At present, the governors of the Fed are creating massive distortions in the financial markets with little hope of improving real economic growth or employment... Quantitative easing promises to have little effect except to provoke commodity [gold and silver] hoarding, a decline in bond yields to levels that reflect nothing but risk premiums for maturity risk, and an expansion in stock valuations to levels that have rarely been sustained for long (the current Shiller P/E of 22 for the S&P 500 has typically been followed by 5- to 10-year total returns below 5% annually). [Let me explain.] Words: 3066

Since the dawn of this financial crisis, my portfolio has included an allocation to gold. I viewed this as an important element of stability and protection and I believed in a longer-term story taking hold. Last week I kissed the precious metal goodbye for now and this is my explanation as to my reasoning. Words: 1382

A major crisis is coming in the first half of 2011 and it could cause a worldwide financial disaster, global market crashes and the destruction of wealth that will make the popping of the dot-com and housing bubbles feel like a mild inconvenience! Why? Because, quite simply, America is playing a dangerous game of “chicken” with its national debt - and the ramifications are extraordinary. Words: 1475

The chief institutional strategist at Canada’s biggest bank, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), believes gold prices are probably heading the way of the NASDAQ in the 1990s and the Nikkei in the 1980s into mania territory on the road to $3,800 an ounce. Words: 647

I would prefer a scenario in which rates rise slowly, and the dollar -- as well as the economy -- stabilize gently; while the alternative makes me wealthy, unfortunately, its actualization necessarily means I will be forced to watch everyone around me suffer - and that’s a troubling thought. Words: 1480

Gold is overbought...but I will not be selling into overbought conditions, but looking to add on weakness. For the duration of this bull market, overbought conditions have led to a retest of the 200-day moving average. The 200-day currently sits at $1189, so a correction to $1250 or so is reasonable. In no way would a correction to these levels indicate the end of this bull market. Words: 725

While the 2010 gold rush is making a lot of headlines, it’s important to not overlook other hard assets [such as silver, copper, platinum, palladium and rare earth metals] that are good investment alternatives to gold and have all rallied to fresh highs recently as well. While each of these offers its own strengths and weaknesses they are ways to diversify your holdings away from gold if you are worried about a crash. Words: 1561

The U.S. economy is being slowly but surely destroyed and many Americans have no idea that it is happening. There are 11 long-term trends that reveal... that there are certain underlying foundational problems that are destroying the U.S. economy a little bit more every single day. They are undeniable and they are constantly getting worse. If they are not corrected (and there is no indication that they will be) they will destroy not only our economy but also our entire way of life! Words: 2520

During the panic of 2008, miners in general – and junior miners in particular – were devastated by the Wall Street-engineered sell-off, with many losing more than 90% of their value. With these companies sitting at once-in-a-lifetime valuations, no one (outside of the hardcore commodities investors) wanted to touch these companies. [That's not the situation any more!] Words: 1160

The U.S. economy is in an intensifying inflationary recession that eventually will evolve into a hyperinflationary great depression... [at which time] a $100 bill in the United States will become worth more as functional toilet paper/tissue than as currency. The U.S. government and Federal Reserve already have committed the system to this course through the easy politics of a bottomless pocketbook, the servicing of big-moneyed special interests, and gross mismanagement. The article is long but well worth the read. Words: 3565