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Gold/Mining/Energy : Gold Price Monitor -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: lorne who wrote (52842)	5/16/2000 10:20:00 PM
From: Hawkmoon	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 116790

Lorne, I take no issue with those companies that mine for the basic industrial commodities that you list. In fact, I have nothing but admiration for those who hold such risky occupations that are so necessary for US economic growth (I know, it sounds cheezy, but I really do respect them). I respect coal miners in W. Virgina, although I also believe that strip mining is preferable (with the necessary environment rehabilitation, of course) and far less risky, IMO. I give them two thumbs up.. cause I wouldn't want to fill their shoes.... :00 But I guess I just draw the line when we see people dying over a metal like gold which mainly finds its way into jewelry and American Eagle or Kruger-Rands. I'm not particularly materialistic when it comes to jewelry or fancy things. Call me a utilitarian, I guess. I tend to find that such luxurious excess which involves needlessly risking the lives of humans just to fulfill a personal vanity, just a trifle offensive. If it were not for the jewelry market, the industrial market for gold could easily be filled by less risky mining methods such as open pit or placer mines. But in my eyes, gold is a symbol of personal vanity and elitism, only perpetuated by the mistaken belief that it has some kind of inherent value as money. Btw, one of the riskiest occupations is being a taxi driver, especially here in DC. There have been a number of incidents recently where cabbies have been robbed and killed, creating an impetus to provide better protection for them. Regards, Ron