Alex:
That is a very timely post. Recently, I had been thinking of the prospects of the gold bugs if the sky did in fact fall and the currencies of the world collapsed in unison. Initially, there would be celebrations as this life awaited event unfolded. Amid the chaos of economic dislocation, the gold bug would have their moment of satisfaction and the chorus of "I told you so" would cascade over the devastated landscape. Mind you, their lives would not improve, their new found wealth would not provide a mobility to a better life style. They would only have the satisfaction of knowing that their wealth was intact.
Unfortunately, it would not take very long for the newly impovished to zoom in on this lasting source of wealth possessed by the frugal. First amoung this crowd, government bureaucrats and lawmakers. In their rush for legislation to relieve the pain, the social engineers would confront the reality that the government is out of money. Hence the search for a new source of funds, taxes, difficult to get out of falling incomes, selling public properties, they have long since been hocked, and finally confiscation. Confiscation, can you ground up real estate and turn it into money particularly as its value deflates, no; can you nationalize bank accounts held by insolvent banks, no. Where oh, where to get the funds. Voila, gold, take the bullion and return the owners with the thing they hate most paper fiat money.
If Rodney thinks he gets no respect now, all he has to do is become a gold bug and his stature will decline beyond is comedic ability to define no respect.
Ken |
