answer. If anyone believes a certain type of currency to be superior they can refuse to be paid in anything other than the currency they trust. Governments would just lose the ability of forcing people to use government currency if they wish not to. The availability of gold and silver backed currencies should be widespread because of mining companies. If mining companies issued their own currencies there is a good chance that it would be backed by what they mined, so gold and silver backed currencies would also be in circulation. The risk of businesses going out of business and leaving people holding the bag can be alleviated by the court system or insurance. Also because of the fact that the currencies are backed by something, if the business is honest it will satisfy its currency before it closes up shop for good. Compare this to the scenario of an entire nation’s currency collapsing where alleviating the situation is much more difficult to say the least.

Last but not lease the risk of counterfeiting. The risk of counterfeiting would be reduce because businesses would be able to use their own authentication techniques and also be able to know the serial numbers of all the currency that they issued that is in circulation. Allowing anyone to issue their own currency once that currency is backed by goods and services and valued in silver or gold is in reality less risky than it sounds, in fact it is less risky than the fiat system most nations have in place today.

Underneath is the amendment that would list how a nation can go about allowing anyone to issue their own currency once that currency is backed by goods and services and valued in silver or gold. (Note I don’t believe rights are given by government but are given by God).

Amendment 28

Every corporation and person with a good or service shall have the right to issue their own currency back by their goods and services. This currency must be valued in silver or gold and must be treated as legal tender by the corporation or person who has issued the currency. Any corporation or person shall have the right to refuse the payment of any currency they have not issued their selves. No government, corporation or person shall have the right to stop a corporation or person from issuing currency once that currency is back by their goods and services and valued in silver or gold. If a corporation or person issues currency and do not have the goods or services to back it, the corporation or person's assets must be seize and given to the holder or holders of the currency until the currency value is fulfilled. If a corporation or person issues currency and do not have the goods or services to back its currency because of natural disaster or fire, that corporation or person shall have thirty years to fulfill the currency. If a person dies or a corporation is disbanded assets from that person or corporation must be given to the holder or holders of the currency until the value of the currency is fulfilled. No government shall tax currency issued by a person or corporation in anyway.

Gold, Limited Government And A Sustainable Economy

2009-02-04T00:23:00.000-08:00

Gold and other precious metals usually becomes the default choice when societies have the freedom to choose their money. The reason for this is people tend to do things for their own best self-interests. You will never find in history a society willfully using fiat currency without governmental force. Today most governments use fiat currency and through legal tender laws and central banking force their citizens to adopt this to their own disadvantage. With gold and other precious metals governments are limited on how fast and how big they can grow. With fiat currency governments can inflate the money supply and grow too large.

Also when governments inflate the money supply it usually has ramifications on the economy. One ramification is the prices of goods and services increasing. With this price increase so does the cost of living; which in turn brings down the standard of living. Another ramification is businesses that made more profits before the price increase tend to expand or take on more expenses than they normally would have, then when prices increase those businesses take a big loss.

Gold and other forms of honest money is one of the best tools to help keep governments limited and to keep an economy growing stable and sustainable. Gold and honest money by itself is not enough to keep an economy stable and sustainable but is one of the best tools that can help. Other tools that can help are low and stable taxes where taxes do not fluctuate too often, no central banking and no legal tender laws. Gold and other precious metals when freely used as money not only can help keep governments limited but help society grow sustainable as a whole.

Gold And The Future Of Money

2009-02-03T01:05:00.000-08:00

When I see governments all around the world trying everything in their power to prop up failing systems or ideas like central banking, fiat currency, legal tender laws, and even the attempts of trying to control the economy, it is disturbing to say the least. If you have read my older post Why The Gold Standard Is Not Enough, You will know that I am not an advocate of a government gold backed currency but an advocate of privately issued currencies by everyone, once it is backed by goods or services and valued in silver or gold. That being said I do acknowledge the supremacy of Gold and Silver as money in the past and likely the future.

With governments around the world seeing themselves as the solution to the economic crisis and not the cause of it, they will continue to use more governmental intervention in the economy to the detriment of their true masters their citizens. What is breaking down is the myth that central control of something is superior to a decentralized smaller more responsive approach. If we take a look at most of the institutions that are failing they are the institutions that benefited the most from easy available credit because of the unsustainable dishonest central banking system.

I believe the future of money will be tied to gold and silver and be decentralized. With the growth of the internet and the transfer of information becoming easier and more innovative; it will be a matter of time before most people will be able to anonymously trade digital representations of resources that no person or government will be able to track or tax. Since gold and silver has a reputation of holding purchasing power and a universal acceptance it will be likely to be denominated in one or both.

Governments will likely use excuses of illegal activities or tax evasion to try their best to discourage this activity. Just like how pirating music movies books or software can not be stop by governments; anonymously trading of resources or representations of resources will also be problematic for governments to stop. Something like this can be a double edged sword because of its potential misuses but will also be a way of trading cheaply and privately. All in all if something like this does become widespread it is in my humble opinion it will be more honest and ethical than the central banking system most nations have in placed today.

What Gives Gold Its Value

2009-01-31T03:17:00.000-08:00

What gives gold its value is what gives anything its value, which is desired work. If something took a little bit of desired work to obtain, it would be perceived by most people as less valuable than something that took a lot of desired work to obtain. Gold not only takes a lot of desired work to obtain but because of gold’s properties it is one of the best mediums of storing, holding, combining and dividing desired work. Desired work is wealth. If something is widely desired but takes little work to obtain most people would not trade a lot of desired work i.e. wealth for it, an example is a glass of water. Also if something is not widely desired but takes a lot of work to obtain most people still would not trade a lot of desired work for it, an example is a ton of sand.

What makes something valuable to an individual is how much they desire it plus how much work they perceive it would take to obtain it. Since every individual has different desires and different perceptions at any given time, value is something that is subjective and not objective. That being said what made individuals over the span of millenniums and even today desired gold? To answer this question you would have to ask each individual why they desired gold.

Some reasons why people desire gold is its beauty (gold has been used as jewelry, decorations and art by many different cultures and civilizations); its uniformity (pure gold is the same in quality, weight, color, no matter where or when it was mined); its durability (gold does not rust, tarnish or age); its fluidity (gold can be combined, divided and easily shape); its quantity (gold is not too rare that it takes too much desired work to obtain but not too common that it takes too little desired work to obtain); its portability (gold is a practical way to carry a large amount of desired work i.e. wealth in a small package); its reputation (gold has a dependable track record of storing and holding desired work i.e. wealth over time). Any of these reasons can be why an individual may desire gold. Also the properties that gold have makes it an ideal medium of exchange. So the answer to the question what gives gold its value is individuals desire for it and the work it takes to obtain it.

Will Gold Go Up Or Down

2009-01-29T21:53:00.001-08:00

To predict what gold is going to do in the future is to have certainty of all aspects of human actions. It is impossible for someone to know what the price of gold is going to do from time to time. The best someone can do is to learn from the past to give them some clues on what gold is likely to do. That is what I will attempt to do. All fiat currencies become worthless in less than one hundred years. The world got off of the Bretton Woods system in the year 1971. This means if no government ties its currency to something physical they all will become worthless before 2071.

Today we are having an economic crisis and governments/central banks are creating more money to prop up insolvent businesses. From a first glance most people will look at this and say this should make the price of gold skyrocket. One thing that is over looked is banks are not loaning out as much as they did in the past. Banks when they loan out money create more currency (credit digital money) than central banks. Since banks have tightened up their loaning practices because of fears of people or businesses defaulting, the money supply is not growing as fast as real wealth (desired work/goods and services). This means prices will stay the same or fall.

Now what I see is people suggesting that governments force banks to lend. I predict when this happens and banks are force to lend for taking money from the government, this will be an inflationary disaster. The money that was used to prop up insolvent businesses will now be used with the fractional reserve system forcing the price of gold and everything up. When I say everything I mean everything even houses. People who manage to keep there jobs will see more of their money going to food and energy because of higher prices. So my prediction is gold will go up but don’t look for it to go up significantly until governments force banks to lend. I hope that I am wrong but this is what I think is likely to happen.

Collecting Gold Coins Old And Rare

2009-01-28T21:09:00.001-08:00

Collecting old or rear gold coins can be an outstanding hobby or investment. There are some things you should know before ever buying gold coins for the purpose of building numismatic value. One thing you should know is the past performance of the coin or coins ability to build numismatic value. Some other things you should know is the rarity and age of any gold coin you are looking to buy. With numismatic gold coins the price of a coin can change depending on what year it was minted. Usually the older a coin is the more it will appreciate compared to similar newer minted gold coins.

It is important to research as much information on a particular coin to know what kind and what date of that gold coin you are interested in. Some gold coins have special kinds of coins called proof coins. Proof coins are struck with specially treated dies and usually double struck for a more detailed and mirror like finish. These coins are usually more expensive and rarer then its generic counterpart. Also some gold coins are only struck as proof sets.

The spot price of gold usually has little to no effect on the price of numismatic gold coins. The reason for this is that numismatic gold coins are worth more than its weight in gold. In some rare cases if the spot price of gold moves up or down significantly it can affect newer and less rear numismatic gold coins. As in the case of any gold you buy it is recommended that you research the company you buy your coins from before purchasing. Also if any of your numismatic coins come in a protective case it is recommended that you never remove from that case. Collecting gold coins can be a profitable hobby or investment if you research and know the right kinds and right price of coins to buy.

Deregulation Of Banks, The Myths About The Economic Crisis

2009-01-27T21:29:00.000-08:00

From time to time I read or hear people blaming the economic crisis on the deregulation of banks or the free market. I understand some people heard this on T.V. or on the Web but it can’t be further from the truth. Most banks in most nations are not free or deregulated; most are controlled by a central bank. In fact if you wanted to start up a gold bullion bank where you don’t charge interest and don’t practice the act of fractional reserve banking, in most cases it would be impossible. The reason for it being impossible is not because a business model of a gold bullion bank is impractical; it is because the central banks which get its power from government don’t like anything to remotely threaten its monopolistic control over most banks.

Let me give an analogy. Imagine there was a nation where every cookie factory was regulated by a central cookie factory. The central factory told every cookie factory what and how much ingredients to put. Then one day the central factory loosened up one of its rules when it comes to the ingredients. The rule was you are now allowed to put as much sugar as you like. Since sugar being one of the expensive ingredients, most factories used less of it and started making horrible cookies. Can someone in this case say it was the lack of regulation and the free market that made the horrible cookies? Can someone say if a cookie company was not regulated and used its own ingredients those cookies would always be horrible?

This is the same thing like blaming the economic crisis on the lack of regulations on banks or the free market. The only difference is in this analogy the operation of the central cookie factory is somewhat sustainable. Now imagine the central factory dictating to all factories on how much cookies they can make. No matter how much profits or losses each factory has, they must make the same amount of cookies. What do you think will happen? Factories will go out of business because of making too much or too little cookies compared to the profits or losses they make. Now I will make a list on some of the regulations most banks have on them.

1. Must use fiat currency (Gold coins or Gold bars are out of the question and with fiat currency banks have to use it as soon as possible or lose profits through inflation.)

2. Fractional reserve banking (Must lend out more money than they have/ create money out of thin air.)

3. Interest rates are somewhat uniformed. (If a bank has to used the central bank or other banks to get currency they can not have interest rates too low or will take a loss.)

4. Give out risky loans or face penalties. (This is becoming less of a rule these days but was emplaced nonetheless.)

So the reason for the economic crisis is not the lack of regulations or the free market. In fact it’s the opposite. What mainly caused the economic crisis are three things. 1. The lack of real competition in the banking sector. 2. The unsustainable use of fiat currency. And 3. The Central control of the banking system. All three can be put at the foot of government and not the free market.

Gold As A Hedge Against Inflation

2009-01-26T14:20:00.000-08:00

There are many reasons why gold is a hedge against inflation. One reason is gold is one of the best mediums of storing desired work i.e. wealth. It takes desired work to mined gold, since this is true there is a limit on the amount of gold that can be mine at any given time. With this limitation and the aspects of less profits for mining companies if the price of gold goes down or more profits and more incentive to mined more if the price of gold goes up, keeps the purchasing power of gold relatively stable.

Fiat government currencies on the other hand all have a trend of losing purchasing power over time. With inflation the number or quality of goods and services you can acquire over time with the same amount of currency is drastically diminished. This is one of the main reasons why some investors are interested in gold. If looking to invest in gold as a hedge against inflation it is recommended to invest in gold bullion. With gold bullion you will get the most physical gold for your money. Gold bullion is gold coins and bars that are usually a little above spot price.

When investing in gold as a hedge against inflation it is recommended that you stay away from numismatic or proof coins. The reason for this is these coins are seen as collector’s items and will usually be significantly above spot price. These coins also will require additional attentive research to know if you are getting a fair price. With gold bullion once you know the spot price and know what similar coins are selling for it can give you some idea of a fair price. Investing in gold is one of the best ways to protect your wealth against inflation or any other economic downturns a society might face.

Gold As A Safe Haven

2009-01-23T21:34:00.000-08:00

Gold historically and practically has always been a safe haven from inflation or any economic downturns. The reason for this is gold is one of the best mediums to hold and protect desired work i.e. wealth. Gold unlike fiat government currency has shown to have a track record to outlast even the governments that issued them, when it comes to gold coins. Assets like stocks and bonds usually become worthless when the entity that issued them becomes insolvent. With today’s economic uncertainties physical gold and other precious metals have reclaimed their title as the last safe haven.

If you are looking to invest in gold as a safe haven it is recommended that you invest in physical gold bullion. It is also recommended that you take physical possession of any gold that you purchase. The reason I recommend this is if you invest in gold stocks or gold ETFs you are putting your trust that those businesses are solvent and practicing good accounting standards. With physical gold the price can fluctuate up and down but it will never become worthless because of human action. With most governments inflating their money supply in a futile attempt to save insolvent “too big to fail” businesses; what they are doing in reality whether they realize it or not is encouraging malinvestments and secretly taxing anyone who holds that currency through inflation.

Historically no fiat currency has lasted for more than one hundred years. With the world abandoning the gold standard with the collapse of the Bretton Woods system in 1971; I will make a bold prediction that none, not one government currency will last to see 2071 unless they become backed by some real physical assets. One of the best ways to protect your wealth from a collapsing government currency is to have real physical assets. This is why gold economically will always be a safe haven.

Where To Sell Gold Coins Or Bars

2009-01-22T18:38:00.000-08:00

Many people who are new to investing in gold or looking to invest in gold usually have the same common questions. One of these questions is where to sell gold coins or bars. The answer to this question depends on if you are looking just to sell your gold or you are looking to try to get the highest price for your gold. If you’re looking just to sell your gold or just looking for a place to sell gold when the time comes; I would recommend selling it back to the business you bought the gold from in the first place. Most businesses that sell gold usually also buy gold, also since you bought it from them chances is that the gold you want to sell will be the kind they buy. This way you will not have to research if a business is interested in buying the kind of gold coins or bars you want to sell.

If you’re looking to get top price for your gold coins or bars you will have to do some research to see what places or sites are offering the highest price. If you do find a site it is important you understand and read the instructions about shipping gold to them. The last thing you want is some misunderstanding and end up inconvenience or worst losing your gold. It is recommended that if you do ship your gold to a company, that you only ship it through Certified Mail. With Certified Mail there will have proof of mailing and proof of delivery. Usually the person will have to sign in order to take possession of Certified Mail.

If you don’t think that any place or site is offering you enough for your gold coins or bars, another option is to sell your gold yourself using an auction site. If you do decide to sell your gold this way it is important that you put a reserve price on any gold you sell. With a reserve price if no one bids up to or higher than your reserve price, you are not obligated to sell your gold. Gold is one of the easiest assets to liquidate and with the right knowledge you will always have an answer to the question, where to sell gold coins or bars.

The Paradox Of An Economy, Wealth And Gold

2009-01-21T22:09:00.000-08:00

Explaining what is an economy is a paradox, the reason why I say this is it is both simple and yet complex. The simple part is describing what a true economy simply is. An economy is the trade of desired work. No matter what you produce, cultivate, or perform it takes desired work to create any good or service. If something did not take any desired work to produce, cultivate, or perform it would be virtually free or impossible to obtain. When you work for someone you are trading desired work for desired work. Your employer sees the desired work that you perform as equal or more valuable than the desired work (or medium that holds desired work) that they give you in return; and hopefully you see the desired work you perform as equal or less valuable than the desired work you get in return.

There is no real way to objectively measure the value of any given desired work. The reason why I say this is if you see an object for sale and you think the price is too high; you see the value of the amount of money it takes to buy the object as more valuable than the object. On the other hand a another person may see the same object and think it is a good deal; that person will see the value of the amount of money it takes to buy the object as less valuable than the object itself. Who is right you or the other person, there is know right or wrong; just like beauty value is in the eye of the beholder.

Now to show how gold ties in to all of this, if you are working for someone and you start to think that you are giving more in desired work than you are able to trade your money for, you will usually do one or two things. One thing you might do is ask for a raise or two look for job with better pay. With fiat currency the above scenario is more likely then if the currency was backed by something like gold. Because of inflation the amount of desired work you could trade your money for becomes less and less overtime in relation to the amount of fiat currency. With gold the price of objects can fluctuate, but history has proven the desired work you could trade it for would not have a long term downward trend like all fiat currencies.

The reason for this is gold has been proven to be one of the best mediums to hold, store, divide, and combine desired work. That is what money is a medium to hold, store, divide, and combine desired work. Since it takes desired work to mine more gold there is a limit on how much new gold that can be introduced to a system at any given time. There is no such limit when it comes to fiat currency. Without this limit fiat currency in all cases becomes less and less able to trade for desired work until it can not trade for it at all. Like I stated above money is a medium to hold, store, divide, and combine desired work. If you can not trade fiat currency for desired work it becomes useless as money. In fact all fiat currencies become useless as money in less than one hundred years. In conclusion the paradox of an economy is both simple and yet complex. Also any place you see the words desired work you can replace it with wealth because they are one and the same.

Why Buy Gold

2009-01-20T18:15:00.000-08:00

Why buy gold is a good question for any one who is not familiar with the aspects that make gold a good investment. Gold has and will always be money. The reason for this is gold has properties that other investments don’t have. If you have physical gold the cost is next to nothing to store it. Gold is an investment that does not take any money to maintain it. One other aspect of gold is that it is the same once it is pure, no matter what time or what place it was mined. Gold has the ability to be combined, separated and does not rust or tarnish.

Another aspect to answer the question why buy gold first you must know and understand what wealth is. Desired work is wealth. Any good or service takes desired work to perform, create, or cultivate. Gold has been proven throughout history to be one of the best mediums to store, combine or separate desired work i.e. wealth. Since gold takes desired work to mined, it only takes wealth to produce more gold. Also this means that there is a limit on how much gold that can be mined in any given time.

One last aspect to answer the question why buy gold, is to preserve your wealth. History has shown that if anyone had gold and passed it on to their progeny (Barring losing or spending it all) it would still be able to trade for anything that is for sale once you have enough gold. Last but not least gold will always be worth something. If you invest in the wrong stock or have the wrong government fiat currency you can lose your wealth over night. In conclusion I hope this answers the main question why buy gold.

The Gold Standard, The Great Depression And Today’s Economic Troubles

2009-01-19T23:20:00.000-08:00

Many people who would like to rewrite history would like you to believe one of two things; the great depression happen because of the gold standard or that if we had a gold standard in place today we would not have any economic troubles. The Great Depression did not happen because of the gold standard, the great depression happened despite of it. What caused the great depression is the same thing that is causing today’s economic troubles, central economic planning.

If every nation had a gold standard in place but they still had central economic planning, having a world wide economic crisis would not be out of the question. (For an in-depth post about this I will refer to: Why The Gold Standard Is Not Enough). To believe a person or a group of people can “run” the economy and plan it to make it operate better than it normally would without intervention has been proven to be wrong over and over again. Today we are witnessing this belief being proven wrong once again (hopefully for the last time).

A group of people no matter how smart they are can not know how much currency a system needs, how to set interest rates if any or what businesses are more important than others. The gold standard is a good tool but it is not the be all and end all to today’s economic troubles. I believe the economic troubles will continue until the belief that central economic planning is some how superior to a true free market (no legal tender laws, central banks, and government manipulation). Unlike many I am optimistic that many will come to this conclusion sooner rather than later.

The Gold Standard, And How To Fix The Economic Crisis

2009-01-16T20:36:00.000-08:00

I believe what we are witnessing with the economic crisis is the breakdown of something that someone who subscribes to corporatism or socialism both despise. That thing is the failure of centralization. If you believe that the government should be used to “help the poor by taxing businesses they already have more than enough” or “tax money should be used to keep businesses strong because the more jobs we have the less poor there will be”; I think will not like how I believe we could fix the economic crisis. We can fix the economic crisis not just by implementing a gold standard but to do something even more radical. I propose we look to decentralization for the answer. We should decentralize the banking system and the monetary system. For my main reasons why I propose something so radical I refer to an older post: Why The Gold Standard Is Not Enough . A gold standard can help but it also can be manipulated. I hope the economic crisis can be fixed but I have a bad feeling governments around the world think they are the ones to fix it.

How To Form A Dynasty Using Gold

2009-01-16T09:58:00.000-08:00

This is a method that was used for centuries for a family to build and keep wealth over time. Before you implement any of these things you must assess your family members and see if your family is responsible enough to not let wealth come between them. This just like any other thing that can give you wealth or power, can be a double edge sword that can bring your family together or split them apart. I say this as a sincere warning and not hype. The first thing your family must do is save. The trick is not to save in any government currency, but to save in preferably gold bullion. Gold has had a track record for six thousand years of holding wealth; no government currency has never even come close.

Your family must pick an annual date. This date must be known and agreed upon by everyone who is participating. On this annual date everyone in the family who is old enough and capable of saving up a one troy ounce gold bullion coin should give the coins to one entrusted person. It is important that multiple people in the family keep a record on how much coins that person has entrusted to them. All records must agree. These one troy ounce gold bullion coins will belong to no one personally; it must belong to the family. Some rules should be understand and agreed upon with everyone who is participating.

For ease of description from now on I will refer to these gold bullion coins as the family pot. The family pot must only be used to acquire or build physical assets that will go up in value over time. These assets must be able to generate profits residually as soon as possible. Some examples of this are to start or buy a business, rental property, or any physical thing that can generate profits residually. The majority of the family must agree on who should borrow from the family pot.

To borrow from the family pot a person must be current on all the annual payments and must show that they will acquire or build a physical asset that will generate profits residually. That person or that persons progeny will not be able to borrow again until all the gold they borrowed is repaid to the family pot. If that person is successful in building or acquiring a physical asset that will generate profits residually, that person must share the knowledge in detail on how exactly they did it with anyone who is current in the annual payments. Also this person must share any contacts that help them accomplish their goal of building or acquiring a physical asset that generates profits residually. If anyone is to use this knowledge they must not set up a business too close to the original person to avoid the act of competing with the original person. The original person must have a say on if they think someone is setting up a business too close.

If anyone makes any improvements to a business or acquires a new contact that makes them more profits, that knowledge must be shared with anyone who is current in the annual payments if useful to them. A person can not ask for the gold they contributed to the family pot if for any reason they decide not to participate anymore. If someone passes away, half of their assets that are not part of their profit generating business must be converted to gold bullion coins and become a part of the family pot. If a business is to be sold half of the assets must be converted to gold bullion coins and become a part of the family pot. On the annual date everyone should do an audit on the family pot to make sure it matches everyone’s records.

The person entrusted with the family pot is fully responsible for any discrepancies with the family pot and everyone’s records. The person entrusted with the family pot is responsible for any amount missing even if it’s outside their fault. In the case of any amount missing from the family pot, the person entrusted with the family pot must buy back any missing gold. If the person entrusted to the family pot does not buy back the gold that person will lose the privilege of borrowing from the family pot for their self and their progeny until the gold is bought back. The person who is entrusted with the family pot will lose the role of being entrusted if any amount is missing from the family pot. Anyone who is to participate will have to agree to abide with all the rules.

If any family does these things they will not only build wealth but keep wealth; which is a genuine trait of a Dynasty. Some things you can do to keep your Dynasty strong is getting out and staying out of debt. Find the quickest way to make your business passive. If you hire a good staff to do everything you will have more free time to start up more businesses. Keep your business or businesses private, you can grow your businesses faster if you go public but you can also one day lose control of them. Keep your businesses out of debt; and last but not least, start businesses that genuinely makes people's lives better by selling goods or services that are useful to them, no matter how small or great it might be.

Is Gold A Good Investment

2009-01-14T18:23:00.000-08:00

To answer the question is gold a good investment, it is important to know what you are looking for in an investment. If you’re looking for an investment where the risk of losing all of you’re money is low and it does not take any additional funds to maintain, gold may be the best investment for you. Also it is important to know if you are looking to invest long term or short term. If you a looking to invest in a long term basis; physical gold would be a good investment for you. Gold is an ideal investment if your main reason for investing is to preserve your wealth. Gold is unique when it comes to portability and ease of storage.

If your main goal of investing is wealth preservation, I would recommend gold bullion. Gold bullion consists of gold coins or gold bars that are usually a little above spot price. If your main goal of investing is building wealth over a long period of time, I would recommend numismatic coins. Before investing in numismatic coins it is important to do your research and know witch coins tend to build numismatic value over time.

If you are looking for something that can make you money investing in gold without having to store physical gold, you can invest in gold stocks or gold ETFs. The downside to this is if you invest in the wrong stocks you can lose money even if physical gold goes up in price. My recommendation is if you want to invest in gold it is best to take possession of the physical metal. The best answer to the question is gold a good investment can only be answered by knowing what a person is looking for in an investment.

The Coming Gold Jubilee?

2009-01-13T21:09:00.000-08:00

I am almost reluctant to write about this, but this is a scenario that has been popping up in my head from time to time. What is the gold jubilee you may ask; it is one of the scenarios that can play out with a worldwide financial and currency collapse. If you know or understand how most governments (counterfeit) “create” money by selling government securities to its central bank, you will know these securities or bonds are back by tax revenue. What happens when because of inflation or deflation that the tax revenue is not enough to sell and governments don’t have enough to function? The securities and the currency become worthless.

Now that securities and the currency in this scenario are worthless anything that is back by securities and that currency that does not have real assets backing it be comes worthless. At this point you may think I am just rambling on but I must show how the dominoes in this scenario falls one after each other. Most governments use other nation securities to back some of there own currency. If a significant amount of those securities become worthless then that nation’s currency becomes worthless. Now for the big domino the derivatives market which is almost 65 trillion dollars.

Wealth which I stated many times before is desired work and can not be destroyed only if real goods (things that took desired work to make or cultivate) and services (actions and tools that takes desired work to perform) are destroyed. Since a financial and currency worldwide collapse will not destroy real tangible assets; all the preserved wealth that was in debt instruments like fiat currency, derivatives, bonds, and securities will rush into gold coins, gold bars or any real tangible asset. A scenario like this may be unlikely but not impossible to occur. The gold jubilee part comes in when people come to the realization that any debt they had is denominated in a currency that is now virtually worthless and their tangible assets can pay it off a hundred times fold.

Invest In Physical Gold Or Paper Gold

2009-01-12T16:59:00.001-08:00

I am an advocate of investing in physical gold. The main reason for this preference is my goal of investing in gold is wealth preservation. If my investment in physical gold gives me a return then that’s a bonus. I know some people who invest usually invest for the highest return. Investing in gold is like any other investment when it comes to the aspect of risk to reward. Usually the more risk you take the more reward you will have a chance of getting. Investing in physical gold (gold that you have in your possession) is less risky than paper gold (gold stocks, ETFs, mining stocks, anything that the physical metal is not in your possession).

The only way to know if to invest in physical gold or paper gold is to know your main reason of investing and how much risk you are willing to take. The good thing about physical gold is even if gold goes down significantly, you will never lose all your money overnight. Physical gold will always have value to it. The downside is if physical gold goes up and your main goal was getting the highest return, chances is you would probably of gotten a higher return if you invested in the right forms of paper gold.

Paper gold can usually give you a higher rate of return compared to physical gold. The downside to this is if you invest in the wrong companies you can lose money even if physical gold goes up. The true answer to the question, invest in physical gold or paper gold is up to the individual. If you can’t make up your mind you can always invest in both. The most important part is that you do your research and know if your investments coincide with your main reason of investing in the first place.

What Kind Of Gold Coins To Buy

2009-01-09T20:52:00.000-08:00

What kind of gold coins to buy is the kind of question that can only be answered if you know the main reason you are buying gold coins. If your main reason for buying gold coins is to protect your wealth and not to collect rear or numismatic coins, I have some tips and suggestions for you. When wealth preservation from inflation is your main gold it is recommended to stick to gold bullion. It is also recommended to buy gold bullion coins that are minted in, or if not a close by country that you intend to liquidate. Bullion coins are coins that are usually a little above spot price (if they are one troy ounce coins). The reason they are above spot price is because of the cost of manufacturing the coin. Bullion coins will always have the amount of gold it contains stated on it. It is also recommended that you stay away from proof coins. The reason for this is proof coins are considered collectibles and will have a higher mark up than its generic counterpart. Proof coins are coins that are struck with specially treated dies and will have a more polish mirror like finish.

Here is a list of bullion coins, the country of origin and the purity of the coin. These are the only coins that I know to be considered as bullion coins, so if you’re looking to buy a coin that is not on the list chances is it’s not considered as a bullion coin.

South African Krugerrand, 22 karat, pure .9167

Canadian Gold Maple Leaf, 24 karat, pure .999

American Gold Eagle, 22 karat, pure .9167

American Buffalo, 24 karat, pure .9999

Mexican Gold Libertad, 24 karat, pure .999

Austrian Vienna Philharmonic, 24 karat, pure .999

Australian Nugget Kangaroo, 24 karat, pure .999

Why Gold Is Money

2009-01-08T15:34:00.000-08:00

Gold has been used as money throughout history for many reasons. Some of these reasons are gold’s ability to preserve, store, combine, and divide wealth. As I have stated in my previous post wealth is desired work. In order for money to serve its intended purpose it must be the best if not one of the best mediums of storing, preserving, combining, and dividing desired work i.e. wealth. This medium must also take desired work to obtain it in the first place. The reason why gold is money, is because gold possesses all five of these criteria. This is where fiat currency fails.

Since it doesn’t take desired work to create more fiat currency there is no limit on the amount that can be created at any given time. This is why no fiat currency ever lasted for more than one hundred years. Gold on the other hand has a natural built in process to regulate it if there is too much or too little gold in circulation. If there is too little gold in circulation the purchasing power of gold will go up and mining will be more profitable. This will in turn cause more gold to be mined. If there is too much gold in circulation the purchasing power will go down and mining will be less profitable; causing less gold to be mined. If there is a population boom there will be more people to do desired work, which in turn means the purchasing power of gold will go up and mining will be more profitable. If there is a population bust the opposite will occur.

This natural regulation causes the gold supply to in real time correct itself and seek an ever changing and unknowable equilibrium. This is what makes gold more sophisticated and more resilient than fiat currency and central banking. No matter what information a central bank may have it will never be able to mimic the natural regulation of the gold supply, it is just too sophisticated. These are some of the reasons why gold is, and barring an act of God will always be money.

Where is Gold Found

2009-01-05T22:16:00.000-08:00

Gold is found in a lot of places around the world, but the top four nations to the question where is gold found is South Africa , Australia, China and the United States. In South Africa the place that has the most concentrate of gold is The Witwatersrand Basin also known as the Rand. The Rand has the world’s largest reserves of gold. More than 30% of the world’s gold came from the Rand. The place in Australia that has the most concentrate of gold is Western Australia, The nation's largest state. The place in China that has the most concentrate of gold is Shandong, which names means east of the mountain. The place in the United States that has the most concentrate of gold is Nevada, the seventh largest state in the United States. These places can change overtime when gold mines become depleted or if new or more productive mines are found. Some things that can affect the production of gold mines are the price of gold. If the price of gold becomes too low some mining companies will stop producing new mines or shut down old ones that are not profitable. If gold prices are too high mining companies will produce new mines or scale up production in older mines. This is one way how gold relative purchasing power stays constant throughout so many millennia because of this unknowable equilibrium in gold production.

Where is Gold Found Top 10 Nations

1. China
2. South Africa
3. United States
4. Australia
5. Indonesia
6. Peru
7. Russia
8. Canada
9. Papau New Guinea
10. Ghana

Value of gold coins, What is wealth

2009-01-03T07:15:00.000-08:00

From time to time I see many who are opposed to gold as an investment or money, challenge the value of gold coins or gold for that matter. They make statements like "what gives gold value because it’s shiny?" or "in the 80s gold was like $800 an ounce and that is about what it is right now, if you would of own the Dow you would of made more money." There are many flaws in these two statements. The reason for this is because a lot of people don’t know what wealth is. I don’t fault them because there are many so call economist with a PhD that don’t know the same.

When I say wealth I don’t mean the things that wealth can get you or the things that hold wealth, but wealth itself. What is wealth? You ask; work that is desired is wealth. If a person has money and for some reason can’t use that money to get people to do desired work or get people to trade objects that took desired work to produce; and that’s all that person has that person does not have any wealth. On the other hand if a person has no money but for some reason can get people to willingly do desired work or get people to willingly give them objects that took desired work to produce; As long as that person can get people to willingly do these things, that person has wealth.

Now for the two statements gold has value because it is one of the best ways to store desired work i.e. wealth; and if a stock trades for lower than a dollar for a significant amount of time it is delisted from the Dow. If you owned one of those delisted stocks I bet you would see why parking your money in the Dow is not all its cracked up to be. Some of the value of gold coins comes from the properties of gold. It takes desired work to get gold out of the ground. Some aspects of that desired work is finding it because it is rare, mining it, transporting it, and shaping it. That desired work and gold’s ability to store, preserve, combine, and divide desired work gives gold and gold coins its timeless value.

Buying Gold Bullion, How To Buy Gold Bullion

2008-12-22T09:07:00.000-08:00

Why The Gold Standard Is Not Enough

2008-12-17T08:11:00.000-08:00

As an advocate of money backed by something, I see many people who think all we need is the gold standard and most of the economic problems would be a thing of the past. The problem with this thinking is it gives ammunition to the Keynesians, Monetarists or any other Schools of economic thought that studied the Great Depression. I know you’ll say one of the main catalysts for the Roaring Twenties and then the Great Depression was the new fed manipulation of the money supply. I know, you’re preaching to the choir. What I am saying is that we also need to focus on how to take away all the tools the government or any quasi governmental organization has that can manipulate the economy. If you’re reading this and you think an organization or organizations manipulating the economy is a good thing; with the chain of recent events, I believe there is nothing I or anyone for that matter can say to change your mind. Fiat currency is one of four arrows that these organizations have in their quiver. We must not fall for the trap of only focusing on one; we must look at all four of them. That’s what I will attempt to do with this post.

The First Arrow is fiat currency; with fiat currency the purchasing power tends to evaporate over time. In fact history shows no fiat currency has a lifespan for more than one hundred years, they all become worthless in less than that. The Bretton Woods system collapsed in 1971, as for a lot of opponents to gold back money it is not as archaic as you may think. When the purchasing power of a currency tends to evaporate it takes away the incentive for long term savings. It also slowly and painfully wipes away the middle class. This is why it takes two or more working people to equate the lifestyle that one could have provided not too long ago.

The Second Arrow is raising and lowering of taxes. By having a direct tax on labor or anything for that matter; an organization can cause the boom and bust cycle by simply raising and lowering taxes. By doing this the people who determine when to raise and lower will have inside information on when to buy, sell or short, when to invest or not to invest. It gives them an incentive to manipulate the tax rate, its away to invest with little to no risk. In fact if there was a gold standard, no central bank and competing private currencies, but the government had the power to raise and lower taxes at will, we would still have the boom and bust cycle no matter what form of taxation system we had in place.

The Third Arrow is legal tender laws. With legal tender laws an organization can control how much currency is in circulation by allowing a lot or a little of the currency at any given point of time to be printed or minted. This can also cause the boom and bust cycle. As I discuss above if something can give an organization the ability to create a boom or a bust the people in that organization will use it for financial gain. If there was a gold standard, but only the government or any quasi governmental organization’s coins and certificates had legal tender status they would still be able to manipulate the economy for their own benefit.

The Fourth Arrow is central banking. By having an organization control all the banks they can tighten or loosen up the rules to cause the boom and bust cycle. Some ways they can do this is by allowing banks to keep more reserves or not. If banks have to keep more money in reserve they will loan out less, compared to if they don’t have to keep a large reserve. Even if we had a gold standard with no fractional reserve banking, but we had a central bank that controlled interest rates, that central bank still would be able to cause the boom and bust cycle. Some ways they can do this is by setting interest rates high. By setting interest rates high it would cause more people to save and cause less people to invest. Another thing they can do is set interest rates low which would cause the opposite. For a nation to have a truly free economy all four of these arrows must be broken.

In the bottom I have put two amendments that I believe would break all four arrows.

Amendment 28

Every corporation and person with a good or service shall have the right to issue their own currency back by their goods and services. This currency must be valued in silver or gold and must be treated as legal tender by the corporation or person who has issued the currency. Any corporation or person shall have the right to refuse the payment of any currency they have not issued their selves. No government, corporation or person shall have the right to stop a corporation or person from issuing currency once that currency is back by their goods and services and valued in silver or gold. If a corporation or person issues currency and do not have the goods or services to back it, the corporation or person's assets must be seize and given to the holder or holders of the currency until the currency value is fulfilled. If a corporation or person issues currency and do not have the goods or services to back its currency because of natural disaster or fire, that corporation or person shall have thirty years to fulfill the currency. If a person dies or a corporation is disbanded assets from that person or corporation must be given to the holder or holders of the currency until the value of the currency is fulfilled. No government shall tax currency issued by a person or corporation in anyway.

Amendment 29

Any person or corporation can create an entity known as a stockhouse. A stockhouse can be created under contractual law and independent of any government or any organization influence. For an entity to be seen as a stockhouse in a court of law it must fulfill all three criteria. 1. Be a holder of currency, 2. Have full reserve of currency, 3. Have the ability to pay any or everyone the currency they have stored for them within twenty four hours of demand. The third criterion is not broken if a person or a corporation signs a contract with a stockhouse to have the stockhouse hold currency until a maturity date. In cases where a person or a corporation signs a contract with a maturity date, that person or corporation can not demand currency under said contract until maturity date. A stockhouse is exempt from all forms of taxation and does not have to show its books unless it can not fulfill one of the three criteria mention above. If a stockhouse can fulfill the third criterion, then it must be assume that the first and second ones are fulfilled. A stockhouse can set its interest rates if any at any rate the owner or owners see fit. A stockhouse can charge any amount if any for storing currency. If a person or corporation can not pay their fees, the stockhouse can not deny them the full payment of the currency they had stored if demanded. In the case of an outstanding fee it is up to the stockhouse to get the fee from a person or corporation in a court of law. A stockhouse can hold or refuse to hold any kind of currency that they see fit and refuse to hold any person’s currency they see fit.

With a system like this if someone love central banking and fiat currency, they can continue to support that system; People in the other hand that don’t will have more options. If you see any holes in this theory or the amendments above please post your ideas. Also if you see something that I have overlooked or did not take into account your input will be greatly appreciated.

(Buying Gold Coins) The Benefits

2008-12-11T19:57:00.000-08:00

New video of buying gold coins more to come soon

The Price Difference Between Paper Gold and Physical Gold

2008-12-06T19:05:00.000-08:00

The spot price of paper gold as of 12/6/08 is 754.30, but if anyone who can do a search on eBay for items sold takes a look and see what 1 ounce gold eagles are selling for will know things have change when buying gold bullion. You are lucky or bless if you can find a 1 ounce gold eagle that sold for fewer than 954.30. Some of these coins have been struck this year so numismatic value is out of the question.

Why the more than 200.00 dollar premium? You ask; it’s because as time passes the spot price of paper gold is becoming more and more irrelevant. A few “powerful” institutions like New York Mercantile Exchange/ COMEX are not more powerful than market forces.

I say this tongue and cheek but if investors start to demand physical delivery of this abundance of cheap paper gold, will COMEX be the next to big to fail institution. Remember that some jokes do have some elements of truth; I pray this is not one of them.

Video of buying gold bars

2008-12-05T22:48:00.000-08:00

New video of buying gold bars more to come soon

2008-12-01T19:26:00.000-08:00

Buying gold bullion is a good way to protect your wealth from inflation. Inflation is when a government or a central bank of a nation issues more currency faster than the growth of goods and services. This can cause prices or goods and services to rise. Buying gold coins or buying gold bars can protect your wealth because when prices of goods and services raise the price of your gold will also rise.

Buying gold bullion with the advent of the internet has become easier through out the years. There are many sites you can visit if you are interested in buying gold bars or buying gold coins. It is also easier to find out the spot price of gold. The spot price is how much one troy ounce is selling for at the time you are willing to buy. Buying gold online is a fast and safe way to own gold.