Silver

[Texas1911]

Silver is a poor return on investment. I remember going to buy bars at $5 - 6 / ea. at McBride's and other places here in Austin. Now they have a market value of about $15. So in a decade you've tripled your money. While that seems like a big return ... I earned on average about 18 - 25% a year on my 401K. Compound that investment out and you'll get a substantially larger return. At 15% average you'll gain a solid 25% more over 10 years. Mutuals are relatively safe if you understand the scope of the investments, but you can make HUGE gains on day trading, commodities, and stocks over a short term. It just takes alot of foresight and prowess.

 

[Texas42]

You know, for thousands of years, salt was one of the most valuable resources. They built cities and walls around deposits so they could defend it. Just saying. . . .

I'm not going to say having some gold or silver isn't a good thing, but the only reason gold has gone up is because many people have lost faith in the US dollar. They think that precious metals will be stable and the dollar will not. They only reason they believe this is because gold has held value in the past.

I, for one, hope that the dollar does continue to be stable, because that is what is best for the US. Can't eat gold or silver. Can't defend yourself with it.

 

[IXLR8]

So when you are making a survival dash, you are going to drag a bajillion rounds of ammo with you? I could hold enough gold in my hand to replace all of that ammo. The value vs dimension factor is quite appealing.

 

[TexasRedneck]

So when you are making a survival dash, you are going to drag a bajillion rounds of ammo with you? I could hold enough gold in my hand to replace all of that ammo. The value vs dimension factor is quite appealing.

In times of crisis, folks are in survival mode. Precious metals have little appeal as compared to food and other items of survival. Witness the recent shortage of primers, when folks were getting 80-100 bucks/k for 'em....

 

[Texas1911]

So when you are making a survival dash, you are going to drag a bajillion rounds of ammo with you? I could hold enough gold in my hand to replace all of that ammo. The value vs dimension factor is quite appealing.

Ask yourself this ...

If you are hungry, do you want gold?
If you are tired, do you want gold?
If you are cold, do you want gold?
If you a thirsty, do you want gold?
If you are in danger, do you want gold?

If you are dying in the desert, and a man approaches you and says, you can have all the gold you can carry, or I can give you this camel loaded with food and water. Which would you take?

People are primal ... the case for trading gold to someone for something positive is meek at best, in my opinion.

 

[Texan2]

I have not heard anyone say to put everything you have in gold or silver. having balance is the key. I tell folks to keep lots of ammo on hand as it has GREAT trade value. Stable food storage is important too, as well as various other valueable goods. I believe in having paper cash on hand and I too have a 401 k and an IRA. But the currency is only valueable as long as the dollar has value on the world market. For a scenario of long term economic/political anarchy or chaos, there would be no way to stockpile everything you need. In such a scenario having gold or silver in diferent increments that could be traded would be worthwhile...in my opinion. I'm not telling folks to put all their money in silver or gold so they can retire on that investment.
Lots of good points of view on this thread.

 

[proforguns]

I for one have stores of food,water,guns,ammo,and other important survival needs.If someone is in need of trade what would I ask of them in a rebuiling economy what then would replace the dollor?Gold and or silver,If Im wrong about SHTF oh well at least I have somehthing worth value .

 

[IXLR8]

SHTF - Travel light, be prepared to relocate, carry essentials. Pretty simple.

During the hurricane evacs that have come through Houston, you would be surprised at the number of people that did not have the money to even buy gas. Assuming the economy is not adversely impacted, cash is not a bad thing to have.

Siver is good commodity to hold, but it should not the the keystone of any financial planning.

 

[TexasRedneck]

How many folks were offering silver or gold in exchange for goods or services? I keep reserve cash on hand in the safe, and the wherewithall to get whatever else might be necessary....

 

[proforguns]

Proof of precious metals value in economic disaster YouTube - ICN 04/04/10 gold and silver manipulation, Bush admin illegally wiretapped, leaked CIA report

 

[Texan2]

How many folks were offering silver or gold in exchange for goods or services? I keep reserve cash on hand in the safe, and the wherewithall to get whatever else might be necessary....

In the U.S. none were trading with gold and silver. As already stated...In reference to Katrina I was talking about having food, water and guns.....in reference to an economic meltdown I was referencing having an alternative method of valueables to trade with.

 

[Texan2]

YouTube - Rich Dad Silver- Forecast To Silver Prices with Mike Maloney $100 silver

 

[TexasRedneck]

In an economic meltdown, "hard goods" will, I believe, still have a higher value than precious metals/jewels. Folks will be in survival mode, and will be more interested in things they can eat or barter for what they need. Believe it or not, water could be one of the precious commodities, since municipal supplies can be among the first to go in a natural disaster.
It doesn't make precious metals of no value - have my share of 'em myself...and then some. But it's something we fairly recently started acquiring, and not high on the list of things to set aside.

 

[TexasRedneck]

YouTube - Rich Dad Silver- Forecast To Silver Prices with Mike Maloney $100 silver

ummmm....wait a minute here....this guy has a vested interest in driving prices up - what do you EXPECT him to say?

 

[Texan2]

Its just one opinion...there are others that will reference some financial advisor saying dont EVER buy metals. Usually these guys have a vested interest in selling stocks and bonds, so its hard to get good advice, but he does present some real facts about the economy.

 

[Texan2]

In an economic meltdown, "hard goods" will, I believe, still have a higher value than precious metals/jewels. Folks will be in survival mode, and will be more interested in things they can eat or barter for what they need. Believe it or not, water could be one of the precious commodities, since municipal supplies can be among the first to go in a natural disaster.
It doesn't make precious metals of no value - have my share of 'em myself...and then some. But it's something we fairly recently started acquiring, and not high on the list of things to set aside.

We agree more than we disagree. Short term, hard goods. Long term there would have to be some type of trading medium.

 

[West Texas]

The cycle in a worst case SHTF situation is pretty simple.

Food Shleter Defense

To start with it ver well might be barter bread for bullets, or bullets for gasoline...but at some point precious metals in small denominations. Buy coins and you don't have to prove it's cold...at least not at first...

 

[TexasRedneck]

In my mind, most instances where precious metals would prove themselves of value there's gonna be precious little left to buy - because you're talking about a total meltdown of the economy - and in *that* instance, you're going to be lucky to just survive. Again - yeah, we're "collecting" it here and there, but it's *way* down on my "SHTF supply" list.

 

[Texas42]

Its just one opinion...there are others that will reference some financial advisor saying dont EVER buy metals. Usually these guys have a vested interest in selling stocks and bonds, so its hard to get good advice, but he does present some real facts about the economy.

Not really. Just about every other investment has much better rates of returns (on average, long term) than precious metals. Long term total economic collapse isn't really in the portfolio of people selling long term investments.

I trust the guys on the radio appealing to people's insecurities and selling gold a lot less than most financial advisors. The financial advisors sell products based on their level of experience and the products that they can sell (based on their relationship to the companies that produce and manage the products).

In 15 years and if things get better (I think and hope they will) gold prices will drop. . . . a lot. A lot of people will be left holding onto something that has lost most of its value. The only way you come out ahead will be if our economy collapses. Our economy has been a lot worse in the past and recovered.

Yeah, there are a bunch of crooks in the financial advisor business, but there are good people too (I know a few).

 

[West Texas]

But in the past, we have had leadership that WANTED to see it recover, and worked at getting out of the way so it COULD recover. Now we don't. Now we have leadership that wants to put us in to total melt down so that a "New and Fundementally Changed" govt can be put in place.

PLEASE Google Clower and Piven and read the stratagy they lined out for collapsing our Govt, and that will give you some idea of what is going on. If there are not MAJOR changes at the mid terms, 2011 is going to be a very bad year...