Not 100% sure, but I'm guessing medicine. Silver is used in a very wide variety of medical treatments. Its also used in water purification, in touch sensative switches on TVs, cell phones, computer keyboards, ect. Also most batteries are manufactured using silver alloys, and DVDs & blue rays have some silver in them too. Obviously its such a small amount of silver that its not worth recycling a dvd, blue ray or CD which is why most silver is considered consumed and gone forever. (at least until silver prices get much higher and make it worth it to recycle small amounts)
If you took that step 10 years ago, tell me it didnt improve your financial position substantially. I don't subscribe to the collapse scenario as well by the way. I just look at it as an asset that will apreciate substantially over time. Will it be the only thing going up in value? No. Should have bought F at 1$ and sold at 14$ but I just wasnt smart enough to do that I guess.
Can you plant a dollar bill in the ground and reap the fruit of the dollar bill tree? Didnt think so either. If the entire system comes crashing down, people will take my gold before they take your dollar bills in the grocery store, I can tell you that. Here is an example of a system crashing down and they ONLY take gold for goods. They will not take zim dollars anymore. <object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/SRLbw3loD6c&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/SRLbw3loD6c&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>
Why are those people not growing their own food? The time/effort they spend panning would pay them back in spades if it was farming/gardening instead. Teach a man to fish...
In a dystopian Mad Max world, no. But in any terrible situation that the world has ever seen, yes I think exactly that; I will be able to go to the store and exchange my gold for food. I may have to make a quick intermediate stop at a gold exchange to break it into smaller denominations or into silver, but yes. Gold would have served you well in Weimar Germany, in Zimbabwe, or in any other place at any time in history where there was a breakdown in currency. If you think that society is really going completely Mad Max, you should invest in another heavy metal, lead. As in bullets.
No, but you can exchange dollars for goods and services. You can't with gold. I'm done debating you. It's a waste of time.
I disagree. The mercantile system of grocery stores, warehouses, trucking, manufacturers, growers, etc., are not going to be able to accept gold for payment. You won't be able to exchange gold at your local store because it won't be set up to handle it. It will also probably be illegal to do so. If anything, the barter system will make a huge comeback.
I don't understand why gold bulls always get associated with end of the world scenario's. Do people think Soros and Paulson are buying gold so they can exchange their coins at the grocery?