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

To: Cage Rattler who wrote (85523)	5/19/2002 4:23:38 PM
From: marek_wojna	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116820

The answer is simple, in Canada you can go and buy gold certificates instead physical. I would say people who buy them never question the bank if the bank gives you guarantee that you can redeem the for the gold any given time. Answer is no. Gold backed currency - not such exist in this world except E-gold. Swiss frank parity to gold was killed by very thin margin in referendum. Even if was not there wasn't any parity for at least past 20 years. Frank like dollar in 1971 was only derivative of gold. When French decided to cash on the derivative, POG had 350% gain overnight when US was forced to brake the parity.

To: Cage Rattler who wrote (85523)	5/19/2002 4:28:05 PM
From: Bat Man	Respond to of 116820

Theodore, the Swiss are selling Gold now 1300 tons I believe, how long will the Franc be backed by Gold and who would want to trust any government not to sell with all the manipulation that has been happening in the last couple years? jmo Elmer

To: Cage Rattler who wrote (85523)	5/19/2002 5:45:52 PM
From: IngotWeTrust	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116820

Hi. Several thoughts spring to mind: 1) Gold IS a currency, a US DOLLAR based currency, and can be traded as such. 2) As such, physical gold has a tactile appeal as a currency, a "feel" missing in other currency formats. Some would opine gold currency is more visually pleasing as well.--and one MAJOR reason why "vapor gold/e-gold" not backed by either a government nor a major bank will ever survive. The closest to "getting there" is the Moslem gold backed e-currency. If you are a trader, this may be the "one on the come" for maximum ROI. 3) Thirdly, while most of the world wouldn't know a Swiss Franc --coin or currency-- if it sat next to them in a rickshaw; darn near everyone recognizes a gold whoozit, regardless of sovereign die stamping variations.. 4) Such metallic intrinsic gold recognition lends to universal convertibility, making gold whoozits easier to "spend" regardless of geographic boundaries than say a Swiss/French/German/US/Canadian/Thai/Indian/Spanish currency whoozit of brass/nickel/cupro-nickel/copper/zinc/aluminum OR paper. 5) Some of us eschew even the cutesy bullion and prefer the even more archane "raw" gold, i.e., nuggets for holding and trading. I am one of those. Raw gold is very easily converted in my part of the world for services and goods. And it commands little premium except in larger sizes, is abundantly available, and in infinite size and weight and purity variations. And none of these variations require an assay. Most don't even require a simple chem test on the spot. We all basically know of its feel, heft, and physical markers. 6) There are several gold backed currencies, why select the S/F in your example? If you are a currency trader, then you have no use for aesthetics, history, or even convertiblility, frankly, since you can trade at the click of a mouse in and out of either a futures account or a bank deposit account. So, while there maybe an Armageddon in the future, I for one goldbug am NOT planning for it. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ If I were a currency trader, any currency which had moved percentage-wise moved from $252 per oz to $310ish in a V-E-R-Y short period of time, would most assuredly catch my attention simply based upon a ROI basis. However, since currency and politics are so inextricably intertwined and I don't understand politics, I keep it simple: I prefer and understand gold-- I know how to identify gold weigh it, price it, store it, spend it, find it, even alter its form into anything my buyer might wish, as it is ultimately infintely convertible. However, if I had the fascination with currency trading that is implied in your post, I'd spend a great deal of time both charting the intricacies of currency crosses, and following global political tide tables. Additionally, I would overlay charts of gold and local currencies I knew to be gold backed and keep an eye on that relationship when making any trading decision. ONE of the best in the business for my money is Ian McAvity, chartist extraordinaire, especially in currency and political interps. His publication is: Deliberations. It is worth every cent. Some examples of gold backed currencies: The French---poopoohed but still one of the largest govt owned supplies in the world...now EU regulated The German--ditto-- The HongKong $ (prior to re-assimilation)--Was 100% backed The US$--officially unhooked in '71 by Nixon, but............................. The EU--18% to 35% backed depending upon with whom you are speaking The coming AMU--probably another 18-35% backed currency if current EU is an indicator The Swissie--was 40%, now headed for under 20% due to referendum and political silly season Perhaps for you, a gold bullion coin litho on the office wall would suffice.<grin> g_t

To: Cage Rattler who wrote (85523)	5/19/2002 10:31:33 PM
From: long-gone	Respond to of 116820

"backing" may or may not exist based on loans of bullion. When one holds bullion in their own hand, there can be no doubt of its existence

To: Cage Rattler who wrote (85523)	5/22/2002 3:21:26 PM
From: long-gone	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116820

<<Would someone please explain, beyond an Armageddon scenario, why holding gold bullion or coinage is preferable to holding and trading a gold-backed currency such as the Swiss Franc? >> Another reason just came to me. Can the average Indian citizen hold $US, Swiss Francs, or or anything other than their own currency? Heck, Why speak of the "average Indian"? Is the average US citizen (Joe 6-Pack) likely to hold any level of any currency other than his own, and perhaps a bit of gold & or silver? If Joe 6-Pack doesn't have any other currency EXCEPT gold or silver what would be the wise choice of everyone else?