Gold - Commodity or currency?

Gold - a commodity or currency?

  • It's a commodity

    Votes: 21 39.6%

  • It's a currency

    Votes: 25 47.2%

  • other

    Votes: 7 13.2%
  • Total voters
    53
"It is impossible to grasp the meaning of the idea of sound money if one does not realize that it was devised as an instrument for the protection of civil liberties against despotic inroads on the part of governments. Ideologically it belongs in the same class with political constitutions and bills of right."
 
"Before an economic good begins to function as money it must already possess exchange-value based on some other cause than its monetary function. But money that already functions as such may remain valuable even when the original source of its exchange-value has ceased to exist."
 
The Call for Free-market Money

The great concern is that a government-run money-supply regime would ultimately end in economic and political disaster: the ruin of money and, with it, of the free societal order. It is in particular against this background that they call for ending the government money-supply monopoly and returning to free-market money.

Under a freely chosen commodity-based money regime such as, for instance, the gold standard, money supply would tend to increase relatively predictably and in relatively small quantities over time — compared with random, arbitrary, and usually dramatic increases in paper-money supply.
 
Having abandoned the sound-money principle, governments' central banks are in the very process of forcing down the interest rate over time, by way of strongly expanding credit and money supply. This, in turn, leads to asset price inflation, misallocation of scarce resources, inducing cyclical swings ("boom and bust").

To make things worse, central banks allow credit supply growth to systematically outpace income growth, and so the economies' overall debt-to-GDP ratios are brought up over time. Such a development is economically unsustainable, even though it might go on for quite some time as the central bank keeps pushing down the interest rate.

As the debt burden rises further and further, however, "public opinion" must sooner or later start calling for debasing of the currency via inflation to get rid of their obligations. Mises knew why abandoning the principle of sound money would be so problematic: "In the opinion of the public, more inflation and more credit expansion are the only remedy against the evils which inflation and credit expansion have brought about."

Yes, FICK people indeed!
 
No matter what we think of the word "progress" progress we will in some form or another, even if it is not progress in real terms. One thing you can be sure of is this, we won't be going back to the gold standard in any way shape or form.
 
new_trader said:
OK, more specifically- Apart from the goods produced, what makes a modern economy today different to 100 years ago?
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Are you for real, m8?

I mean first you talk about many things, but none among them actually address anything I have said. Then you can't respond to a simple question and choose instead to prevaricate by asking about things that have no relevance to the original query. Then you do a brain dump of a bunch of out-of-context quotes and poorly thought out blurbage. Finally, you unsubscribe with an air of accomplishment.

I have tried to take you seriously, but surely it can't be that surprising that I (not sure about others here) have failed?
 
counter_violent said:
No matter what we think of the word "progress" progress we will in some form or another, even if it is not progress in real terms. One thing you can be sure of is this, we won't be going back to the gold standard in any way shape or form.
Click to expand...


We will DEFINITELY be going back to the gold standard where currencies will be based on and backed by gold. I guestimate in another 5-10 years.:smart:

How can you say that CV? and then accuse other people of being fik. :LOL:

If it is not progess then it is regress. Don't abuse the Queen's English matey. ;)
 
Atilla said:
We will DEFINITELY be going back to the gold standard where currencies will be based on and backed by gold. I guestimate in another 5-10 years.:smart:

How can you say that CV? and then accuse other people of being fik. :LOL:

If it is not progess then it is regress. Don't abuse the Queen's English matey. ;)
Click to expand...

Listen up matey :D In 2008 I told ya all about house prices, mass unemployment and revolution all of which came true or are in the process. Listen to CV in future and you won't go far wrong !:)
 
Martinghoul said:
Are you for real, m8?

I mean first you talk about many things, but none among them actually address anything I have said. Then you can't respond to a simple question and choose instead to prevaricate by asking about things that have no relevance to the original query. Then you do a brain dump of a bunch of out-of-context quotes and poorly thought out blurbage. Finally, you unsubscribe with an air of accomplishment.

I have tried to take you seriously, but surely it can't be that surprising that I (not sure about others here) have failed?
Click to expand...

No disrespect was meant to you Martinghoul. We will never agree and should have left it when we did a while back. I subscribe to the principle of sound-money and you don't. Let's just leave it at that.

"Whoever dares to hint at the possibility that nations may return to a domestic gold standard is cried down as a lunatic. The proinflationist propaganda emphasizes the alleged fact that the gold standard collapsed and that it will never be tried again. First of all, there is need to remember that the gold standard did not collapse. Governments abolished it in order to pave the way for inflation. Second, whatever compliant government economists may have said, inflationism is not a monetary policy that can be considered as an alternative to a sound-money policy. It is at best a temporary expedient."

Now, for the last time - UNSUBSCRIBED!
 
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What will replace the dollar as global currency?
Commentary: Gold? Renminbi? Maybe commodities?



Geeez - Gold :-0:-0

What will they think of next? :rolleyes:


Article's summary - fyi...
But if it is a commodity-based currency unit — and that would be this columnist’s bet — then the one big call you need to make for the next decade is to keep buying raw materials even when they do look over-priced.
 
Hahaha, Atilla, that is a funny article... I love the fact that the author, who is supposedly a "financial journalist", also writes adventure thrillers. Sorta makes a lot of sense, really...
 
Martinghoul said:
Hahaha, Atilla, that is a funny article... I love the fact that the author, who is supposedly a "financial journalist", also writes adventure thrillers. Sorta makes a lot of sense, really...
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Stranger than fiction but never the less true...

I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried Martin...

Is your real name Ralph Cioffi by any chance?
 
Atilla said:
What will replace the dollar as global currency?
Commentary: Gold? Renminbi? Maybe commodities?



Geeez - Gold :-0:-0

What will they think of next? :rolleyes:


Article's summary - fyi...
But if it is a commodity-based currency unit — and that would be this columnist’s bet — then the one big call you need to make for the next decade is to keep buying raw materials even when they do look over-priced.
Click to expand...


:cheesy:


It's hard to stay away from a matter as important as this...

Anyway, slowly but surely, little by little
Swiss Parliament to discuss gold franc
Right-wing party seeks way back to gold standard

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/swiss-parliament-to-discuss-gold-franc-2011-07-07

"The initiative is part of “Healthy Currency,” a campaign sponsored by politicians from the right-wing Swiss People’s Party (SVP) — the country’s biggest — that is seeking to capitalize on popular fears about global financial turmoil and inflation to reverse the government’s current policy on gold."


“I want Swiss people to have the freedom to choose a completely different currency,” said Thomas Jacob, the man behind the gold franc concept. ”Today’s monetary system is all backed by debt — all backed by nothing — and I want people to realize this.”
Click to expand...
 
new_trader said:
:cheesy:


It's hard to stay away from a matter as important as this...

Anyway, slowly but surely, little by little
Click to expand...


New Trader mon ami, people like Martin Ghoul and the rest are yesterday's men.

They are not visionaries or leaders or even gentlemen with heads on their shoulders. They are but mere mortal men of sheep.

The point is proven by instead of commenting on an articles pros and cons - he (by sheer arrogance) dismisses a view point simply because it is written by a financial journalist who also happens to write fiction novels. That in my book is one hell of a stuck up opinion MG?

Sorry you are who? Dismissed - go away as you are not entitled to have an opinion. Erm sorry which school of economics did you graduate from Mr MG? Lemme guess you write for the Economist??? :cheesy:

And their lies the truth. Fed's Bernanke and Mr Greenspan gets it catastrophically wrong and men will merely throw hands in the air and say 'merde' a littel rounding error no? C'est la vie! Mr MG will say but yes ofcourse it happens all the time. Why it happened to me only yesterday.

He will then turn around and accuse us - not knowing what we are talking about. :LOL::LOL::LOL:



I said Soros got it wrong when he said gold has reached bubble highs recently - when it came off the 1550s. I still hold that view.


PS - really made me laugh the YouTube clip. Good one. (y)
 
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