Of the 1040.6 million troy oz of silver produced in 2011, 84% was used in over 10,000 modern industrial applications (16% used as an investment) of which approx. 33% was used in the traditional forms of fabrication such as jewelry, coins, medals, and silverware with the remaining 66% actually being consumed. While the actual amount is unknown, some experts believe as much as 90-95% of all the silver ever mined has been ‘lost’ to landfills. For this reason, there is likely less silver available above ground than gold (98% of all gold is accounted for today). For more interesting information regarding the supply of, and demand for, silver please refer to the infographic below.

Gold is one of the rarest minerals on earth. To put that into perspective, more sheet metals is pored each hour than the entire amount of gold poured throughout history. That being said, the USCS estimates that silver in the earth's crust will be depleted by 2020 at the current rate of consumption. For more interesting facts about gold and silver check out the infographic below and the links to many other such gems of information.

The warnings that the fiscal cliff will cause a recession are delivered as if the government can decide whether or not we have a recession. In fact, the government does not have that power, or we would never have recessions. At the most, the government can influence when, not if, we have a recession. We will most likely undergo a recession when we wean ourselves off the unsustainable deficit spending of the last four years. The choice is not recession or no recession. The choice is recession now or recession later. [Let me explain.] Words: 542

Now that President Obama has been re-elected, Obamacare will become reality and that means that a lot more people in the United States will have health insurance and, if the program works as it is supposed to, it also means that the growth of healthcare spending overall will eventually slow. Both of those are good but, in the near term, Obamacare also means a lot of people will be paying more taxes and higher insurance premiums. (You didn't think Obamacare was free, did you?) Below are some of the new taxes you're going to have to pay to pay for Obamacare. Words: 565

If I had to guess, I would say that a majority of people in the country still view the housing market in a negative light. They note: •the still-large overhang of foreclosed properties, •the still-low rate of new housing starts, and •the still-depressed level of housing prices in many parts of the country but that is looking at the market from a static viewpoint. There have been some very important improvements in the housing market over the past 18 months...that have all the makings of a clear turnaround that is underway and likely to continue. [Let me explain.] Words: 388

With China becoming the #2 economy in the world it has, without question, transformed into an enormous force in the world’s commodity markets...with many years to come of major commodity production, consumption, and importation for China and the countries that serve that commodity food chain. [Let's examine China's dominance in the commodity industry and identify investment opportunities to take advantage of continued growth.] Words: 1282

The price of silver is going to go much, much higher - much higher - over the next decade [relative to gold according to Jim Rogers and I concur. Below are 5 solid reasons why I believe that is the case.] Words: 767

The public's estimates and predictions of inflation are significantly, and systematically, related to the demographic characteristics of the respondents...[and] even after we hold constant income, age, education, race, and marital status...women in our survey tended to think inflation was 1.9 percentage points higher than men. [There are more interesting findings, so read on.] Words: 987

The USA continues to decline economically relative to some parts of the world, most notably those in Asia yet we still lead in many areas. Unfortunately being number one is some categories is not a good thing and our level of debt is one of these areas. In fact, our debt burden leads the world. [A look at the charts below illustrates that all too clearly.] Words: 272

I have been bearish on hard commodities for the past two years and, while prices may have dropped substantially from their peaks during this time, I don’t think the bear market is over. I think we still have a very long way to go and there are four reasons why I expect prices to drop a lot more. Words: 3978