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Welcome to the USAGOLD Gold Discussion Archives. The archives of this gold discussion forum are a treasure trove of information to educate investors about protecting their wealth through portfolio diversification with private gold ownership. The discussion forum also covers the wider issues of the past, present, and future role of gold in international monetary policy and the dynamics of the modern gold markets...

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FORUM ARCHIVES
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Archives date back to September 22, 1998


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ARCHIVED DISCUSSION FROM 5/30/2002
All times are U.S. Mountain Time

(Yesterday's Discussion.)

GoldenShower! (05/30/02; 23:55:39MT - usagold.com msg#: 77144)
When it rains ...
There's no hiding from it ... $$$329.3$$$ ... Gold is as good as mother nature, and she will have her way ...

Guided (05/30/02; 23:46:50MT - usagold.com msg#: 77143)
Contest Entry $$$$$ 335.20 $$$$$
May be a wild day on May 31 2002. A 10 dollar day.

YGM (05/30/02; 23:43:11MT - usagold.com msg#: 77142)
I'm going to tickle your funny bone while you await the "Bell"
Don't Mess With YGM's Granny! or is it "Yours"
Charges were dropped yesterday against Ruth "Grammy" Gordon, an 83-year-old wheelchair-bound grandmother, who was originally charged with assault and battery, and assault with a deadly weapon, because an altercation she had last week with six airport security guards, that left all six hospitalized.

"Justice has been served," said the 95-pound mother of three and grandmother of six, as she sat in her wheelchair, aided in her breathing by an oxygen bottle. "Now I'm going to sue every fool in the federal government for ignorance, stupidity, and just plain general incompetence. I'm an American, and I won't be treated like this."

The problem began last month as Gordon was attempting to board an airplane. "These guys are supposed to be some kind of professionals," she said, "but they're dumber than rocks. Here they were letting guys who looked just like terrorists walk through without searching them, and then they pull me aside and tell me they're going to search me? I don't think so."

According to one witness, Bud Cort of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, one guard, "who weighed about 300 pounds, looked like he was drunk, and had his shirt out, told this woman she couldn't board the plane unless they searched her. He was really rude. That's when the trouble started."

Videotapes showed that Gordon ran the guard down with her motorized wheelchair, then sat on top of the screaming man while spinning her chair in circles. "Doofus was so fat he couldn't get up," said Gordon with a giggle.

One guard who attempted to pull Gordon's wheelchair off of the screaming man from behind was hit over the head with an oxygen bottle and knocked unconscious. A third guard, who approached Gordon from the front, was also left dazed on the floor. Witnesses said she was cackling, "Put your hands on an old lady, will you?" as she bashed both guards.

The tape also showed a fourth guard attempting to grab Gordon's wheelchair. Gordon removed a knitting needle from her purse and stabbed him in his left buttock. "What a wimp," she told reporters. "He started screaming and grabbing his butt and running like a puppy that someone kicked."

"It was amazing," said another witness, a Scott Ryan. "The whole crowd just stood there cheering and clapping. I mean, she was whupping butt."

A fifth guard that attempted to grab Gordon had the seat of his pants set on fire with a cigarette lighter than had escaped detection. "He just went whoosh across the concourse, screaming and slapping at all these flames flying out of his rear," said Ryan.

A sixth guard did finally manage to get Gordon in a body hug. "I think that was the wrong thing to do," said another witness, who declined to be identified. "She just grabbed him by his greasy hair with one hand and cracked him across the jaw with her skinny fist. And down and out he went."

After all this, Gordon's chair was still sitting on top of the first guard. The tapes clearly showed her leaning over and yelling, "Apologize to me, you fat sumbitch, or when I'm done with you you'll just be a greasy spot on the floor!"

As the crowd roared, the guard cried, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Uncle! I won't do it again!"

Finally, Gordon surrendered without further incident, and was taken to jail and released on her own recognizance. "We didn't have any choice," said an unidentified officer of the court. "Over 200 people showed up to support her. I think if we had demanded bail, there would have been a riot."

Over 20 lawyers offered to defend her for free. However, realizing the precariousness of the case, Gordon was not charged with anything. "I doubt there's a jury in the whole country that would have found her guilty of anything," said one of the lawyers.

"I'm flying again tomorrow," Gordon told reporters. "And I suggest no one at the airport so much as look at me wrong."


**ROTFLMAO....


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 23:41:05MT - usagold.com msg#: 77141)
TICK TOCK --- LAST CALL for POG Contest Entries !!!!
TWENTY minutes to go !
<;-)


Boilermaker (05/30/02; 23:24:25MT - usagold.com msg#: 77140)
POG Contest
$$$$$$329.10$$$$$$$$

One of the few numbers left and Spot is getting frisky tonight. It seems goldbugs are coming out of the woodwork.

Many thanks to MK and Gandalf for this contest. May the best bug win!


YGM (05/30/02; 23:23:21MT - usagold.com msg#: 77139)
Spot Jump
Hung Fat is in Hong Kong for the weekend......
So he's buying there tonite...Dr No is still in NY so we'll see his moves in the AM....Wonder if they'd like some help carrying all that Yellow or maybe a body guard????

Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 23:21:07MT - usagold.com msg#: 77138)
<;-)
SHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !!! Thanks YGM !!
Maybe YOU will help me next time ?
<;-)


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 23:17:04MT - usagold.com msg#: 77137)
Sir Tarzan-- It was also TAKEN -- TRY AGAIN (Third time is a CHARM) !!!!
Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 22:57:20MT - usagold.com msg#: 77131)
ATTENTION Sir Tarzan === PREVIOUSLY taken Entry !!!!
Tarzan (05/30/02; 22:53:58MT - usagold.com msg#: 77128)
Gold Contest
My guess in the contest is $325.30
---
Tarzan (05/30/02; 22:59:10MT - usagold.com msg#: 77132)
Gold Contest
My guess in the contest is $325.90
===
Please TRY AGAIN !


otish mountain (05/30/02; 23:16:12MT - usagold.com msg#: 77136)
pog contest
$$$$328.60$$$$
Why? I feel spot price will runup to and maybe break $330 before falling back to close at my guess.Probably some short covering tomorrow will ramp up price in the AM then selling will begin late in the day.


YGM (05/30/02; 23:15:28MT - usagold.com msg#: 77135)
Gandalf the White
Decorated for Bravery?
Gandalf...the Lord of the Castle should decorate Rock #76254
YGM #76256 and Graefin #76257 (first 3)for Bravery for posting on day one in and that we were so brave (foolish) to post immediately on day one....Maybe a Buffalo Nickel or a wooden one :>} Next time I'm gonna wait til 5 to 12:00 :>}


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 23:05:18MT - usagold.com msg#: 77134)
BTW --- Did you notice that SPOT is start to JUMP AGAIN ?
<;-)

Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 23:01:09MT - usagold.com msg#: 77133)
TICK TOCK -- An HOUR to GO !!!!
PLEASE TRY AGAIN (3rd time) -- Sir Tarzan !!
ENTRIES in Contest (sorted by Price) !!
====
$$$$ 29,999.0 $$$$ mikal (05/30/02; 22:10:42MT - usagold.com msg#: 77117

$$$$ 8,752.0 $$$$ The Invisible Hand (05/24/02; 05:39:59MT msg#: 76471

$$$$ 777.0 $$$$ LimitUp (05/30/02; 22:47:08MT msg#: 77126

$$$$ 440.2 $$$$ goldquest (05/22/02; 14:17:02MT msg#: 76261

$$$$ 366.0 $$$$ Canuck (05/30/02; 17:43:06MT msg#: 77071

$$$$ 365.2 $$$$ Husky (5/29/02; 13:19:04MT msg#: 76876

$$$$ 360.0 $$$$ GoldnSilver2002 (05/24/02; 12:29:56MT msg#: 76497

$$$$ 355.9 $$$$ darkhorse (05/22/02; 21:25:11MT msg#: 76317

$$$$ 354.0 $$$$ Henri (05/24/02; 09:18:51MT msg#: 76490

$$$$ 352.5 $$$$ White Hills (05/22/02; 19:23:20MT msg#: 76300

$$$$ 350.0 $$$$ ROSEBUD99 (5/28/02; 10:32:46MT msg#: 76775
$$$$ 349.9 $$$$ perform (5/30/02; 04:05:13MT msg#: 76970

$$$$ 349.2 $$$$ Pizz (5/28/02; 10:07:10MT msg#: 76771

$$$$ 348.4 $$$$ techbull.... (05/30/02; 15:27:22MT msg#: 77058)

$$$$ 348.0 $$$$ White Rose (05/25/02; 22:03:47MT msg#: 76569

$$$$ 345.0 $$$$ sstins (05/30/02; 15:20:56MT msg#: 77054

$$$$ 343.0 $$$$ ji (5/25/02; 06:23:45MT msg#: 76533

$$$$ 342.0 $$$$ neer-do-well (05/24/02; 08:20:19MT msg#: 76484

$$$$ 341.0 $$$$ spike (05/30/02; 16:59:34MT msg#: 77066

$$$$ 339.9 $$$$ R Powell (05/30/02; 16:13:36MT msg#: 77063

$$$$ 339.0 $$$$ rsjacksr (05/22/02; 16:32:28MT msg#: 76278
$$$$ 338.9 $$$$ Siochain (5/28/02; 09:41:22MT msg#: 76766

$$$$ 338.2 $$$$ silvester (5/29/02; 20:57:16MT msg#: 76920

$$$$ 337.5 $$$$ wiley (05/23/02; 10:49:37MT msg#: 76386

$$$$ 336.6 $$$$ zorro (5/23/02; 16:42:43MT msg#: 76420

$$$$ 336.0 $$$$ Creosote (05/22/02; 19:38:52MT msg#: 76303

$$$$ 335.6 $$$$ Kodie (05/26/02; 09:59:13MT - usagold.com msg#: 76588

$$$$ 335.1 $$$$ Gold Standard (5/27/02; 05:32:52MT msg#: 76663

$$$$ 334.7 $$$$ RobotGuy (5/28/02; 10:38:00MT msg#: 76777
$$$$ 334.6 $$$$ GuyGold (05/30/02; 22:25:20MT msg#: 77120


$$$$ 334.4 $$$$ BILLYG (5/29/02; 01:36:25MT msg#: 76832
$$$$ 334.3 $$$$ Believer (05/22/02; 16:19:37MT msg#: 76277

$$$$ 333.3 $$$$ Tevye (05/22/02; 13:58:29MT msg#: 76258

$$$$ 332.8 $$$$ AUthentic (5/29/02; 14:59:17MT msg#: 76886)
$$$$ 332.7 $$$$ BLUENOSE (05/30/02; 18:42:47MT msg#: 77074

$$$$ 332.5 $$$$ gvc (05/30/02; 11:23:44MT msg#: 77016

$$$$ 332.3 $$$$ Neubie (05/30/02; 14:42:55MT msg#: 77043
$$$$ 332.2 $$$$ Goldfinger 2 (5/28/02; 11:20:26MT msg#: 76779

$$$$ 331.9 $$$$ Paper Avalanche (05/30/02; 13:24:29MT msg#: 77032

$$$$ 331.7 $$$$ sangrelli (05/30/02; 20:07:51MT msg#: 77094

$$$$ 331.5 $$$$ Camel (5/29/02; 08:40:15MT msg#: 76861

$$$$ 331.3 $$$$ auenboy (5/29/02; 22:04:32MT msg#: 76934

$$$$ 331.0 $$$$ DOWNUNDER (05/24/02; 22:40:53MT msg#: 76522

$$$$ 330.5 $$$$ Cumber (05/30/02; 08:31:17MT msg#: 76998

$$$$ 330.3 $$$$ Brahms (5/28/02; 00:16:44MT msg#: 76734
$$$$ 330.2 $$$$ Christian (5/27/02; 07:40:31MT msg#: 76666

$$$$ 330.0 $$$$ Shanti (05/30/02; 09:43:25MT msg#: 77004
$$$$ 329.9 $$$$ The Victorian (05/30/02; 20:41:49MT msg#: 77101
$$$$ 329.8 $$$$ Tate (5/28/02; 13:15:44MT msg#: 76790
$$$$ 329.7 $$$$ goldroadlx7 (5/28/02; 15:57:31MT msg#: 76802

$$$$ 329.5 $$$$ Waverider (05/30/02; 15:10:43MT msg#: 77053
$$$$ 329.4 $$$$ Clint H (5/23/02; 19:18:44MT msg#: 76436

$$$$ 329.2 $$$$ Max Rabbitz (05/30/02; 12:22:39MT msg#: 77023

$$$$ 329.0 $$$$ Voyager (05/30/02; 11:44:36MT msg#: 77019
$$$$ 328.9 $$$$ Zhisheng (5/30/02; 06:53:01MT msg#: 76982
$$$$ 328.8 $$$$ Hektor (05/30/02; 18:58:55MT msg#: 77079
$$$$ 328.7 $$$$ The CoinGuy (05/30/02; 21:39:34MT msg#: 77110

$$$$ 328.5 $$$$ HopeingII (05/30/02; 22:04:27MT msg#: 77115
$$$$ 328.4 $$$$ Slowman (05/24/02; 07:37:27MT msg#: 76479
$$$$ 328.3 $$$$ miner49er (05/30/02; 09:56:43MT msg#: 77006
$$$$ 328.2 $$$$ Troy Boy (05/30/02; 08:16:10MT msg#: 76995
$$$$ 328.1 $$$$ Humble Pie (05/30/02; 12:02:41MT msg#: 77021
$$$$ 328.0 $$$$ Nomad (5/29/02; 21:26:48MT msg#: 76925
$$$$ 327.9 $$$$ Goldilocks 1 (5/29/02; 19:51:51MT msg#: 76913
$$$$ 327.8 $$$$ tedw (5/29/02; 23:38:18MT msg#: 76951
$$$$ 327.7 $$$$ goldenpeace (5/28/02; 03:52:15MT msg#: 76749
$$$$ 327.6 $$$$ timbervision (05/23/02; 09:17:25MT msg#: 76369
$$$$ 327.5 $$$$ koala bear (5/29/02; 13:03:51MT msg#: 76874
$$$$ 327.4 $$$$ Canuck Gold (05/30/02; 12:23:48MT msg#: 77024
$$$$ 327.3 $$$$ The Hoople (05/30/02; 13:35:47MT msg#: 77034
$$$$ 327.2 $$$$ vermillion (5/23/02; 19:19:38MT msg#: 76437
$$$$ 327.1 $$$$ purist (05/30/02; 20:43:26MT - usagold.com msg#: 77102*
$$$$ 327.0 $$$$ Solomon Weaver (05/25/02; 21:59:46MT msg#: 76568
$$$$ 326.9 $$$$ Achilles (05/24/02; 04:29:15MT msg#: 76466
$$$$ 326.8 $$$$ Hipplebeck (05/23/02; 06:07:51MT msg#: 76357
$$$$ 326.7 $$$$ ProGold (05/30/02; 13:22:18MT msg#: 77031
$$$$ 326.6 $$$$ slingshot (05/24/02; 19:24:09MT msg#: 76519
$$$$ 326.5 $$$$ turkey hunter (05/30/02; 15:43:58MT msg#: 77061
$$$$ 326.4 $$$$ Kevin$ (5/29/02; 21:34:57MT msg#: 76929
$$$$ 326.3 $$$$ Yukon (05/30/02; 11:34:08MT msg#: 77018
$$$$ 326.2 $$$$ Econoclast (05/30/02; 20:35:31MT msg#: 77100
$$$$ 326.1 $$$$ Chap "X" by TC (05/30/02; 21:07:26MT msg#: 77107
$$$$ 326.0 $$$$ Broken Tee (5/23/02; 15:38:46MT msg#: 76416
$$$$ 325.9 $$$$ Simply Me (05/30/02; 22:49:03MT msg#: 77127
$$$$ 325.8 $$$$ ore stone (05/30/02; 12:52:11MT msg#: 77027
$$$$ 325.7 $$$$ OZ (05/26/02; 23:20:25MT msg#: 76635
$$$$ 325.6 $$$$ Artie Farkle (05/30/02; 14:08:01MT msg#: 77040
$$$$ 325.5 $$$$ steady (05/24/02; 15:26:22MT msg#: 76503
$$$$ 325.4 $$$$ Renny (5/28/02; 18:39:54MT msg#: 76809
$$$$ 325.3 $$$$ Frosty (5/28/02; 17:48:48MT msg#: 76806
$$$$ 325.2 $$$$ Black Blade (05/30/02; 12:32:15MT msg#: 77025
$$$$ 325.1 $$$$ Au-some (5/29/02; 19:43:11MT msg#: 76912
$$$$ 325.0 $$$$ Around The Corner (5/23/02; 02:17:38MT msg#: 76350
$$$$ 324.9 $$$$ THX-1138 (05/22/02; 16:45:28MT msg#: 76279
$$$$ 324.8 $$$$ Yellow Metal (05/22/02; 16:51:55MT msg#: 76280
$$$$ 324.7 $$$$ Gimli_ (05/30/02; 14:28:18MT msg#: 77042
$$$$ 324.6 $$$$ Graefin (05/22/02; 13:33:35MT msg#: 76257
$$$$ 324.5 $$$$ Q (05/30/02; 10:44:28MT msg#: 77013
$$$$ 324.4 $$$$ Bound Spirit (05/30/02; 10:40:25MT msg#: 77011
$$$$ 324.3 $$$$ Shermag (05/30/02; 14:58:38MT msg#: 77048
$$$$ 324.2 $$$$ Rock (05/22/02; 13:06:37MT msg#: 76254
$$$$ 324.1 $$$$ jlfletc (05/30/02; 17:04:49MT msg#: 77067
$$$$ 324.0 $$$$ Golden Bear (05/30/02; 07:46:42MT msg#: 76987
$$$$ 323.9 $$$$ Alchemist (05/30/02; 08:11:16MT msg#: 76993
$$$$ 323.8 $$$$ Knallgold (05/30/02; 09:38:57MT msg#: 77003*
$$$$ 323.8 $$$$ Yellow Jacket (05/30/02; 20:49:01MT msg#: 77104
$$$$ 323.7 $$$$ Trurl (5/29/02; 21:07:00MT msg#: 76922
$$$$ 323.6 $$$$ VanRip (05/22/02; 21:58:11MT msg#: 76323
$$$$ 323.5 $$$$ TKC (05/30/02; 22:26:47MT msg#: 77122
$$$$ 323.4 $$$$ kramrich (05/30/02; 22:57:04MT msg#: 77130

$$$$ 323.1 $$$$ goldenboy (5/30/02; 07:24:16MT msg#: 76983

$$$$ 322.6 $$$$ misetich (5/23/02; 03:05:56MT msg#: 76351

$$$$ 322.0 $$$$ Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 21:48:50MT msg#: 77113

$$$$ 321.5 $$$$ RobertG (5/23/02; 19:23:59MT msg#: 76438

$$$$ 320.4 $$$$ Jimbo (05/22/02; 14:31:21MT msg#: 76264

$$$$ 320.2 $$$$ 18K (5/23/02; 03:47:11MT msg#: 76353

$$$$ 319.9 $$$$ Trapper (05/22/02; 17:52:38MT msg#: 76284

$$$$ 319.5 $$$$ YGM (05/22/02; 13:29:47MT msg#: 76256

$$$$ 319.3 $$$$ WW Oracle (05/30/02; 22:19:44MT msg#: 77119

$$$$ 319.0 $$$$ Houston (5/25/02; 12:57:47MT msg#: 76551
$$$$ 318.9 $$$$ Jon (5/29/02; 15:05:27MT msg#: 76888

$$$$ 318.5 $$$$ EagleOne (05/22/02; 21:26:49MT msg#: 76318

$$$$ 318.2 $$$$ onlychild (05/22/02; 15:10:37MT msg#: 76269

$$$$ 317.5 $$$$ balzac (05/23/02; 07:33:25MT msg#: 76363

$$$$ 317.2 $$$$ Tommy P (05/23/02; 07:00:52MT msg#: 76361

$$$$ 317.0 $$$$ nickel62 (05/26/02; 09:20:46MT msg#: 76585

$$$$ 316.5 $$$$ cwa (05/24/02; 08:04:10MT msg#: 76481

$$$$ 316.0 $$$$ luckypierre (05/25/02; 15:52:53MT msg#: 76555

$$$$ 315.8 $$$$ Brett Woods (05/27/02; 21:19:19MT msg#: 76720
$$$$ 315.7 $$$$ law (05/27/02; 23:56:54MT msg#: 76732

$$$$ 315.4 $$$$ ausome (05/22/02; 18:51:28MT msg#: 76296

$$$$ 314.9 $$$$ HOOSIER GOLDBUG (05/22/02; 17:51:17MT msg#: 76283

$$$$ 314.5 $$$$ Pippin (05/23/02; 07:14:36MT msg#: 76362

$$$$ 313.5 $$$$ Topaz (5/25/02; 08:44:39MT - usagold.com msg#: 76541

$$$$ 312.5 $$$$ AUtistic (05/22/02; 17:50:02MT msg#: 76282

$$$$ 308.6 $$$$ kludge (05/23/02; 08:11:29MT msg#: 76365

$$$$ 298.5 $$$$ Mexican (05/27/02; 15:33:32MT msg#: 76690


Tarzan (05/30/02; 22:59:10MT - usagold.com msg#: 77132)
Gold Contest
My guess in the contest is $325.90 . I think that will be fairly close to the value of gold at this weeks closing. Tarzan

Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 22:57:20MT - usagold.com msg#: 77131)
ATTENTION Sir Tarzan === PREVIOUSLY taken Entry !!!!
Tarzan (05/30/02; 22:53:58MT - usagold.com msg#: 77128)
Gold Contest
My guess in the contest is $325.30
===
Please TRY AGAIN !


kramrich (05/30/02; 22:57:04MT - usagold.com msg#: 77130)
contest
whoops$$$$323.40$$$$

I think the dollar will close up a little tomorrow after a brutal week for the dollar. Some shorts closing out their postions ahead of the weekend pushing the dollar up a little. Also I think the Dow will close some for the same reasons. This will probably make gold price track sideways to a little down tomorrow, thus my guess at 323.40.

323.50 was already taken.


kramrich (05/30/02; 22:54:17MT - usagold.com msg#: 77129)
contest
$$$$323.50$$$$

I think the dollar will close up a little tomorrow after a brutal week for the dollar. Some shorts closing out their postions ahead of the weekend pushing the dollar up a little. Also I think the Dow will close some for the same reasons. This will probably make gold price track sideways to a little down tomorrow, thus my guess at 323.50


Tarzan (05/30/02; 22:53:58MT - usagold.com msg#: 77128)
Gold Contest
My guess in the contest is $325.30 . I think that will be fairly close to the value of gold at this weeks closing. Tarzan

Simply Me (05/30/02; 22:49:03MT - usagold.com msg#: 77127)
$$$$ 325.9 $$$$ My entry for the POG guessing contest
It's a craps-shoot! A roll of the dice. But I figured to let all the logical spots be taken first, and go with a number that was left. Why not? My reasoned guesses have never won.
Simply


LimitUp (05/30/02; 22:47:08MT - usagold.com msg#: 77126)
Contest
$$$$$$$$777.00$$$$$$$$$$$ Because here in Oregon we "fix" our own price of gold. We don't need a bunch of banksters doing it for us. So there!

miner49er (05/30/02; 22:45:01MT - usagold.com msg#: 77125)
It's the euro, stupid...
http://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/speeches/2001/200111302/

Having fired off that post this morning, I went back and decided I wanted to flesh out the dollar/euro thing a bit more, as I really did kind of race over it, earlier... I believe there is a salient point to observe in the association of the dollar exchange rate of the euro, and its influence on the splitting of the gold contract pricing regime, from the "spot" price of open physical off take. Here is my thinking:

From the quote (and the discussion found in the article to which the link refers), Alan Greenspan provides the crux of the issues at hand in viewing the struggle between two currencies vying for international demand. Allow me yet again to insert this quote.

"Because the attractiveness of any vehicle currency grows as its liquidity increases, an international currency has a tendency to become a natural monopoly.

"If the underlying demand for one of two competing vehicle currencies falters for a reason not clearly perceived to be transitory, and its bid-ask spreads, accordingly, increase relative to its competition, demand will shift to that competitor. But that shift, in turn, will widen the bid-ask spread of the faltering competitor still more, inducing a further shift of transactions to the alternative currency. This process ends with the demise of the weaker currency as a competing vehicle and the stronger of the two becoming the sole surviving vehicle."

One of the keys to a successful world currency in today's world is its liquidity. Therefore one of the principal strategies of the dollar faction must be to deny the euro, as much as possible, a chance to grow. I believe one of the chief initiatives (in retrospect of course) behind the virulent, and obsessive efforts of the dollar faction to destroy the gold price from 1998 on was in anticipation of the euro. Seeing that it was not going to be stillborn, it became critical, even vital to the dollar that the euro become an under-nourished, malformed thing that would repel investors, and if lucky, cause enough damage to the euro zone economies, that they would demand some kind of referendum and reject it outright.

Since something like 10-15% of the ECB reserves are comprised of gold holdings, a cheaper gold price can make a decent difference in the total assets marked on their balance sheet, as the ECB quarterly revalues their gold assets to the market. This total is especially noticeable when considering the contraction of the fractional reserve process that goes with it. This effect is further compounded by the pure economic ramifications that a contraction would have on the euro zone. To offset this, the ECB would be pressured to apply the quick fix remedies of the conventional wisdom, and make the euro more plentiful by making it easier to obtain, hence devaluing it in respect to reserves, or building reserves with additional debt, and likewise endangering the EU membership's 3% deficit limitation. In any case this would likely involve lowering their short-term interest rate targets.

Should they give in to this pressure, they would foremost compromise their strict public stance that they would avoid political entanglements; their goal being the integrity of the currency (maintained by targeting inflation), and their benchmark being the Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices (HICP). Giving in would discredit them pretty much right out of the gate, and cause not insignificant damage. Secondly, lowering rates would keep giving the dollar breathing room, as the divergence between comparable instruments in dollars or euros would be kept to a minimum, either set of instruments yielding about the same, and therefore not further inviting investors to move to the euro.

As I mentioned some time back, one of the dollar's goals in this conflict was to cause the euro to act like the dollar. Since the euro is not designed like the dollar, it would only be able to act like the dollar inefficiently, if at all, thus promoting the dollar by contrast. And if it should choose to behave like the dollar, then why not just keep using the dollar?

So, I believe a choice was made to systematically lower the gold price against every big player's expectations, and probably much to their ire. I speculate here, but in order to allow this in the short term, sweeping concessions have probably been made across the political/financial spectrum to keep certain players from taking action that would upset the apple cart.

Now what this has to do with the euro exchange rate is that it compelled it to go lower. To be sure, there were significant market dynamics in play independent of this that pressured the euro downward. But at the end of the day, a euro staying too strong in terms of the dollar, and hence gold (so long as the dollar markets determine the price), would cause a systematic quarterly downward revision of their balance sheet as long as gold declined. So any efforts to support the euro could not be deployed during this phase. If anything the euro was best served by further depreciating, as this would make gold more expensive in euros (having to base it on the dollar price), thereby maintaining its value on their balance sheet.

The vicious circle this created for the euro is that these efforts only further strengthened the dollar, and encouraged more dollar investment, and made dollar debtors even more desperate to obtain them, as their debts became more expensive daily (which provided plenty and cheap products to the U.S., and allowed us to run up those inane current account deficits each month). All this just put even more dollars in play (extra liquidity), all the while keeping the illusion of price stability, and fostered a somewhat good-as-gold valuation in the eyes of the world -- which substantiated the validity of this additional liquidity.

I believe we made (and are still making) a conscious decision to sacrifice our manufacturing and other export sectors as a necessary loss, in order to sustain this face off. Here we stand eyeball-to-eyeball, toe-to-toe, bad-breath-to-bad-breath. Who will blink first? We are sacrificing our industrial heart and soul, and running up unfathomable debt, to fight a battle of attrition. Time (i.e., having enough of it) is our only hope. Europe must wrestle with its political element clamoring for easier money, to offset the higher cost of imports brought on by the strong dollar -- especially oil. The dollar wants the euro to flinch and try to act like the dollar (which is a trap, as it is not a dollar), and the euro is seeking to gain liquidity, without depreciation, but is hampered by the gold/dollar chain around its neck, whereby it cannot show any muscle, as appreciation in a down gold market offsets its efforts with a contracting reserve asset base.

Any overt attempt to break this stranglehold in the gold markets by the big players would have cataclysmic results. Certainly the price of gold would jettison beyond anyone's expectations, but the entire global dollar infrastructure would disintegrate, and the fission-like reaction from the subsequent derivatives disaster would invite far too many unknowns from the sudden and violent instability. The euro faction even has to be careful in how it encourages its public into physical gold ownership. Too obvious an emphasis would send equally powerful signals, and cause a torrential exodus from dollars to gold too suddenly.

So it is probably the decision of the cool heads in these circles to stay the course, and commingle bad breath with the dollar forces, while subtly encouraging public gold awareness, and subsequent physical gold ownership. This is necessary, as best laid plans of mice and bankers will come to naught ultimately unless the public is on board. The benefits of public gold ownership to the euro create a virtuous circle in that the euro does not compete with gold. So those who own gold are happy not to have to constantly fight with their currency's handlers, and those who own euros benefit indirectly from any appreciation in gold. The exact opposite exists in the dollar camp. And subsequently, gold ownership is nowhere encouraged in its ranks.

The risky part about this strategy of slowly changing the mindset of the public to gold ownership is that it is a choice from which there is no turning back. Even if immense physical gold off take were taking place at the highest circles and done in such a way that no one knew it was happening (it probably happens like this every day...), reversing course is no real big deal, as you are dealing with a few known entities, and the ground rules are generally understood, and the participants proficient at their trade. Allerlei political strategies, and financial machinations are at their disposal. We on the ground would remain eternally clueless of what went on.

When the genii of a sea change in public opinion is let out of the bottle, however, it is not easily returned. So the countless efforts to encourage physical gold ownership (gold markets in Dubai, and China, e.g., and China effectively removing VAT from gold purchases, the new German gold coin, the coming gold euro, etc.), combined with the forceful and sudden interest in gold due to systemic problems (e.g., Japan -- with its trillions, count 'em, trillions of available yen), and you have a tremendous force placed against the price of gold -- and brought on by real, paid for, delivery demanded, off take.

This will eventually pressure the contract markets by constant and wearying bouts of backwardation until one or both of the following happen: 1) the strength, will, and resources of the shorts give out, and price spikes expose them, causing default and discrediting of the market, with contract pricing becoming worthless; 2) longs bail out first -- those seeking delivery recognizing they won't get it here, and those playing the price action, recognizing the game's over.

In any case, the evisceration of the paper pricing mechanisms in dollars will unleash the physical price of gold, and this in turn will allow the euro room to appreciate without jeopardizing its balance sheet. Indeed as gold begins its steady, no turning back ascent, it will only enhance the ECB asset base further. This will permit large amounts of new and viable debt to be issued, and increase euro liquidity. This will further devalue the dollar, which will only inspire a further exodus from it, and further encourage the price of gold higher.

In an all out effort, we are going to pump and pump and pump our system to try and bring investor interest back to the table. We (I hazard this as speculation) are probably desperately, and now recklessly going to provide any cash backing possible to invite short interest to the gold markets, to throw as much water on the fire as we can. The big guns are exhausted, and it's time to call up the reserves. There is no gold at all, whatsoever behind these shorts, and this is known up front. But this is a last ditch effort. Everything is up for sacrifice here, as it is winner take all. If this last ditch effort works, then all these shorts will never be called, as the price of gold is beaten back, and the euro is forced again to stay on its tight rein. I'm not a technical guy, so I can't tell you exact floors or ceilings, but when I say they need to convincingly drive the price sustainably back to the 290 area, you get the picture of the task at hand. This would cause the euro rise of late to halt, and would have the effect of both decreasing the euro, as well as causing a reversal in the dollar back to its ever-strengthening mode.

The purpose of this is to apply pressure again, and again until hopefully the euro forces crack. Time is the dollar's only ally, but it is running out. Who can fathom all the intrigue and details of this sordid affair? Who can truly declare when and if and how?

So for the average man, it seems to make more sense to stay out of the fray, and hold one's savings in the actual metal itself, and not have to endure the house-of-horrors surprises that one awakens to on any given day, as this or that of their favorite equity, or highest flyer, suddenly goes belly-up on some untimely news.

I prefer to walk in the footsteps of the giants (and quietly way in back of the line, at that...).

Not a comprehensive treatment of the subject (phew!), but I hope this clarifies...

miner




Chris Powell (05/30/02; 22:37:48MT - usagold.com msg#: 77124)
The top 10 ways GATA could spend that $70,000
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/gata/message/1131
The top 10 ways GATA could spend that $70,000
contribution from Afrikander Lease:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/gata/message/1131

To subscribe to GATA's dispatches
by email and get them immediately so
you don't have to go look for them,
send an email to:

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Hektor (05/30/02; 22:32:09MT - usagold.com msg#: 77123)
Gandalf
Thanks very much for your gracious handling of my guess. It was obviously too complicated for my unassisted efforts.

TKC (05/30/02; 22:26:47MT - usagold.com msg#: 77122)
Guess on POG
$$$$$$323.5$$$$$$$$

The powers in control, do not want the price to be above 325 for now and this is the first avaliable price below 325.


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 22:26:10MT - usagold.com msg#: 77121)
Lady Linda's Questions (msg#: 77118)
linda (05/30/02; 22:13:06MT - usagold.com msg#: 77118)
Questions
Would we loose all our money in the stock market?
===
Welcome Lady Linda ! May I begin the answer session with a "thought" that rings in my ears whenever I see this question that you have ask. A very good friend of mine, Peter the Great, would tell you that "There is NO MONEY in the stock market!!" The pieces of "ownership paper" are only worth what someone else will pay you for them, IF there are any buyers. Think about ENRON or Royal Oak Mines. Perhaps even ABX !!!
Then ask The(physical)Coinguy!
<;-)


GuyGold (05/30/02; 22:25:20MT - usagold.com msg#: 77120)
POG Guessing Contest
$$$$334.6$$$$
Taking in Mahenra Sharma's predictions+James Sinclair and Harry Schults comments+a gut feel and some hope is how I derived my guess.


WW Oracle (05/30/02; 22:19:44MT - usagold.com msg#: 77119)
Contest
$$$$ 319.30 $$$$

Short-term correction due, and pushed by those who would be under water if May ended with gold over $320.


linda (05/30/02; 22:13:06MT - usagold.com msg#: 77118)
Questions
Hi all—

I just finished reading the: ‘ABC of Gold Investing’ and would recommend anyone who wants to understand or/an learn about Gold investing to start with this book.

After reading the book it made me think about a lot of things and I have a lot of (dumb) questions if someone can help me out?

Are there any other good books regards understanding/educating oneself regards gold investing?

After reading the book, I had a couple of questions I wanted to ask:

Can the US gov't EVER pay out the debt? How did the debt originally start and how does it accumulate and by whom?


Can the US gov't devalue the US dollar? Who would be able to devalue the dollar (public or private agency) Under what circumstances?

What are the signs of a weak market, gov't and economy?

Can the US gov't claim bankruptcy? How would they do this? What would happen to the stock market (collapse, corp. bankruptcy (i.e. Enron?) what would the signs be? Would we loose all our money in the stock market? What would happen with the banking industry that is FDIC insured? Would the money be null? Would people loose business and jobs? How would the people get paid? To whom are the American people paying the debt to (public/private?)

If the US gov't can never pay out its debt, could it claim bankruptcy?

Who is the Central Bank? What is the Central Bank compromised of?

Page 72 mentions, To this day, the US gold reserve of roughly 260 billion ounces ostensibly is valued at $42.22 per ounce. despite the fact the face market price is closer to $400...
Which agency has allowed valued the gold to $42.22 per ounce despite the market value? Who would the US gov't sell the gold to for the above price? If gold were to be confiscated how would the gov't compensate the people?

Page 26, Why by banning the import of Krugerrand the gold premiums dropped? What is the definition of premium?

What about gold derivative?

I am still unclear how the pre-1933 coins are valued? Can the pre-1933 coins ever loss its value?

How can one avoid gold confiscation?

Any helpful answers/responses are welcomed!





mikal (05/30/02; 22:10:42MT - usagold.com msg#: 77117)
Contest Entry
$$$$29,999$$$$ This is the result of a simple diagnosis of an average cabal banker, belonging to the species- tyrannareekus megalomanius. Beginning with listening to the number of expletives, whines, or demands issued per minute: avg.=34. Add to the avg. weight, in pounds= 580 plus avg. pulse rate in 2002 in beats/min.=29,337, finally topped off with the avg. # of lifetime, productive hours contributed to public service= 48.

Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 22:06:41MT - usagold.com msg#: 77116)
ATTENTION SIR Boxman AND "Pilgrims Gold"
The following Entries were DUPLICATES and require RE-ENTRY !
===
Boxman (05/30/02; 17:55:15MT - usagold.com msg#: 77072)
---
Pilgrims Gold (05/30/02; 15:26:53MT - usagold.com msg#: 77057)
===
Tick Tock
<;-)


HopeingII (05/30/02; 22:04:27MT - usagold.com msg#: 77115)
CONTEST GUESS
$$$$ $ 328.5 $$$$ My guess is based primarily on three consideration.

1) The powers that be can no longer "easily" push the POG down.

2) Investors today face a multitude of negatives. The ongoing terrorist threat, the declining US dollar, the escalating US spending, Japan's banking situation, deteriorating stock markets, decreasing consumer onfidence, wars and rumours of war,SEC investigations, just to name a few. Certainly not all, if in fact any of these negatives are going to disappear quickly. Without doubt some are only going to get worse in coming months and possibly even years. Investors will become increasingly nervous.

3) After many years of almost none, Gold is receiving an increasing amount of positive commentary from some of the main stream press and investment analysts. This, in IMHO is very important.

I believe the currently underway shift of some portion of investor's funds into Gold will continue for some time to come.


TownCrier (05/30/02; 21:52:23MT - usagold.com msg#: 77114)
Gandalf, you're welcome!
All in a day's work. Always a pleasure to be "at your service" where hobbits are concerned.

R.


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 21:48:50MT - usagold.com msg#: 77113)
$$$$ 322.0 $$$$
Thanks TC for the discussion item for Sir Chap !!! That has revised the Hobbits thinking and they have now come up with their collective "Guess" on the Settlement Price at the COB tomorrow !

Solomon Weaver (05/30/02; 21:43:28MT - usagold.com msg#: 77112)
Just posted today item discussing the investment value of silver....done up nicely in Jim Pupluva's usual brilliant format.
http://www.financialsense.com/editorials/morgan052902.htm
Perhaps an item to print out in color for friends.

POS


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 21:43:19MT - usagold.com msg#: 77111)
NEAR FINAL UPDATE --- a little over 2 HOURS remain !!!
ENTRIES in Contest (sorted by Price) !!
====
$$$$ 8,752.0 $$$$ The Invisible Hand (05/24/02; 05:39:59MT msg#: 76471

$$$$ 440.2 $$$$ goldquest (05/22/02; 14:17:02MT msg#: 76261

$$$$ 366.0 $$$$ Canuck (05/30/02; 17:43:06MT msg#: 77071

$$$$ 365.2 $$$$ Husky (5/29/02; 13:19:04MT msg#: 76876

$$$$ 360.0 $$$$ GoldnSilver2002 (05/24/02; 12:29:56MT msg#: 76497

$$$$ 355.9 $$$$ darkhorse (05/22/02; 21:25:11MT msg#: 76317

$$$$ 354.0 $$$$ Henri (05/24/02; 09:18:51MT msg#: 76490

$$$$ 352.5 $$$$ White Hills (05/22/02; 19:23:20MT msg#: 76300

$$$$ 350.0 $$$$ ROSEBUD99 (5/28/02; 10:32:46MT msg#: 76775
$$$$ 349.9 $$$$ perform (5/30/02; 04:05:13MT msg#: 76970

$$$$ 349.2 $$$$ Pizz (5/28/02; 10:07:10MT msg#: 76771

$$$$ 348.4 $$$$ techbull.... (05/30/02; 15:27:22MT msg#: 77058)

$$$$ 348.0 $$$$ White Rose (05/25/02; 22:03:47MT msg#: 76569

$$$$ 345.0 $$$$ sstins (05/30/02; 15:20:56MT msg#: 77054

$$$$ 343.0 $$$$ ji (5/25/02; 06:23:45MT msg#: 76533

$$$$ 342.0 $$$$ neer-do-well (05/24/02; 08:20:19MT msg#: 76484

$$$$ 341.0 $$$$ spike (05/30/02; 16:59:34MT msg#: 77066

$$$$ 339.9 $$$$ R Powell (05/30/02; 16:13:36MT msg#: 77063

$$$$ 339.0 $$$$ rsjacksr (05/22/02; 16:32:28MT msg#: 76278
$$$$ 338.9 $$$$ Siochain (5/28/02; 09:41:22MT msg#: 76766

$$$$ 338.2 $$$$ silvester (5/29/02; 20:57:16MT msg#: 76920

$$$$ 337.5 $$$$ wiley (05/23/02; 10:49:37MT msg#: 76386

$$$$ 336.6 $$$$ zorro (5/23/02; 16:42:43MT msg#: 76420

$$$$ 336.0 $$$$ Creosote (05/22/02; 19:38:52MT msg#: 76303

$$$$ 335.6 $$$$ Kodie (05/26/02; 09:59:13MT - usagold.com msg#: 76588

$$$$ 335.1 $$$$ Gold Standard (5/27/02; 05:32:52MT msg#: 76663

$$$$ 334.7 $$$$ RobotGuy (5/28/02; 10:38:00MT msg#: 76777

$$$$ 334.4 $$$$ BILLYG (5/29/02; 01:36:25MT msg#: 76832
$$$$ 334.3 $$$$ Believer (05/22/02; 16:19:37MT msg#: 76277

$$$$ 333.3 $$$$ Tevye (05/22/02; 13:58:29MT msg#: 76258

$$$$ 332.8 $$$$ AUthentic (5/29/02; 14:59:17MT msg#: 76886)
$$$$ 332.7 $$$$ BLUENOSE (05/30/02; 18:42:47MT msg#: 77074

$$$$ 332.5 $$$$ gvc (05/30/02; 11:23:44MT msg#: 77016
$$$$ 332.3 $$$$ Neubie (05/30/02; 14:42:55MT msg#: 77043

$$$$ 332.2 $$$$ Goldfinger 2 (5/28/02; 11:20:26MT msg#: 76779

$$$$ 331.9 $$$$ Paper Avalanche (05/30/02; 13:24:29MT msg#: 77032

$$$$ 331.7 $$$$ sangrelli (05/30/02; 20:07:51MT msg#: 77094

$$$$ 331.5 $$$$ Camel (5/29/02; 08:40:15MT msg#: 76861

$$$$ 331.3 $$$$ auenboy (5/29/02; 22:04:32MT msg#: 76934

$$$$ 331.0 $$$$ DOWNUNDER (05/24/02; 22:40:53MT msg#: 76522

$$$$ 330.5 $$$$ Cumber (05/30/02; 08:31:17MT msg#: 76998

$$$$ 330.3 $$$$ Brahms (5/28/02; 00:16:44MT msg#: 76734
$$$$ 330.2 $$$$ Christian (5/27/02; 07:40:31MT msg#: 76666

$$$$ 330.0 $$$$ Shanti (05/30/02; 09:43:25MT msg#: 77004
$$$$ 329.9 $$$$ The Victorian (05/30/02; 20:41:49MT msg#: 77101
$$$$ 329.8 $$$$ Tate (5/28/02; 13:15:44MT msg#: 76790
$$$$ 329.7 $$$$ goldroadlx7 (5/28/02; 15:57:31MT msg#: 76802

$$$$ 329.5 $$$$ Waverider (05/30/02; 15:10:43MT msg#: 77053
$$$$ 329.4 $$$$ Clint H (5/23/02; 19:18:44MT msg#: 76436

$$$$ 329.2 $$$$ Max Rabbitz (05/30/02; 12:22:39MT msg#: 77023

$$$$ 329.0 $$$$ Voyager (05/30/02; 11:44:36MT msg#: 77019
$$$$ 328.9 $$$$ Zhisheng (5/30/02; 06:53:01MT msg#: 76982
$$$$ 328.8 $$$$ Hektor (05/30/02; 18:58:55MT msg#: 77079
$$$$ 328.7 $$$$ The CoinGuy (05/30/02; 21:39:34MT msg#: 77110)

$$$$ 328.4 $$$$ Slowman (05/24/02; 07:37:27MT msg#: 76479
$$$$ 328.3 $$$$ miner49er (05/30/02; 09:56:43MT msg#: 77006
$$$$ 328.2 $$$$ Troy Boy (05/30/02; 08:16:10MT msg#: 76995
$$$$ 328.1 $$$$ Humble Pie (05/30/02; 12:02:41MT msg#: 77021
$$$$ 328.0 $$$$ Nomad (5/29/02; 21:26:48MT msg#: 76925
$$$$ 327.9 $$$$ Goldilocks 1 (5/29/02; 19:51:51MT msg#: 76913
$$$$ 327.8 $$$$ tedw (5/29/02; 23:38:18MT msg#: 76951
$$$$ 327.7 $$$$ goldenpeace (5/28/02; 03:52:15MT msg#: 76749
$$$$ 327.6 $$$$ timbervision (05/23/02; 09:17:25MT msg#: 76369
$$$$ 327.5 $$$$ koala bear (5/29/02; 13:03:51MT msg#: 76874
$$$$ 327.4 $$$$ Canuck Gold (05/30/02; 12:23:48MT msg#: 77024
$$$$ 327.3 $$$$ The Hoople (05/30/02; 13:35:47MT msg#: 77034
$$$$ 327.2 $$$$ vermillion (5/23/02; 19:19:38MT msg#: 76437
$$$$ 327.1 $$$$ purist (05/30/02; 20:43:26MT - usagold.com msg#: 77102*
$$$$ 327.0 $$$$ Solomon Weaver (05/25/02; 21:59:46MT msg#: 76568
$$$$ 326.9 $$$$ Achilles (05/24/02; 04:29:15MT msg#: 76466
$$$$ 326.8 $$$$ Hipplebeck (05/23/02; 06:07:51MT msg#: 76357
$$$$ 326.7 $$$$ ProGold (05/30/02; 13:22:18MT msg#: 77031
$$$$ 326.6 $$$$ slingshot (05/24/02; 19:24:09MT msg#: 76519
$$$$ 326.5 $$$$ turkey hunter (05/30/02; 15:43:58MT msg#: 77061
$$$$ 326.4 $$$$ Kevin$ (5/29/02; 21:34:57MT msg#: 76929
$$$$ 326.3 $$$$ Yukon (05/30/02; 11:34:08MT msg#: 77018
$$$$ 326.2 $$$$ Econoclast (05/30/02; 20:35:31MT msg#: 77100
$$$$ 326.1 $$$$ Chap "X" by TC (05/30/02; 21:07:26MT msg#: 77107
$$$$ 326.0 $$$$ Broken Tee (5/23/02; 15:38:46MT msg#: 76416

$$$$ 325.8 $$$$ ore stone (05/30/02; 12:52:11MT msg#: 77027
$$$$ 325.7 $$$$ OZ (05/26/02; 23:20:25MT msg#: 76635
$$$$ 325.6 $$$$ Artie Farkle (05/30/02; 14:08:01MT msg#: 77040
$$$$ 325.5 $$$$ steady (05/24/02; 15:26:22MT msg#: 76503
$$$$ 325.4 $$$$ Renny (5/28/02; 18:39:54MT msg#: 76809
$$$$ 325.3 $$$$ Frosty (5/28/02; 17:48:48MT msg#: 76806
$$$$ 325.2 $$$$ Black Blade (05/30/02; 12:32:15MT msg#: 77025
$$$$ 325.1 $$$$ Au-some (5/29/02; 19:43:11MT msg#: 76912
$$$$ 325.0 $$$$ Around The Corner (5/23/02; 02:17:38MT msg#: 76350
$$$$ 324.9 $$$$ THX-1138 (05/22/02; 16:45:28MT msg#: 76279
$$$$ 324.8 $$$$ Yellow Metal (05/22/02; 16:51:55MT msg#: 76280
$$$$ 324.7 $$$$ Gimli_ (05/30/02; 14:28:18MT msg#: 77042
$$$$ 324.6 $$$$ Graefin (05/22/02; 13:33:35MT msg#: 76257
$$$$ 324.5 $$$$ Q (05/30/02; 10:44:28MT msg#: 77013
$$$$ 324.4 $$$$ Bound Spirit (05/30/02; 10:40:25MT msg#: 77011
$$$$ 324.3 $$$$ Shermag (05/30/02; 14:58:38MT msg#: 77048
$$$$ 324.2 $$$$ Rock (05/22/02; 13:06:37MT msg#: 76254
$$$$ 324.1 $$$$ jlfletc (05/30/02; 17:04:49MT msg#: 77067
$$$$ 324.0 $$$$ Golden Bear (05/30/02; 07:46:42MT msg#: 76987
$$$$ 323.9 $$$$ Alchemist (05/30/02; 08:11:16MT msg#: 76993
$$$$ 323.8 $$$$ Knallgold (05/30/02; 09:38:57MT msg#: 77003*
$$$$ 323.8 $$$$ Yellow Jacket (05/30/02; 20:49:01MT msg#: 77104
$$$$ 323.7 $$$$ Trurl (5/29/02; 21:07:00MT msg#: 76922
$$$$ 323.6 $$$$ VanRip (05/22/02; 21:58:11MT msg#: 76323

$$$$ 323.1 $$$$ goldenboy (5/30/02; 07:24:16MT msg#: 76983

$$$$ 322.6 $$$$ misetich (5/23/02; 03:05:56MT msg#: 76351

$$$$ 321.5 $$$$ RobertG (5/23/02; 19:23:59MT msg#: 76438

$$$$ 320.4 $$$$ Jimbo (05/22/02; 14:31:21MT msg#: 76264

$$$$ 320.2 $$$$ 18K (5/23/02; 03:47:11MT msg#: 76353

$$$$ 319.9 $$$$ Trapper (05/22/02; 17:52:38MT msg#: 76284

$$$$ 319.5 $$$$ YGM (05/22/02; 13:29:47MT msg#: 76256

$$$$ 319.0 $$$$ Houston (5/25/02; 12:57:47MT msg#: 76551
$$$$ 318.9 $$$$ Jon (5/29/02; 15:05:27MT msg#: 76888

$$$$ 318.5 $$$$ EagleOne (05/22/02; 21:26:49MT msg#: 76318

$$$$ 318.2 $$$$ onlychild (05/22/02; 15:10:37MT msg#: 76269

$$$$ 317.5 $$$$ balzac (05/23/02; 07:33:25MT msg#: 76363

$$$$ 317.2 $$$$ Tommy P (05/23/02; 07:00:52MT msg#: 76361

$$$$ 317.0 $$$$ nickel62 (05/26/02; 09:20:46MT msg#: 76585

$$$$ 316.5 $$$$ cwa (05/24/02; 08:04:10MT msg#: 76481

$$$$ 316.0 $$$$ luckypierre (05/25/02; 15:52:53MT msg#: 76555

$$$$ 315.8 $$$$ Brett Woods (05/27/02; 21:19:19MT msg#: 76720
$$$$ 315.7 $$$$ law (05/27/02; 23:56:54MT msg#: 76732

$$$$ 315.4 $$$$ ausome (05/22/02; 18:51:28MT msg#: 76296

$$$$ 314.9 $$$$ HOOSIER GOLDBUG (05/22/02; 17:51:17MT msg#: 76283

$$$$ 314.5 $$$$ Pippin (05/23/02; 07:14:36MT msg#: 76362

$$$$ 313.5 $$$$ Topaz (5/25/02; 08:44:39MT - usagold.com msg#: 76541

$$$$ 312.5 $$$$ AUtistic (05/22/02; 17:50:02MT msg#: 76282

$$$$ 308.6 $$$$ kludge (05/23/02; 08:11:29MT msg#: 76365

$$$$ 298.5 $$$$ Mexican (05/27/02; 15:33:32MT msg#: 76690
===
<;-)




The CoinGuy (05/30/02; 21:39:34MT - usagold.com msg#: 77110)
$$$$328.70$$$$
Hello Gandy, All...

Looks like i got back in town just in the nick of time...

In the past, I've used TA to determine which way I thought the paper contract was headed, and this method turned out to be a losing proposition. Thought I'd go with guessing, like most others.

The(physical)CoinGuy


steady (05/30/02; 21:27:52MT - usagold.com msg#: 77109)
contest
cant we end the contest with todays close.

FYI -- the June COMEX Contract SETTLEMENT price today (Thursday) was $325.5 ----BUT the range on the day was
between $326.7 and $323.5 !!!!!!!!!!!!!

id have won.

what are the chances of 325.5 two days in a row/ about as good as the cabal winning this battle i say>
as someone once said here the war is won , yet the battle rages. go gata!


Solomon Weaver (05/30/02; 21:18:43MT - usagold.com msg#: 77108)
Gandalf....a nomination on letting purist ahead of me in line.
I notice that purist (new poster) has chosen a slot which is already taken...but that the slot above me is still empty.

I would be highly honored to have this new fellow be given the 10 mark above me....

Poor old Solomon


TownCrier (05/30/02; 21:07:26MT - usagold.com msg#: 77107)
$$$$ 326.1 $$$$
I am posting this on behalf of a chap without a password who e-mailed just moments ago, justifiably concerned that there would not be time to get a posting handle assigned to him before the deadline. He's promised us that he will join the discussion in due course. Let's hope he does.

He didn't provide a commentary for his choice of prices so I will do one for him to make this a valid entry. Ahem... here it is:

Friday being first notice day for the June contract will result in a brief bit of selling pressure as longs with small pockets are washed out. Additionally, with August now becoming the active month, buying pressure on the June contract will abate, therefore the price tomorrow will settle much nearer the earth than the moon, somewhere in the vicinity of the optimistic price this gentleman has selected.

R.


Cavan Man (05/30/02; 21:07:25MT - usagold.com msg#: 77106)
Hung Low and Dr. Fat (did I get that right?)
Why no upward movement in Asia? Why is the upward action in western markets? What's up with that? $325 appears to be the new Maginot line eh?

Cavan Man (05/30/02; 21:04:46MT - usagold.com msg#: 77105)
Hey R Powell....
Yes, it is getting exciting. BTW, I can only watch and wait. I think GATA et al is likely on the money but who really knows? Since gold is and always will be political dynamite IMHO, the real market is opaque. Good luck...CM

Yellow Jacket (05/30/02; 20:49:01MT - usagold.com msg#: 77104)
PRICE GUESS
$$$$323.8$$$$
Dollar and stocks due for a one day bounce...maybe.


Yellow Metal (05/30/02; 20:48:09MT - usagold.com msg#: 77103)
re :A Perennially Praiseworthy Protagonist of PM's Permutations
R Powell said.

"Properly prepared plump poultry propitiously
processed produces prophetically perfect price predictions.
Good luck to all.
Rich"

Nuthin like a man of letters ( well one letter "P") to point the way !

Loved the post !
As Tiny Tim said."God bless us every one"
A little silly celebrating may be in order.


purist (05/30/02; 20:43:26MT - usagold.com msg#: 77102)
The real thing?
$$$$$327.20$$$$$

After lurking here for 3 years, finally I post something. I am amazed at the diversity and creativity of the posts here. I also use this site as a quick check of important world events or websites of interest. I gave up on the "other" website after discovering this one, due to the respect most posters show for each other here.

Why my choice? Judging by the orderly increase in the POG over the last few weeks, I suspect it is still being controlled in some manner. This a gradual rise is underway. No surprises.

My theory is that one of two things is underway:
1. The lack of volatility might be a way for some big players to change their positions without getting slaughtered. Then the POG will stay high indefinitely.

2. Or, perhaps the gradual change is necessary so that the masses aren't alerted that the rise has begun, and by the time they'll realise it, the parties that have been buying on the way up can sell back to them and net a handsome profit. Then some country (it's getting kind of lame, but it seems to do the trick) will announce finding a pile of gold that the intend to put on the market, to run the POG down again.



The Victorian (05/30/02; 20:41:49MT - usagold.com msg#: 77101)
gold price guess
Okay, I may as well take a stab at this. If the following number is not taken I shall guess $$$$329.9$$$$
No particular reason, just wishful thinking, as I would love to see POG crash through the 327 barrier and continue upwards once again.


Econoclast (05/30/02; 20:35:31MT - usagold.com msg#: 77100)
$$$$$$$ 326.20 $$$$$$$$
I decided to take a stab since there are so few openings left around the current "price".
I think we will stay in a tight range tomorrow. The time for fireworks is close but I just don't feel it's here quite yet. JP Morgan says this rally is stopping at $330. For the recent past, they've had the final word, therefore, that's the number I'm looking for. When we pass that, all bets are off, we're off to the races.
Can the shorts/banks take it below 325? That was my question to myself. The next number open on the downside is $1.70 away. I chose to be mildly bullish in the paper sense. This thing really is getting away from them. We've all been waiting and watching patiently, is everyone truly ready for what's coming? I'm not, but I think it's coming anyway.


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 20:30:54MT - usagold.com msg#: 77099)
THANKS ALL !!! My QUICK count to this point is -- 121 Entries
WOWSERS --- Thanks for the FLOOD of entries ! I am sorry, but as Black Blade has said "the line in the sand" is being defended by the Cabal and the ORCS are coming in droves to be slaughtered by the Goldhearts !! I was rather busy today, but happy to see that you all did well. Only two entries that still have to be "solved".
NOW, to the small TABLEROUND as the BOSS says that, "IF I do not come now", it shall be given to "SPOT" and "SPIKE" !
<;-)


R Powell (05/30/02; 20:29:30MT - usagold.com msg#: 77098)
Cavan Man
The markets may just be as screwed up as you and those you mentioned think. If the price skyrockets, margin calls will force many out, rules concerning margin will probably change and the market makers may even intervene with liguidation only orders. There may be some newly thought out interference.
Still, I think the exchange will survive and can be traded, carefully, very carefully! There may come a time to get out entirely but, pardon the expression, I always hedge my bets. Again, just one opinion. I don't always search for the safest or most secure and still believe there's nothing guaranteed other than death and taxes. I'm not even entirely sure of these. "Only my dying will tell" Blood, Sweat and Tears.
It is getting exciting, no?
Rich


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 20:14:55MT - usagold.com msg#: 77097)
Since you are (I believe) DOWNUNDER and may be asleep ----
Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 18:55:25MT - usagold.com msg#: 77078)
NOTICE to Sir Knallgold !!! Duplicate Entry - PLEASE try again!!!
Knallgold (05/30/02; 09:38:57MT - usagold.com msg#: 77003)
$$$$$323.9$$$$$$
======
How about the available $323.8 ?
<;-)


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 20:11:13MT - usagold.com msg#: 77096)
Thanks Sir Sangrelli --- GOT YA !
sangrelli (05/30/02; 20:07:51MT - usagold.com msg#: 77094)
2nd try


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 20:09:06MT - usagold.com msg#: 77095)
COUNTDOWN to Midnight in Denver !!
Less than FOUR HOURS to go in the POG Contest !
FYI -- the June COMEX Contract SETTLEMENT price today (Thursday) was $325.5 ----BUT the range on the day was between $326.7 and $323.5 !!!!!!!!!!!!!
<;-)


sangrelli (05/30/02; 20:07:51MT - usagold.com msg#: 77094)
2nd try
ok $$$$331.7$$$$
I feel the fear factor is going to meet the stong bull players. The bulls (Dr No Hung Fat or whoever); are ready to make em sweat bullets. The bulls know gold has been getting attention and just a little push will cause new blood on the sidelines to jump in if we surpass a major resistance point. Plus, an added bonus of short covering will kick in. So, the extra money it costs to challage the shorts is peanuts compared to what's going to happen when the public (albiet desperate for a fix (new sector to make em money))jump in. The planets are alligned in the house of the golden bull; this rare phenonom happens only once in an investers lifetime. A caveate being any pullback ie DROOY falls below $5 you may encounter a margin call if you are pushing it.
cheers
gs


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 20:00:54MT - usagold.com msg#: 77093)
ATTENTION Sir Sangrelli !! Previously Entry -- Please TRY AGAIN !
sangrelli (05/30/02; 19:09:07MT - usagold.com msg#: 77080)
my guess
I would have posted earlier but it took a while to get my password.I say $$$$330.0$$$$, we may have a massive number of contracts trade tomarrow. A good 5 point or more jump is in the cards. I think gold bugs have been beat for so long, that their naysayers by nature.I will also guess that gold will hit $400 by October.
best o luck & I like the fourm.
gs
===
WELCOME -- Glad you made it, but sorry someone had the same idea.
<;-)


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 19:56:47MT - usagold.com msg#: 77092)
ATTENTION SIR Boxman -- You are so correct and so late !!
Boxman (05/30/02; 17:55:15MT - usagold.com msg#: 77072)
Contest
$$$324.40$$$ Not to scientific, not much was available in the $324.00 range.

Not to be a buttinsky, but Hektor (77047) and Pilgrims Gold (77057) may have a problem with their guesstimats, as my understanding is the amounts are to be rounded in dimes.
===
Your choice was previously taken !! PLEASE try again !
You are soooo CORRECT about the two entries -- they must be in TENTHS !
Thanks -- NOW TRY AGAIN, Please
<;-)


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 19:53:06MT - usagold.com msg#: 77091)
Sir Hektor --- since it was the second try -- I moved it to the open spot!
Hektor (05/30/02; 18:58:55MT - usagold.com msg#: 77079)
$$$$328.90$$$$
Since it has to be rounded to the dime. Hope that isn't taken.
==
How about 328.8 !!
<;-)


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 19:42:44MT - usagold.com msg#: 77089)
WOWSERS -- You are fast in CORRECTIONS Sir Canuck --THANKS
Canuck (05/30/02; 17:43:06MT - usagold.com msg#: 77071)
POG guessing contest
I see Mr. Pie has 328.10. A new theory. They lose it large tomorrow and June closes at $366.00

Yeah, that's what will happen, TSHTF tomorrow and POG hits....................

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$366.00$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 19:41:18MT - usagold.com msg#: 77088)
NOTICE Sir Canuck -- Previously Chosen Price -- Please try again !!
Canuck (05/30/02; 17:36:00MT - usagold.com msg#: 77070)
POG guessing contest
$$$$$$$$328.10$$$$$$$$
Might be an interesting day (haven't they all been lately?). I think 328 is a 'line in the sand' as well as 325, 330, 337, etc.etc. I believe we will be between 325-328; too much pain yet for the 'managers'.
===
This was taken previously!!
<;-(


Chris Powell (05/30/02; 19:36:35MT - usagold.com msg#: 77087)
Another MiningWeb story about AfLease donation to GATA
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/gata/message/1127
TheMiningWeb.com reports again about the big
donation to GATA from Afrikander Lease:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/gata/message/1127

To subscribe to GATA's dispatches
by email and get them immediately so
you don't have to go look for them,
send an email to:

gata-subscribe@yahoogroups.com


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 19:33:40MT - usagold.com msg#: 77086)
NOTICE to SIR Pilgrims Gold == INVALID entry ! Please Try Again
Pilgrims Gold (05/30/02; 15:26:53MT - usagold.com msg#: 77057)
$$$$ 327.45 $$$$
my uneducated guess
===
Must be in TENTHS and all in that range were preciously taken !
<;-(


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 19:28:03MT - usagold.com msg#: 77085)
SIR Strad Master's MYSTERY Question !
(05/30/02; 15:00:56MT - usagold.com msg#: 77050)
Mystified
How is the final price for the contest winning going to be determined? The INO listing at the left of the USA Gold page fixed the POG at $325.40 while the Kitco chart fixed it at $326.20 Why is there such a discrepancy? Which can be relied upon to be correct? Is there a better place to find a reliable POG price?
===
Please read the RULES slowly !! The COMEX JUNE Contract Settlement Price is the CORRECT PRICE AND WINNING Number!
OK?
<;-)


Cavan Man (05/30/02; 19:27:05MT - usagold.com msg#: 77084)
4th to nomination
Good show miner49er!

PS to R Powell: My friend, if the gold market is as screwed up as GATA, Howe, Veneroso, Sinclair and HS say it is than one must honestly admit that in an expolosion deriving its' fury from any one or combination of different sources, ALL BETS ARE OFF. Good luck....CM


Cavan Man (05/30/02; 19:23:49MT - usagold.com msg#: 77083)
Hello miner49er
After three years of vary careful study and analysis, I have reached the same conclusions. I cannot thank you enough for your recent contribution here; sophia! Good luck and Godspeed to you in each and every future endeavor.
Sincerely......CM


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 19:23:43MT - usagold.com msg#: 77082)
NOTICE to Sir Hektor --- INVALID entry -- Please try again !!
Hektor (05/30/02; 14:49:44MT - usagold.com msg#: 77047)
(No Subject)
$$$$327.87$$$$
They will try to hold it down to $325, but will not be able to keep it below even $327.
===
Tenths only please, and all were taken in that range !!
<;-(


R Powell (05/30/02; 19:13:30MT - usagold.com msg#: 77081)
3rd to the nomination
Of miner49er's 77006.
YGM initiated the nomination and the Mr. Gresham from western MA. seconded it. May I provide the third.
I don't agree entirely with everything predicted in the essay, as I believe the markets will survive even if the price of physical trading off market usurps for a time the price determining power of gold. Much (quantity) is exchanged that never passes through the exchange but whatever the market determines as the price and from whatever source makes that determination, the markets will reflect it. They have to, if they are anywhere near free markets. If POG was innately worth more in dollar terms than the market price, the market would immediately reflect this when large numbers of longs stood for delivery. As long as delivery is allowed then the price will adjust accordingly. If there is more demand than supply, then price rationing in unheard of amounts may occur. Only if there is no product to be traded will the market close. No facts here, all opinion only.
However, this is one man's opinion and in no way detracts from the fine thought and presentation of miner49er's work. Well done!
Rich


sangrelli (05/30/02; 19:09:07MT - usagold.com msg#: 77080)
my guess
I would have posted earlier but it took a while to get my password.I say $$$$330.0$$$$, we may have a massive number of contracts trade tomarrow. A good 5 point or more jump is in the cards. I think gold bugs have been beat for so long, that their naysayers by nature.I will also guess that gold will hit $400 by October.
best o luck & I like the fourm.
gs


Hektor (05/30/02; 18:58:55MT - usagold.com msg#: 77079)
$$$$328.90$$$$
Since it has to be rounded to the dime. Hope that isn't taken.

Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 18:55:25MT - usagold.com msg#: 77078)
NOTICE to Sir Knallgold !!! Duplicate Entry - PLEASE try again!!!
Knallgold (05/30/02; 09:38:57MT - usagold.com msg#: 77003)
$$$$$323.9$$$$$$


kramrich (05/30/02; 18:54:09MT - usagold.com msg#: 77077)
password test
is working

Henri (05/30/02; 18:50:54MT - usagold.com msg#: 77076)
We in the US have just become less free...again
http://news.attbusiness.net/articles/D7JRBD2G2.html
Fascism creeps in at night wearing black velvet slippers

Paper Avalanche (05/30/02; 18:49:41MT - usagold.com msg#: 77075)
the silver spread is back
when I originally posted my observation of the silver bid/ask spread I noticed that the spread decreased back to the normal 4 cents immediately after I posted. I just checked thebulliondesk again to find that the $4.95/$5.09 spread has remained for the last 20 minutes.... hmmmm

Thanks Rich for your read on this. POS will at least follow, if not lead, gold.

When the paper avalanche has run its course, all will gaze upwards to the top of the mountain to see that only silver and gold remain.

Buy you some gold from our good and gracious host.

PA


BLUENOSE (05/30/02; 18:42:47MT - usagold.com msg#: 77074)
GOLD GUESSING CONTEST
My guess is
$$$$$$$332.70$$$$$$$$ or the next available (higher)

Gold is going to jump tomorrow and then really take off in June. The Cabal is going to lose control in the very near future. All GATA's great work is finally showing positive results. I also feal that the world situation is deteriorating daily which scares me very much.



R Powell (05/30/02; 18:09:32MT - usagold.com msg#: 77073)
Bid-ask spreads // liberty
I have noticed that the speculative investors have an extremely large long position in both gold and silver. The commercials have an extremely short position with very few long contracts left to sell as offsets. The specs don't want to sell as long as prices are trending up so the commercials are the only selling source to fill buy orders, (outside of profit takers). I wouldn't be surprised if they become more and more reluctant to sell, especially if it means holding more naked short positions (as opposed to selling a previously bought contract or offsetting). We may see this reluctance in greater bid-ask spreads. The same amount of excess buying as compared to selling, if it continues, should exert more and more upward pressure on prices- Or - the prices may collapse and then the specs will unload their huge long position by selling bigtime. Imho, explosion imminent, direction unknown. We might get to see the outer hull integrety fail and a full worp core breech.
I don't favor technical trading or price prediction based on technicals but the COT numbers now show positions tightly wound. I'd guess something has to give before too long and the bid-ask spread may give a little warning. It may become much larger.
Those who read Adam Hamilton's work have probably noticed his excitement at being a witness to what he calls a post bubble burst market decline. His enthuasism is wonderful. If the specs hold their long positions, we may be able to witness a metals market meltup. It has the potential to produce a mania. No prediction here, just think the potential is present. Hopefully, all those predicting dire economic results of higher POG and POS will be proven wrong. Shake up maybe, armageddon?, I hope not.
I guess this is just a rehash of the good guys vs. the shorts that we read here daily. Free markets versus manipulation. Honest money versus fiat debt. Limited government versus out of control deficit spending. Liberty versus fascism. Perhaps I see and describe it a little differently from a trader's point of view. It's all politically connected.
Any thoughts?
Rich


Boxman (05/30/02; 17:55:15MT - usagold.com msg#: 77072)
Contest
$$$324.40$$$ Not to scientific, not much was available in the $324.00 range.

Not to be a buttinsky, but Hektor (77047) and Pilgrims Gold (77057) may have a problem with their guesstimats, as my understanding is the amounts are to be rounded in dimes.


Canuck (05/30/02; 17:43:06MT - usagold.com msg#: 77071)
POG guessing contest
I see Mr. Pie has 328.10. A new theory. They lose it large tomorrow and June closes at $366.00

Yeah, that's what will happen, TSHTF tomorrow and POG hits....................

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$366.00$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$


Canuck (05/30/02; 17:36:00MT - usagold.com msg#: 77070)
POG guessing contest
$$$$$$$$328.10$$$$$$$$
Might be an interesting day (haven't they all been lately?). I think 328 is a 'line in the sand' as well as 325, 330, 337, etc.etc. I believe we will be between 325-328; too much pain yet for the 'managers'.

I hope Invisible Hand shows up with his bulldozer to remove the beach!!!!!!


Mr Gresham (05/30/02; 17:33:08MT - usagold.com msg#: 77069)
Randy: miner49er
http://www.gold-eagle.com/editorials_02/hommel052902.html
Thanks for putting his posts up on the chalkboard. Did I hear a Nomination that I could second? (I feel like I should give someone else a chance -- it might seem too automatic coming from a "miner fan" like me ;-)

Jason Hommel wrote a pretty good one "Impending Gold Futures Default" over at neighboring Castle GE, which sounds like he's read FOA thoroughly plus filled in some of the connective thinking himself, with the great line ("They bet a bank run will happen..."), that had me LOL in the Libary:

"The coming rush into gold will be like another bank run that precedes the next gold contract default. Waiting for the delivery date of a gold futures contract that is two months away would be as foolish as standing in the line that's two months long during a bank run that you are betting on will occur. Why put yourself at the end of the line of a hoped-for bank run, when you can get in front of the line by buying gold in the spot market? Literally, that's what gold futures contract longs do. They bet a bank run will happen, and then they get at the very end of the line. And if and when the time and opportunity comes that they get near the bank window and they might be next, they jump right to the end of the line again as they roll over their contracts. I believe it's total insanity to do such a thing. "

And, yes, I will distance myself from an essay that refers to the "Protocols..." document, which might be read for sociological, financial, or pathological insight, but is of questionable lineage, which Hommel, to his credit, alludes to.


R Powell (05/30/02; 17:22:37MT - usagold.com msg#: 77068)
Paper Avalanche
That large bid-ask spread may have simply been an error. Or, in the extremely thin trading in silver at this hour, it may have reflected a sell at 5.09 or higher order. Sometimes limit orders are placed just to see if there are any takers. If someone placed a buy at the market order and the 5.09 was the only sell order, then the buy would be filled at 5.09. This is unusual in spot prices or current months but sometimes happens in obscure trades like, maybe, the bid-ask in the March 2003, $350 gold call. I sometimes leave baited traps like these lying around. Who knows, maybe I'll catch some shorts desperate enough to buy at any price. Paper games. Fun, but dangerous!
Paper trading has many hazards and imho requires extreme care and limit orders. Market orders are always dangerous.
Rich


jlfletc (05/30/02; 17:04:49MT - usagold.com msg#: 77067)
Contest
$$$$$324.10$$$$$ I think POG is going to pull back a bit tomorrow. I think the two day pullback in the XAU might be telling....

spike (05/30/02; 16:59:34MT - usagold.com msg#: 77066)
Carl H
Vatican Gold

Re message 77015 regarding the Vatican being coerced to part with their gold by Bush. According to Vatican Assassins, Eric Phelps 2001, the Jesuits are at the apex of the carbal pyramidal structure.

Black Blade. I live in the peace and quiet of NZ but with access to cable tv CNBC Europe, Asia, US, CNN, internet, newspapers etc but prefer to get my news from you. Thanks for the amazing effort. If you ever make it out to kiwi land I will love to buy you a beer.

I think gold will break free any day now $$$$$341.00$$$$ because increasing numbers are becoming aware of the dangers of fiat munny as a store of value.

Spike


TownCrier (05/30/02; 16:34:43MT - usagold.com msg#: 77065)
Talking the "strong dollar" talk
http://quote.bloomberg.com/fgcgi.cgi?mnu=news&ptitle=Currency%20Europe&tp=ad_uknews&T=news_storypage99.ht&ad=euro_currency&s=APPaFxxUdV2hpdGUg
You know trouble is brewing when obligatory "official speak" becomes frequent and runs counter to the evidence.

Excerpts:

Washington, May 30 (Bloomberg) -- The dollar has fallen 6.3 percent against the yen and 5.1 percent against the euro so far this year, weakening even as U.S. officials continue to say the administration supports a strong dollar.

``The Bush administration's position on the dollar has not changed,'' AFX quoted Lindsey as saying. ``Markets on a day-to-day and week-to-week basis are going to go up or down. I don't think that constitutes a trend.''
------(click URL for full text)-------

The trick is to find a way to preserve your official reputation after many denials or proclamations are laid bare as being baseless.

Will you be a gold owner when it shakes free, or will you be chasing it, perhaps paralyzed by frustration in awaiting the next "buying opportunity" when there are no dips? It could unfold that way at any time.

R.


Paper Avalanche (05/30/02; 16:25:44MT - usagold.com msg#: 77064)
Big bid/ask spread for silver
I just checked thebulliondesk and saw that the bid for silver is $4.95 and the ask is $5.09. What does such a large bid/ask spread mean?

Thanks.
PA


R Powell (05/30/02; 16:13:36MT - usagold.com msg#: 77063)
Contest
$$$$$$$ 339.90 $$$$$$$
As is my custom for proper price prediction I selected the plumpest Rhode Island Red chicken I could find and red the entrails at midnight last. I fear however my readings will lack accuracy as the new moon was the 12th. Any readings taken on any day other than the new moon must be adjusted and with an adjustment of over two weeks, well the chances of astrological error are ..astronomical.
Be that as it may, $339.90 is the adjusted figure.
When reading entrails, please remember the primordial prescription premise,
Properly prepared plump poultry propitiously
processed produces prophetically perfect price predictions.
Good luck to all.
Rich


Chris Powell (05/30/02; 16:03:46MT - usagold.com msg#: 77062)
Interview elaborates on huge donation to GATA
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/gata/message/1126
Interview at TheMiningWeb.com with Quintin George
of Trinity Holdings, a big stakeholder in Afrikander
Lease, elaborates on the company's huge donation
to GATA:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/gata/message/1126

To subscribe to GATA's dispatches
by email and get them immediately so
you don't have to go look for them,
send an email to:

gata-subscribe@yahoogroups.com


turkey hunter (05/30/02; 15:43:58MT - usagold.com msg#: 77061)
gold price contest
$$$$$$$$ 326.50 $$$$$$$ I think they will hold it close to the 325 level. But I think they could lose control anytime.

goldfool (05/30/02; 15:41:16MT - usagold.com msg#: 77060)
Black Blade - Line in the sand
A more appropriate analogy would be "Defending a line in a ledger (hedger) book."

Black Blade (05/30/02; 15:29:41MT - usagold.com msg#: 77059)
Quick Notes
http://test.crbindex.com/crb/quotes_crbcomp.asp

Stradmaster: Try the link above. It isn't spot but closest month contract. Also, bulliondesk can also be a source for the POG.

Jimbo: The Fed will raise interest rates in order to stem the flow of cash out of the US by offering "attractive" rates of return. However, the weakening USD is likely to continue partly due to the excessive increase in money supply. Money growth rate was at about 10% last time I checked (though I don't know what the growth rate is now). Some analysts like Larry Kudlow use Gold as a barometer for determining where rates should be (though I think that is a rather simplistic view).

Central Asia -

Note: The Pentagon has formulated plans for a mass evacuation of about 60,000 US citizens in Central Asia should war break out in the region. The State Dept. is expected to make the call to US citizens soon. Meanwhile Defense Donald Rumsfeld is in the area to talk down the antagonists – will it work? Not so far! Dubya is now making public noises about the conflict.

Also, the government (Pentagon maybe?) has announced that Al Qaeda may have shoulder launch missile capability. Hmmm…

Note: Of sideline interest – A Black Hawk helicopter crashed on Mt. Hood while trying to rescue amateur climbers. Impressive footage of a tragic accident was just shown on TV. Three amateur climbers have died this last week in a snowstorm on the mountain.

"Interesting Times"

- Black Blade

Gotta Run - Back tomorrow



techbull.... (05/30/02; 15:27:22MT - usagold.com msg#: 77058)
$$$$ 348.40 $$$$
I think shorts might want to cover a liitle before the weekend.

Pilgrims Gold (05/30/02; 15:26:53MT - usagold.com msg#: 77057)
$$$$ 327.45 $$$$
my uneducated guess

Pilgrims Gold (05/30/02; 15:24:13MT - usagold.com msg#: 77056)
TEST 1ST SIGNON
TEST
1ST SIGNON

TownCrier (05/30/02; 15:21:54MT - usagold.com msg#: 77055)
Strad Master's "price of gold"
I've tried previously to point out to our readers how the "spot price" for gold is largely a derivation from the dominant market in "paper gold" and "future gold". That the kitco price and INO price differ slightly should come as no surprise as each independently attempt to arrive at (distill) a viable "spot" price.

The contest is Gandalf's baby, but I think I'm safe in saying that our contest is not based on the "spot" price, but rather on Friday's settlement price for a specific instrument known as the June gold contract traded on the COMEX exchange. Today it settled at $325.5.

You can monitor its the "price" of this contract using the "24-Hr Quotes" link found to the upper right corner of the forum, three links over from the link that allows you to "Post a New Message". Do you see it?

R.


sstins (05/30/02; 15:20:56MT - usagold.com msg#: 77054)
$$$$345.00$$$$
Gonna be fun tomorrow??? Bullion has got some ground to make up on the stocks.

On the flip side...
What continues to bother me are the past BOE sales and the bold statements of analysts like Kaplan and that Smith guy. You'd think that the BOE would have little more of a clue than the most. In other words they would not have sold if they felt like the POG would maintain a sustained rally. I can't help but wonder if the BOE will be vindicated in the near term. Outfits like the BOE are just not that stupid are they??? That along with the unwavering negative bias of the two aforementioned esteemed gold analyst tends to unnerve me.

Here's to $345





Waverider (05/30/02; 15:10:43MT - usagold.com msg#: 77053)
***** $329.50 *****
USAGold - Sir Kosares - thank you for your generosity in running this price guessing contest.

I ran a multiple linear regression with my predictor variables being the USDollarIndex, South Asian war fears, Japanese Gold buying prior to Moody's downgrade on May 31st, and short covering. I calculated POG should rise 1% by tomorrow's close, hence $329.50! :)

Gandalf - thanks for your attentiveness and work to make the price guessing contest happen! I'm (again) tied up the next few days with a conference so should my guess be a duplicate, then please accept $329.60. Cheers!


Black Blade (05/30/02; 15:09:07MT - usagold.com msg#: 77052)
Re: Jimbo

The Rand is strengthening and may have some influence as the costs are in Rand and the product (Gold) is sold in US Dollars. However, the more overriding influence is the fact that many investment houses have downgraded Gold investments (I think most here know why) and there is also a rush to lock in profits. However, the trend for Gold is clearly higher. In the case of HGMCY there are two things going on, one is a threat of continued strikes and but yet they have hedged the Rand vs. the US Dollar. So obviously there is something more than the currency exchange rate going on here. It is more likely psychological than anything else. As far as GFI is concerned, I think that it is a similar concern as they are more diversified around the globe. There is genuine fear among the bankers and the major investment houses as the POG must be kept in check. If the derivative positions and hedge books of certain institutions and producers go tits up, then we will see an economic calamity that will make LTCM a mere footnote in the annuls of Wall Street.

- Black Blade


Jimbo (05/30/02; 15:04:03MT - usagold.com msg#: 77051)
Have one on me!
Have a beer (or two) on me, Black Blade. You deserve it after writing that excellent response to my post ("Inflation and US Dollar"). Actually, my question was prompted by a recent editorial by Brady Willett (fallstreet.com), in which he says...

"Quite frankly, if a U.S. economic rebound can continue to be patched together and the Fed is preparing to raise interest rates come August (stable to strong dollar) the gold bull run will be over. By contrast, if the expected unexpected happens the gold bull will live on. Only one thing is for certain: the U.S. stock markets (economy) and the gold bull market cannot survive together for very long."

Made me wonder why the Fed raising interest rates would end the gold bull?


Strad Master (05/30/02; 15:00:56MT - usagold.com msg#: 77050)
Mystified
How is the final price for the contest winning going to be determined? The INO listing at the left of the USA Gold page fixed the POG at $325.40 while the Kitco chart fixed it at $326.20 Why is there such a discrepancy? Which can be relied upon to be correct? Is there a better place to find a reliable POG price?

Black Blade (05/30/02; 14:59:14MT - usagold.com msg#: 77049)
Merrill may just have buried itself
http://www.nationalpost.com/financialpost/fpcomment/columnists/story.html?f=/stories/20020528/362779.html

Evidence from Spitzer probe will trigger lawsuits

Snippit:

Diane Francis - Financial Post

In my 20 years as a business journalist I have never seen such an immoral, and serious, case as the one settled last week between Merrill Lynch Inc. and the New York State Attorney General. It is simply the tip of an iceberg that will see many Wall Street players put out of business or go to jail.

The evidence is so egregious that there's no doubt that class-action lawsuits will bury the firm and its partners. What follows, if they all are proven to be fact, are examples contained in the affidavit by Eric Dinallo, chief of the investment protection bureau and counsel to Attorney General Eliot Spitzer. The SEC is investigating.


Black Blade: My thoughts exactly. Also I had stated as much previously. These Pied Pipers of Wall Street have led (and continue to lead) many unsuspecting investors to financial ruin. I count on massive shareholder lawsuits and Merrill Lynch is not the only one. Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Solomon, and many others are in the same mess up to their collective necks. Even though the SEC and the NY AG have dropped the ball, the shareholder may now hold all the cards as the regulators and criminal prosecutors have dug up the evidence.



Shermag (05/30/02; 14:58:38MT - usagold.com msg#: 77048)
$$$$324.3$$$$
The line in the sand seems to be around 325. If they hold it another day, this is the closest open spot.

Hektor (05/30/02; 14:49:44MT - usagold.com msg#: 77047)
(No Subject)
$$$$327.87$$$$
They will try to hold it down to $325, but will not be able to keep it below even $327.


Jimbo (05/30/02; 14:48:37MT - usagold.com msg#: 77046)
Stronger Rand, weaker GFI, HGMCY?
I call upon those of you with vast investing experience in gold to answer this question: Is the improving Rand creating declining SA gold profits, particularly for stocks such as GFI and HGMCY? Since joining the NYSE a few weeks ago, GFI has lost more than 20 percent of its value. HGMCY isn't far behind. Is this normal profit taking, or are SA gold stocks in for a rough time?

Graefin (05/30/02; 14:48:29MT - usagold.com msg#: 77045)
9/11 = 9911 Coincidence or More?
Take a look at the Dow official closing number today = 9911.69 Any thoughts?
- Gräfin


Black Blade (05/30/02; 14:47:47MT - usagold.com msg#: 77044)
Dollar's Wobbly Foundation Becomes Apparent
http://quote.bloomberg.com/fgcgi.cgi?ptitle=Latest%20Columns&touch=1&s1=blk&tp=ad_topright_bbco&T=markets_fgcgi_content99.ht&s2=blk&bt=blk&s=APPT1lBUjRG9sbGFy

Snippit:

Analysts are currently united in the view that the dollar is set to fall; the only question is how far and how fast. While such unanimity of opinion is generally a red flare for contrarians, the dollar does seem to have lost its supports. Or, more correctly, the foreign-exchange market collectively has just started to acknowledge the wobbly pegs.


Black Blade: The current account deficit as a cause is also cited. A nice article for Jimbo and everyone else to peruse in light of the weakening US Dollar and how it will affect the markets and by inference the POG.



Neubie (05/30/02; 14:42:55MT - usagold.com msg#: 77043)
Contest
$$$$$ 332.30 $$$$$
It's what my wife told me to guess!


Gimli_ (05/30/02; 14:28:18MT - usagold.com msg#: 77042)
$$$$ 324.70 $$$$
I think we'll slide below BB's proffered 'line in the sand' of $325. Anyway, the closet I can still get is $$$$ 324.70 $$$$ with the space that is left. I recently converted 2/3 of my PMM shares to fiat becasue I expect a short slide. Hope to buy them back for les soon. :-)) Gimli

TownCrier (05/30/02; 14:21:22MT - usagold.com msg#: 77041)
Fed injects funds to liquify banking system
With the fed funds market trading more than 0.1% above the FOMC target, the Fed's trading desk today added $16 billion in new reserves to the nation's banking system.

Of that, $5 billion were under terms of 28-day repos, $5.5 billion through 5-day, and another $5.5 through overnight RPs.

Bottom line: it's the same old same old. Everything I've said previously on this business (when I was in the habit of giving these updates daily) still stands, but here's an opportunity to put a topical spin on it all.

An FOMC voting member, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President Robert McTeer, said today in a speech to the Montreal Economic Institute that he was worried about the "jobless" aspect of the currenct economic "recovery". In hoping that businesses might get to the point of rehiring unemployed workers, he went on to say, "We need to have investment rebound. The consumer can't continue to carry the whole burden of the U.S. recovery, and for investment to rebound we need for profit prospects to improve."

For our purposes here, as we contemplate our most prudent level for gold diversification, it is important to recognize that the condition for "profit" that president McTeer refers to could be met notionally, without regard for the purchasing power of that nominal "profit".

All the more reason to diversify into gold as a means to preserve your purchasing power against an environment in which the dollar will likely be brought to its knees -- officially if needs be, if not done otherwise.

R.


Artie Farkle (05/30/02; 14:08:01MT - usagold.com msg#: 77040)
(No Subject)
$$$$325.6$$$$
Just seems like good place to be.
PS Just got a coworker to buy her first 2 oz. of AU


YGM (05/30/02; 14:06:47MT - usagold.com msg#: 77039)
The Times' They Are A Changin!
CTV News 1...Canuck News Channel...(biz News Segment)
Analyst interviewed just now predicts Gold @ $510.00 in 18 months...Stated PDG/Aurion merger was bad biz...Aurion hedges(5.5 mill oz)coupled with PDG (8+ mill oz)was too much. PDG buying more liability....Nice to hear reality on TV Media for once!

Graefin (05/30/02; 13:50:24MT - usagold.com msg#: 77038)
Black Blade...msg #77036
WUNDERSCH... N post! Prima!
Gräfin


Graefin (05/30/02; 13:40:27MT - usagold.com msg#: 77037)
GoldnSilver2002...
Thank you for your "Enter the Dragon" commentary to bring us back to reality!
Peace!
- Gräfin


Black Blade (05/30/02; 13:40:02MT - usagold.com msg#: 77036)
Re: Jimbo – Inflation and US Dollar

It follows that if Alan Greenspan and the Fed raise interest rates then inflation may heat up. However, Gold rises in an inflationary environment and that is one function of Gold as portfolio insurance due to its wealth preservation value. Gold is undervalued as an asset and within a period of inflation it is quite possible that Gold could explode to the upside at a rate several times the rate of inflation as seen in the 1970's through 1980. Of course interest rates also hit double digits at the time.

The dollar has replaced gold for international trade obligations and especially so since the end of the dollar-gold link. The ultimate reserves that other countries hold are generally US dollars with a minor holding of Gold and other world currencies (although that is changing some with the intro of the Euro). The foreign countries pay their obligations in dollars. The worlds most valuable commodity id oil and oil is priced in US Dollars. What if the US Dollar weakens? We certainly cannot easily store a few barrels of oil. Though it has been suggested that many OPEC suppliers demand a form of payment in Gold.

The US Dollar is playing the role of gold for now. However, the US Dollar is also the currency of the United States of America and its value is subject to what happens in the U.S. economy whereas Gold is outside the system. It is a stateless currency without obligation to any country and it has a different role from the dollar. Whenever the US Dollar is threatened by the forces of inflation, Gold really "shines" since the value of Gold is denominated in US Dollars. Because of this unique relationship Gold will likely outperform any other investment when the value of the US Dollar declines in face of the ravages of inflation. That is the insurance that Gold provides. It also holds for periods of economic uncertainty such as deflation.

The US Dollar used to be "good as Gold" when there were stringent regulations tying Gold to the US Dollar. That link was broken and the ravages of inflation were seen in a rapidly rising POG. The gold standard was a rigidly enforced system of exchange rates that didn't vary. Speculating in currencies was difficult at best. Those days are gone. However, it is the strength of Gold that led to the break in the link between the US Dollar and Gold. Gold constrained politicians from spending money they did not have. Now they can spend with abandon until the system cracks under the weight of crushing debt. The major problem now is that the US Dollar is vulnerable due to the horrific account deficit. Once US investments fall and the S Dollar weakens, what foreigner will keep his cash in the US markets? He will lose value in the declining market value and be on the losing end of the exchange rate.

What about deflation? Well Gold was illegal for private ownership except with collectable coin and jewelry as per Franklin D. Roosevelt's executive order I 1933. The POG rose from about $35/oz to $42/oz after the Gold confiscation order was given. It was essentially an onerous tax on the American people. This was during the ravages of the Great Depression. However, if I may use an example. Though Gold was illegal, some people held shares in Homestake Mine as a sort of proxy. While the investments on Wall Street such as RCA, General Motors, etc. fell from hundreds of Dollars to pennies, the shares of Homestake rose several hundred percent. However, since the US Dollar was held in check and linked to the US Dollar (the Gold Standard) the US Dollar was actually considered "good as Gold". Today that link is broken. And as I just heard Robert Hormat of Goldman Sachs mention moments ago on CNBC – "Gold is the money of last resort" – in reference to the people of the Indian subcontinent. That's right, the ultimate money – or as I would say, "Portfolio Insurance".

Anyway, I am getting off the track here. Gold will perform its traditional function as insurance against the ravages of inflation, deflation, stagflation, war, etc. Gold is money when all other "money" fails. It does not require some government "policy" to function as money. 9,000 years of history won't be so easily brushed aside because some clown decided to call Gold a "Barbarous Relic". That is why so many modern day economists today are left stroking their sloped foreheads with there mouths agape wondering what's up with Gold.

I don't know if I answered your question but this was all off the cuff as I am in the process of getting ready to take off for a meeting (actually a street party with hopefully lots of free beer) with petroleum people in Gillette, WY tonight.

Cheers!

- Black Blade


TownCrier (05/30/02; 13:36:33MT - usagold.com msg#: 77035)
Bretton Woods receding in the rear view mirror
http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/020530/markets_forex_deutsche_1.html
HEADLINE: Deutsche Bank introduces new Forex indexes

NEW YORK, May 30 (Reuters) - Deutsche Bank has introduced a new set of indexes that track the performance of key currencies in global markets, part of an effort to treat foreign exchange as its own asset class.

At a conference on global foreign exchange on Wednesday, Fergus Lynch, Managing Director and head of index development at Deutsche, said the new "family" of indexes underscores the bank's belief "in the emergence of foreign exchange as an asset class." Therefore, he added, "it needs a set of analytics in its own right."

The indices are comprised of currency pairs of the five major global currencies: the U.S. dollar, euro, yen, Swiss franc and sterling, which are crossed against the units of 11 other industrialized nations.

---------(click URL for full text)------------

Despite a growing "coming to terms" by the marketplace with an infrastructure of floating currencies, gold -- PHYSICAL gold -- is still not priced correctly due to a legacy of dilution remaining from its days spent in monetary "officialdom". Old practices linger on and die hard... such is the effect of path dependence and historical inertia. But we're getting there. Each day is one step closer to a free market in gold.

Don't be caught at the end of the line.

R.


The Hoople (05/30/02; 13:35:47MT - usagold.com msg#: 77034)
$$$ 327.3
Sorry Gandalf, Canuck must have posted while I prepped mine.I'll be short this time so this will rush to the forum !!

YGM (05/30/02; 13:30:31MT - usagold.com msg#: 77033)
Yukon....
http://www.ude.net/verse/verse.html
Love your posting handle...So in keeping with it here's a link for you. Hope you find time to add your thoughts here more often...Helps to connect the dots...YGM.

Paper Avalanche (05/30/02; 13:24:29MT - usagold.com msg#: 77032)
$$$$$ 331.90 $$$$$$
Many thanks to miner for his contribution to the board today - that is definitely one for the hall of fame!!

Regarding the POG guessing contest, I think that things begin to get out of hand in early trading in asia tonight and we may see POG at $329+ on CNBC in the morning, then I believe we will see the noraml Friday afternoon rally upward past $335, but TPTB will use one of their few remaining "silver" bullets to keep things from getting too out of hand heading in to the weekend.

Limit-up days are literally only weeks (maybe only days) away, IMHO.

The paper avalanche has started.

PA


ProGold (05/30/02; 13:22:18MT - usagold.com msg#: 77031)
Gold Price
$$$$326.7$$$$$ Because gold and the truth are being set free...up, up and away!



Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 13:07:37MT - usagold.com msg#: 77030)
OOPS --- spoke too quick !!! NOTICE to The Hoople !!!
Sir Hoople --- You have duplicated an Entry !

PLEASE Try again and check the prior entries
==
Thanks
<;-)


Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 13:04:57MT - usagold.com msg#: 77029)
A BIG THANKS !! for really watching your Entries !!!
I can only check in and see that all Entries to this time, ARE GREAT !!! No duplicates !!!
Keep up the GREAT effort. Please check the prior listing and entries up to your entry !!
I shall return this evening to update the listing, AFTER the ORCS have been "descimated"
<;-)


The Hoople (05/30/02; 13:03:18MT - usagold.com msg#: 77028)
$$$ 327.4 $$$
We are witnessing an historic event unfold. What transpires the next few weeks or years could drastically affect the rest of our lives. No matter the current price of gold in dollars, fiat as a medium of wealth always fails. Every dollar higher is a recognition of further fiat failure. Tomorrow's COMEX close is but a small step in the relentless march down the fiat highway to hell. The rigging and suppressing is doomed to fail. I am priveledged to watch things unfold with astute people here at the Forum. While millions watch their wealth destruct we patiently know what real wealth will always be.

ore stone (05/30/02; 12:52:11MT - usagold.com msg#: 77027)
Gold to da Moon
The future will show the current cycle move in gold prices to be the strongest in history. I'm guessing that the price at tomorrows close will be $$$$ 325.8 $$$$ But I'm betting that in this cycle it's not just going through the roof, it's going to da moon.


Waverider (05/30/02; 12:38:13MT - usagold.com msg#: 77026)
US Dollar Index
http://quotes.ino.com/chart/?s=NYBOT_DXY0&v=s&w=5&t=l&a=2
Is terminal agonal - below 111.

Black Blade (05/30/02; 12:32:15MT - usagold.com msg#: 77025)
$$$$$325.20$$$$$

The "line in the sand" is being vigorously defended. Though the USD is declining and US equities markets are plunging, the POG is holding near the $325.00 area. The Gold shorts are in an all out assault on Gold in order to hold the line. Once one major Gold short decides to "cut and run" the defensive positions of the rest will fall as well. However, they may just hold the current range in the short term (maybe very short term).

- Black Blade


Canuck Gold (05/30/02; 12:23:48MT - usagold.com msg#: 77024)
Gold contest entry - $$$$ 327.4 $$$$
This is getting very interesting. The spot price is higher than the June price today. Someone wants the spot price to fall but it isn't cooperating. I wonder if this will mark a significant divergence between spot and futures, or is it just an anomily. Tomorrow should be a very interesting day with the cabal forces battling it out with Hung Fat and Dr. No. Personally, I think the cabal are losing their grip and I think their death by incremental creep will continue.

CG


Max Rabbitz (05/30/02; 12:22:39MT - usagold.com msg#: 77023)
$$$$ 329.2 $$$$$
My crystal ball seems to say $1329.20 but I think it may have a hairline crack in it. Thus $$$$ 329.2 $$$$.

Whats wrong with the Cabal these days? After all that effort talking gold down this past week they can't even manage to drop the dollar price? Yes, they sure got the hot money day-trader group to panic out of gold stocks like Pavlovian dogs. Look at them run!! I'm going to prognosticate that panic will increase in the Cabal and gold will jump a few more dollars tomorrow afternoon as more rats attempt to abandon ship.


Old Yeller (05/30/02; 12:13:43MT - usagold.com msg#: 77022)
Miner49er

Great stuff!

Thanks so much for your time and thoughts on this matter.


Humble Pie (05/30/02; 12:02:41MT - usagold.com msg#: 77021)
Gold Guessing Contest
$$$$$$328.10$$$$$$$ When push comes to shove ,the time is ripe . When it looks too good to be true ,it probably is. Go Gold!

RobotGuy (05/30/02; 11:56:50MT - usagold.com msg#: 77020)
Gandalf - - - There's something I wish to share with you!
I have practiced the art of pyrotechny for 18 years now as a hobby, and when I saw "The Hobbit" I got a real kick out of the fireworks scenes. Now, obviously most of the pyrotechnical effects were computer generated, but I enjoyed them nonetheless.

Do you dabble in the fiery art yourself sir?,.. PGI?


Cheers!!

RobotGuy.

P.S. I shall build a golden sky-rocket with a wonderous golden tail to celebrate the gathering of the goldbugs and their unrelenting passion for anything gold!


Voyager (05/30/02; 11:44:36MT - usagold.com msg#: 77019)
Gold Price
$$$$ 329.00 $$$$

It is still a struggle against the cabal, but slowly and surely, gold will prevail.


Yukon (05/30/02; 11:34:08MT - usagold.com msg#: 77018)
June Gold Futures closing @....
Just for the fun of it I showed my wife the daily, weekly and monthly gold charts and asked her what she thought. Gave her a reminder to consider all that is going on in the world and how it affects the gold price. Then I asked her for her best guess at tomarrows closing price on the June COMEX gold contract. I had my own number in mind based on my usual assessment using moving averages, Relative Strength Index, stochastics, Commitment of Traders Report, open interst, as well as a healthy dose of the fundamental picture. Well my wonderful spouse came up with a number exactly 20 cents away from where my guess was. Since I was off by about a dollar on the last contest (using all the aforementioned technical analysis tools) I will go with my sweet bride's guess of...
$$$$326.30$$$$
If we win, I will most certainly test her abilities again. Perhaps she is the ONE (ala Matrix vibe) to take out the Cabal and their computers with "dead on, balls accurate" pinpoints of the gold price action. Certainly with this power we could easily use their own weapons (loans using bankers fiat created out of thin air) against them by building a huge pile of fiat from the loan and then promptly buying up huge quantities of physical thereby aggravating and exacerbating all the present vibrations in the present system!!!! (Well it sure is nice to dream. Guess I will have to call our host with another order to add to our "little pile" if we lose.)

Wanted to take this chance to give a big shout of thanks to Black Blade (it is amazing that you can keep up with all the updates, you make it very easy to know what is going on with one quick visit), Sierra Madre (thank you for being one of the few to respond to past questions), and YGM (I think we must be kindred spirits. Your thoughts (especially of the conspiratorial nature) often seem as though they were ripped from my own cranium! It is not hard to connect the dots is it once one accepts the general truth that there really are PTB that want to rule the world and will stop at nothing to achieve their world dominion....which really actually sounds like, oh I don't know, uhhhh, hmmmmmm, maybe...well, could it be, uhhhhhh SATAN!) Aristotle, welcome back. Your thoughts are much appreciated. Obviously some here have not read your HOF postings so to them pay no respects.

I think I speak for many in that although we may not respond to some of the questions or issues that arise here on the forum, the thought and effort given by such a committed group is appreciated beyond words. I think all our worlds would be a bit darker if it were not for this forum. So thank you to Mr. Kosares and all Centennial Precious Metals for hosting this site and thanks again to all who post and make it what it today!

Viva Liberty!

Yukon


USAGOLD / Centennial Precious Metals, Inc. (05/30/02; 11:32:55MT - usagold.com msg#: 77017)
You either have it, or you don't.
http://www.usagold.com/ProductsPage.html



"'Good as gold' speaks only of yellow metal:
a Truth lost as often as money
by players in leverage, credit banking systems, and Ponzi schemes."

-- R. Strauss




gvc (05/30/02; 11:23:44MT - usagold.com msg#: 77016)
contest entry $$$ 332.50 $$$
http://us.f1.yahoofs.com/groups/goldandnaturalresourceclub/gvc/gold_monthly_close.gif?bccE798ARsdCydxe
$$$ 332.50 $$$ ...based on trendline guesstimate on monthly close gold chart. good luck to all

Carl H (05/30/02; 10:56:09MT - usagold.com msg#: 77015)
Sector: Gold Loans
The cabal will probably loose, but is not a certainty.

Consider that they could:
1. Protray gold as being mined by slave labor in third world countries (I saw that one this morning.)

2. Have a load of irradiated gold show up. (Given the half life that was published here a couple days ago (half life of about 3 days) any radiation would drop by a factor of 1000 each month. Hence, if they pull this one, buy on the cheap!

3. Declare it a terrorist tool and make it illegal/confiscate it.

4. Blackmail the Vatican to get their gold.


In my view of things silver is less at risk of these things than is gold.



GoldnSilver2002 (05/30/02; 10:46:25MT - usagold.com msg#: 77014)
Isolated buying?Enter the Dragon!!
"the expected unexpected?" do you mean like sept 11th!or 1929?.I love the denial of these so called gold analysts.If history has shown us anything its that we cant expect it.Pompeii was built next to a volcanoe,obviously we didnt expect it!Dick Chaney says "we will have more attacks ,its a certainty",they say if attacks dont happen.


Please allow me to take a counter position to these hopeful denialists,ahh,everything will be same today ,as was yesterday ,as it will be tommorrow.NOT!

Gold will go down if Japan can miraclously pay of Trillions in bad loans and revive a dead corpse(the economy),If governments ,corporations and consumers all pay off record debt without inflation,if there is no more war when more and more break out each month.Gold will go down if all these law suits against wall street just suddenly stop.Gold "might go down", is about as likely as a CEO from ENRON getting jailtime.And now, to complicate the naysayers lives here comes China,a billion people'suddenly allowed to own gold again,and boy are they eager to dump u.s dollars and buy gold.And dont try and tell me the chinese dont like gold and dont want payback on the us!


Q (05/30/02; 10:44:28MT - usagold.com msg#: 77013)
merely guessing
$$$$324.50$$$$

TownCrier (05/30/02; 10:41:47MT - usagold.com msg#: 77012)
YGM's nomination
http://www.usagold.com/goldenchalkboard/gc_miner49er.html
I haven't yet had a chance to read miner's post today, though sight unseen I have little doubt that it is worthy of attention. As you can see from the page I've been creating at the URL linked above, I do greatly admire his work and his clarity of presentation. I invite anyone and everyone to work their way through this page.

Randy


Bound Spirit (05/30/02; 10:40:25MT - usagold.com msg#: 77011)
Stay the course
I started to invest in gold when I took the time to study monetary policy - any true American who studies likewise, and is still clutching to notion that our fore fathers did not die in vain, will know that the most patriotic thing we can do, short of taking up arms, is to buy Gold. I didn't do it to make money, I did it to be consistant with my heart felt beliefs and to protect my family the best I can. Gold's significance as an idea, greatly trumps and adds to its value as a material possession.

$$$$$$$324.4$$$$$$$$


goldquest (05/30/02; 10:36:07MT - usagold.com msg#: 77010)
"Dirty Gold" Fight
http://www.miningweekly.co.za/?show=22746
I wonder if they considered using gold for money?

YGM (05/30/02; 10:15:20MT - usagold.com msg#: 77009)
Town Crier...Randy....a 1st. HOF Nomination?
miner49er (05/30/02; 09:56:43MT - usagold.com msg#: 77006)
Is this not a worthy nomination for HOF Nomination....
I have never given consideration for a post before, but I think "miner49er" is as deserving of a nomination as any I've read in past....YGM.


gvc (05/30/02; 10:09:50MT - usagold.com msg#: 77008)
testing gvc password
It works.

sector (05/30/02; 09:58:47MT - usagold.com msg#: 77007)
@CarlH About the Central Banks and their "Underwater" Gold Loans
...there is very little that CAN be done
The Bundesbank's Ernst Weltke's blubbering about selling gold to buy equities is but one of many examples of the futile moves being attempted to escape the bear trap.

If central banks had sufficient power, gold would never have crossed $300. There would have been just more propaganda about a "New paradigm" that didn't need gold.

Their loans are seriously underwater and reporting dates are looming on the horizon. It is those approaching dates, like the Enron S&P, Moody's debt reports, that contain the seeds of central bank gold loan doom.

The catalyst all along is the panic from trapped hedged miners being forced to cover. Not to mention new hedge fund metal speculators drawn to blood in the water. To wit:

[ 5/ 30/2002 8:10AM Newmont Mining set to divest $280 mln in assets (NEM) 31.24: The Sydney Morning Herald reports NEM is set to take advantage of the firming gold mkt to divest its unwanted Normandy Mining assets, and could float some marginal mines in Australia and New Zealand. The float is thought to be worth up to US$280 mln. ]

It appears as if NEM is moving to sell some assets for cash...hmmmmm. Could this be a move to cover some of their many millions of Normandy hedged ounces? Perhaps.

In any event, there are some 3,000 tonnes of producer hedges that must be covered and about 10,000 tonnes of central bank gold loans that are in trouble.

Escaping from this trap is impossible....no matter how much they wish, hope and thrash about.


miner49er (05/30/02; 09:56:43MT - usagold.com msg#: 77006)
$$$$ 328.3 $$$$ - Just because... (and now the missive):
http://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/speeches/2001/200111302/
In a somewhat similar way to the association of a booster rocket, and its final payload, so is this current environment. For a season the booster and the payload both track the same trajectory, and move in tandem, the payload being driven by the booster. There comes a time, however, when the booster is no longer needed (it is also spent), and suddenly the payload, without a hitch, breaks away from the booster, and continues on its course. The booster equally suddenly becomes lifeless, and falls gracelessly to Earth. Indeed, it could not continue. It was designed to do what it did, and if it were to remain, would only destabilize the payload, bringing both to ruin. It was not designed for this leg of the mission.

While the analogy is clearly not perfect, it can be used as a launching point (awful, awful pun...) to illustrate what many here have discussed over the years. The present contract-based environment will not be able to contain a price of gold that begins to fulfill the mission of expressing the true market valuation of the physical metal, itself. It is really better viewed perhaps, that the payload portion is instead pulling the booster, and the booster is somehow retrofiring for all its worth to keep from going any further at all. It is hard to know all the complex physics that come into play which address the velocity, changes in atmospheric pressure, how the construction stands up to the heat, vibrations and other stress, or how much fuel it has left. As such, the casual (and even decently informed) observer can only guess at what point the two will separate. Certainly some on the ground insist there will be no separation, others anticipate such a break, and each hazard their own opinion of the day and the hour.

Each of us will lie in the bed we have made. It has never been my contention to foster an "us vs. them" atmosphere regarding paper gold vs. physical gold ownership. Such a temper on the forum leads only to fruitless salvos being lobbed back and forth. The fruit in this discussion is born when each opinion is presented with the deferential humility that goes with the one thing each one of us is all too painfully aware of: none of us knows everything. (And I certainly wag the left tail of this bell curve myself.) Nonetheless, I try to always present here that which has become clear and convincing to me, and with a sober demeanor; for I never know what a day will bring forth.

That said, I will voice again my caution about the future of the paper-based environment. When it ultimately reaches critical mass, it will just suddenly break. Those who are carefully (and knowledgeably) observing may have some lead-time, as there may be a little warning. However, let me switch analogies for a moment. When I was driving an old junker, sometimes I would know that it needed work of some sort, maybe the fuel pump was going, or the clutch, or whatever. At first I would be very conscious of any little strange noises, or sensations in the way the car was handling, and so forth. After driving it awhile, I would tire of this constant vigilance, as other things would distract me, and after all the car was going along fine. Maybe my worries were blown all out of proportion. After all the pump was only replaced recently, and I just had it in for a full checkup -- the mechanic pronouncing a clean bill of health...

And so I became less cautious about how far I drove it from the house, or how fast I would take it on the highway, or how much stress I might put on the system accelerating from a full stop, etc. Sure enough, I have had to have my car towed a couple times in my life.

Most of us have no inside knowledge of what's taking place geopolitically, or in the financial arena. We hear of wars and rumors of wars. We know a little bit about how derivatives work, and have some sense that they can really blow up. We know (like Maybury's CHAOSstan) that many parts of the world are woefully unstable and given to unpredictable volatility (yet we own many shares that have significant, if not total, exposure in these places -- places where many of us don't even know who runs the country, or how it's run...). Yet we insist we are investing. (Now if you do perform due diligence, you know who you are, and I am not really addressing you folks, although, for the macro reasons concerning this market environment, I still humbly offer my cautions.) For the rest, it is important to be honest with ourselves, and realize that this is not investing. This is not even speculation. This is a high-risk gamble. Moreover, how much do you know about the due-diligence efforts of the broker/promoter who sold you these things?

This contract market environment exists for 3 main sub-purposes, which all ball up into one overriding, unequivocal manifestation. They are used for the traditional commodity purpose of supply/cash flow hedging. They are used by the commercial players in their suite of risk mitigation processes. And they are (ab)used by certain political and financial forces, each for their own designs. This has been covered on countless occasions here. The bottom line to all of this is that each faction desires the price of gold to be stable or declining. Speculators fulfill their role in the grand scheme by betting on anomalies, and aberrations upon which they believe they can capitalize. Some specs maintain realistic horizons, and do (and have) made out on the occasional trend changes that go with the ebb and flow of any market. Others (IMHO) mistakenly hold that this contract-based market is THE single means the world will ever have of gold price discovery. If this is true, then it must be able to satisfy reasonably most claimants for delivery. But it won't. It simply cannot sustain the prices now being commanded by snowballing volume in the physical markets. And when it breaks, it is not going to send its price to the moon and bring satisfaction to the long participants -- those in it for the gold or the cash payout. It is going to hurtle gracelessly to the ground, while the payload of actual physical gold will continue on unabated.

The true commodity players will leave because there will be no physical for those who want delivery. There will be no need for cash flow hedging by true sellers, because they will sell directly into the spot market at much higher prices, that won't ever return to previous levels anyway. The risk management types will be gone because the presumed stability upon which they hedged will be gone, the markets lastingly discredited as a means to price discovery. And the political purposes will have ended or evolved. Some aims achieved, others failed.

You own unhedged mines? Predatory takeovers by hungry hedgers will keep you up at night. A rising POG, but no increase in miner wages = strikes and labor unrest. Good property in Argentina? Government confiscation to claim it as a "state asset" to sell for dollars to bail starving debtors. (Perhaps not only starving for dollars.) You own only US mines? If a dollar crisis comes (which is in large part why people are buying these mines -- to offset potential dollar problems by leveraging to a POG increase), the grand profitability of the mines will be tempting prey to rapacious taxation. And... even though some don't think the mines might be "nationalized" here (because of the foregoing, i.e., it is more profitable to just tax them), consider that immense quantities of gold may well have been promised to a number of players who have the ability to enforce delivery (oil, Europe, China(?), e.g.). 1933 style confiscation will not bring in enough, and is too cumbersome to enact. It is much easier to demonize gold (like oil in the 70s), and go after them... even if this doesn't mean the typical, clumsy 20th century style nationalizations that were common among socialist/communist states. It may not be labeled as such, but the practical considerations will be directed output to pre-selected channels at prices that will at that time be far below market (and the mines will still get taxed...).

Euro Breakout and a Rising POG in the Currency War...

As long as gold was on a chain around the original market-marking price of the euro reserves, the euro could be kept down. As long as the dollar price of gold was kept down, a rising euro would devalue their POG reserves and hurt their balance sheet. Consequently, a weak euro kept the dollar strong, and assured of its continued role of world reserve currency. So POG-on-a-leash = Euro-on-a-leash. The link above refers to a speech by Alan Greenspan from last November. I quote an excerpt here:

"Because the attractiveness of any vehicle currency grows as its liquidity increases, an international currency has a tendency to become a natural monopoly.

"If the underlying demand for one of two competing vehicle currencies falters for a reason not clearly perceived to be transitory, and its bid-ask spreads, accordingly, increase relative to its competition, demand will shift to that competitor. But that shift, in turn, will widen the bid-ask spread of the faltering competitor still more, inducing a further shift of transactions to the alternative currency. This process ends with the demise of the weaker currency as a competing vehicle and the stronger of the two becoming the sole surviving vehicle."

This was the hope and dream of the dollar faction. As long as they could keep gold down, they could keep the euro down (since the ECB could not afford any contraction of their balance sheet). They would then wait it out, advertising the dollar's superiority in facilitating global settlement (i.e., EZ munny), and still maintaining the benefits of price stability, until Europe ultimately blinked... The dollar would sacrifice its manufacturing sector, as the euro would battle high oil prices and other imports (in strong dollars) and the political pressure it brought in their sagging economies. (Also, steel tariffs on our part were just an indiscreet effort to further damage Europe by off-setting the one benefit of a cheaper euro: competitive advantage in export pricing.) The major participants whose interests aligned with the ECB could not just go into the market and bring relief by bidding gold, as their buy signals would cause a rupture in the market(s) as the dollar infrastructure would quake as money went to gold in torrents -- not necessarily benefiting the euro in this kind of move. It appears they had to just let fundamentals take their course, as the buying pressure had to come from beneath. And it would. And it is.

This type of pressure is slower and more manageable, and more easily apprehended (and thus assimilated) by people. But once in motion, cannot be reversed. The pressure valve can still be regulated for a while, and it will be upon the dollar faction to perform this. Once physical buying pressure overcomes the ability of paper interests to manage the price of gold down, there is no longer any need to keep the euro down (those ECB balance sheet concerns...). As long as the POG appreciates more rapidly than the euro (and it will for sure), the balance sheet is enhanced. A strengthening euro increases euro confidence as it decreases the cost of dollar-priced oil (and other imports) and thereafter encourages euro priced oil, which benefits euro zone economies, which encourages euro investment, which means more euro debt, which increases liquidity, and stresses the international currency status of the dollar. This causes further dollar devaluation, which pressures dollar-priced gold up, which encourages more global physical off take which further pressures POG up generally, which damages any currency that is structured to compete with the POG, and benefits those that are designed to go with a rising POG. This finds public acceptance on an increasing scale, as more general-public participation in physical gold ownership (clearly being encouraged by every corner of the planet -- except dollar-aligned areas) causes those with euro holdings to indirectly benefit by its appreciation along with gold. The converse anticipation of dollar export pricing advantage due to its new weakness is more than offset by now-realized big increases in dollar costs as dollars are dumped mercilessly. So the shin bone's connected to the knee bone, and suddenly Mr. Greenspan's statement is realized in the euro.

This is not meant as an advertisement for the euro, but instead attempts to illuminate the critical role this currency plays in the ultimate unshackling of gold from the constraints of a world currency system built around a relatively fixed gold price. And this is the planned outcome... Throw into this the prospects of the ever-feared "exogenous event," and the hair-trigger possibility of a sudden paper market reversal is compounded. Wars and other catastrophes always loom. And a derivatives crackup is always possible. And it most likely would not occur in a JPM/Chase or some other visible entity. They will be taken care of. And it would not occur most likely around some convenient time frame, like contract expiration, since it would probably involve some unknown parties (remember LTCM was once an obscurity), in some one-of-a-kind exotic that will trigger the grand chain reaction. No one without intimate knowledge of the specific problems will ever, ever see it coming...

So, all of this is not meant to be confrontational to paper investors. NOT AT ALL, believe me. I have no interest in seeing you fail. I hope you all make all you can make, and most of all have happy lives. I do (very thankfully). I also realize that some of you trade for a living, and need to engage paper to generate your cash flow. Understood. My aim is to maintain a detached analytical perspective, and hope that comes across here (although, I'm probably a bit more passionate here than usual). Physical gold ownership does not carry with it any guarantees either. But it has all the positive properties so thoroughly expounded here, and is still the premier wealth asset, and store of value.

A bird in hand is worth two in street name...

miner



YGM (05/30/02; 09:54:18MT - usagold.com msg#: 77005)
$70,000 DONATION TO GATA......
TALK ABOUT INVOLVEMENT & BELIEVING IN A CAUSE!
Le Metropole Members,

To Cafe members and GATA supporters all over the world:

The Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee has received a
$70,000 donation from Afrikander Lease in South Africa.
Chris Powell and I are both stunned and humbled by this extraordinary gift to GATA.

You may read the letter we received from Patrick
Driscoll and Quinton George at The Matisse Table.

I have kept track of Af Lease ever since I met Peter
George, Quinton's father, last year in Cape Town, South
Africa. Peter is the Jim Sinclair of that country and very highly regarded in the African gold world.

Peter George was also the one who introduced us to the
"South Africans For A Free Gold Market" who gave GATA $50,000 over a lunch in at Chris Hellinger's gorgeous Cape Chamonix
Wine Farm in Franschhoek. It has to be among the prettiest countrysides in all the world. Quinton was at that luncheon.

Reg Howe and I also spoke at Peter's Christian Men's
Fellowship breakfast meeting one morning.

How can we thank them enough for this astounding gesture?

I spoke with Peter this morning. He has been very high on
Af Lease for some time now and even more so these days. According to Peter, they have the only "open cast" gold
mining operation in South Africa. They do not have to get
into high cost "deep shafts."

Peter tells me that have a top-shelf engineer running
their operation and are increasing their gold resources.
To get the right scoop, please read Alf Field's "AFRIKANDER LEASE - AN UPDATE" at The Hemingway Table.

In Peter's opinion this stock is a double even if the gold
price does not go up. Of course, being a veteran Café
member, PG thinks the gold price is going to soar.

I bought 20,000 shares of Af Lease on the opening
this morning.

Here's to Afrikander Lease:

Hip Hip - Hoo Ray!
Hip Hip - Hoo Ray!
Hip Hip - Hoo Ray!

BILL MURPHY
CHAIRMAN
GOLD ANTI-TRUST ACTION COMMITTEE



Shanti (05/30/02; 09:43:25MT - usagold.com msg#: 77004)
Inflation around the corner

Dollar is under strong pressure, real soon w'll see an increase of the interest rates, what could well react as a turning keypoint for a north moving POG

Contest ?? looks like it is gona be more a gamble with all the tensions around, anyway Shanti's guess;

$$$$$$$$330,00$$$$$$$$$$$

Salom




Knallgold (05/30/02; 09:38:57MT - usagold.com msg#: 77003)
$$$$$323.9$$$$$$
It won't change that much now'so I put in that one.Would have guessed higher a week ago because last time my figure was too low-for the first time.It must be a bull market,but it is a calm one (thats what they wanna make believe us)

nickel62 (05/30/02; 09:20:35MT - usagold.com msg#: 77002)
CarlH I couldn't agree more that the "cornered animals" will lash out in new ways
The points that the Sinclair article and your comments bring to the fore are the main cux of the issue. The question now is if it is as we suspect what is their next move? I would imagine a move on the large hedgers to take possession of their properties and then a drop in the price back to where they can cover. The powers that be will see this as the only "way out" and make the needed resources or cover available.

YGM (05/30/02; 09:19:22MT - usagold.com msg#: 77001)
Carl H....
I agree with you....
Re: The bullion banks, however, are very well connected and very desparate. They are like a very dangerous animal that is wounded and cornered. Don't be surprised at the extreme measures they will use...Carl.

I expected they would slam Gold before it got this high, hence my sadly mistaken guess in the "Contest" of $319.50
I still expect to see some slammed retreat yet...But maybe we will see buying push thru. Just altogether too many unknowns....YGM.


Carl H (05/30/02; 09:11:03MT - usagold.com msg#: 77000)
YGM: Gold Derivatives Scam by CBs'...............SINCLAIR & SHULTZ ARTICLE
Personally, I did not find the article that surprising for a number of reasons:

1. I think that most readers here are a aware of the gold carry trade and that is was practiced by institutions other than gold producers. These participants are widely believed to include bullion banks. Enron Metals was probably also a significant player in the game.

2. In their article, they understate the problem. First, we know for FACT that the coin melt part of the US gold resreve (~20%)is encumbered. Second, we also know for a FACT that the IMF has instructed central banks to count loans the same as gold in the vault. Hence the holing numbers that they cite are probably significantly too high. Third are RUMORS that BUBA's (German Central Bank) vaults are empty. Finally, there are well founded suspisions that the deliverable part of the US gold reserve has been lent/sold.

3. Several months ago I created a spreadsheet of gold mining companies and their hedge books as published in their annual reports. In one evening I was able to cover about 1/3 of world gold production in the spread sheet. It included heavy hedgers like Barrick, PD, and Anglo. Extrapolating to world gold production and comparing with Frank Veneroso's findings showed that the miners were relatively minor players in the game. I believe that I posted that information here and even sent the spreadsheet to a couple interested parties.

Hence, their article is not really all that surprising or revealing, but is nice to have their names and credibility attached to it.

I also have to point out that in some sense it is bad news. If the gold companies were the major shorts, then this would be a slam-dunk. The bullion banks, however, are very well connected and very desparate. They are like a very dangerous animal that is wounded and cornered. Don't be surprised at the extreme measures they will use.


YGM (05/30/02; 08:52:34MT - usagold.com msg#: 76999)
JCTex & Mr Gresham....
Mr. "G" Man...A "higher purpose" has been served, no publicity is necessary, not comparable to what the up-limit spikes will draw, and we were included (early, perhaps too early, out of their enthusiasm) from near the first breath by 2 very generous gentlemen...

How very true and correct you are...very generous men both....and the "Up Limit Spikes"....Well I await the day & will need a seat belt to contain myself!..Thanks.


JCTex...Yours is a post committed to my printer...We all knew the fame of Harry Shultz, but I now feel like I know Jim Sinclair a whole lot better...This man will be reveered by an "Autobiography of Uniqueness" I'm sure...Thanks for letting us all in on his story....YGM.


Cumber (05/30/02; 08:31:17MT - usagold.com msg#: 76998)
Contest Gold Price Quess
$$$$330.50$$$$

As the friday close approaches, I expect longs will push the gold price to new highs.


Mr Gresham (05/30/02; 08:30:17MT - usagold.com msg#: 76997)
YGM
"Gold Manipulation Caper is going to draw it's final breath"

(in the 2 minutes I have before running out...)
It always was a "special purpose vehicle", along with the hedging mine corporations, which will expire along with it. (The mines will still be there, physically, under new ownership.) A "collapsible" force, with no retreat plan, no Plan B (unless "B" is for "bk") -- all profit taken on the upside, and run for the evac helicopters on the down.

A "higher purpose" has been served, no publicity is necessary, not comparable to what the up-limit spikes will draw, and we were included (early, perhaps too early, out of their enthusiasm) from near the first breath by 2 very generous gentlemen...


JCTex (05/30/02; 08:21:17MT - usagold.com msg#: 76996)
YGM/ Schultz & Sinclair article
Noticed the lack of response to your posting, too.

Perhaps, I was overly impressed [which would be absolutely opposite of my normal reaction], but I was "floored" by the article.

The authors are as important as what they disclosed. "If you want to soar with the eagles, don't run with the turkeys." These two aren't turkeys.

Chevalier Harry Schultz: highest paid financial consultant in the world. Not much else needs saying....people with money like that don't employ fools, dimwits, or loose cannons.

James Sinclair [Forbes article below]:

Investment Guide: Hard Assets
Golden Oldie
Bernard Condon, Forbes Magazine, 12.10.01


Having called the top of the gold market 22 years ago, a goldbug thinks he has found the bottom.
In 1977 James Sinclair boldly predicted that gold would rise from $150 per troy ounce to $900.

Gold never reached that mark, but it came close on Jan. 21, 1980, peaking at $887.50. The next day, says Sinclair, he unloaded his entire gold position, personally netting $15 million. Pointing to the Federal Reserve's efforts to fight inflation, Sinclair then predicted at an annual gold conference that the metal would languish for the next 15 years. Which it did. On Friday, Jan. 20, 1995, it closed at $383.85.

So this is a guy to listen to. He's bullish again. Why? Because he believes, despite the whiff of deflation in the October producer price index, that the country is headed for mild inflation. He thinks the dollar is due for a fall. He also is moved by the fact that mining companies, which routinely sell unmined metal forward at fixed prices to protect themselves against further price drops, have recently pulled back from placing these hedges, a move that should prompt gold prices to rise. When and if they do, Sinclair expects a massive squeeze on gold speculators who have $36 billion in short positions. Sinclair figures the shorts will cover their positions soon after gold hits $305, a move that could force the price to $350 and maybe as high as $430.

Persuaded? You could go to the New York Mercantile Exchange to buy an option to purchase 100 ounces of gold in six months, with a strike price set at a slight premium to today's price. An option exercisable at $300 would cost you $9 an ounce. If gold hits $350 you pocket $4,100 in profits.



Sinclair is not just buying futures and options. Since 1996 he has invested $11 million to develop 2,154 square miles of barren land in central Tanzania that he's convinced hold vast gold deposits. Drilling on the property is still in the early stages, but Barrick Gold is already pulling metal out of an adjacent site whose proven and probable reserves have nearly tripled in the past two and a half years to 10 million ounces.

It's a gamble not many investors would make, but then Sinclair has always stood apart from the crowd. On the walls of his office hang six photographs of Shri Sathya Sai Baba, a guru whom Sinclair visits in India several times a year. Sinclair's love of carrot juice recently turned into a 50-pound-a-week habit brought to a halt only when his doctor grew alarmed at the orange tint to his skin. A loner, Sinclair paid $3 million in 1983 to turn a 19th-century barn into a reception hall for his house but has held only three parties there since.

After his 1970s career as a goldbug, Sinclair retreated to his Connecticut estate, where he played with his helicopters, show ponies and collection of Ferraris. He didn't stay idle long. He built cable systems at Cross Country Cable, a company he started with two friends, then made millions selling some of them to John Malone's TCI.

"Jimmy is different," says his onetime cable partner Vincent Tese, the former New York banking commissioner and now Bear Stearns director. "But in the trading business people don't care if you're purple, just as long as you're making money."

In 1989 Sinclair got back into metals after buying a small stake in a Vancouver mining company called Sutton Resources. During a trip to Tanzania for the company that year to check out a potential nickel site, Sinclair became intrigued by a 55-square-mile patch of land called Bulyanhulu. It was studded with greenstones, volcanic rocks marked by long seams that are often rich in minerals. Some greenstone mines, such as those in Canada's Kirkland Lake Camp, have been yielding gold for a century, and at a relatively low cost of $200 per ounce.

"The opportunity stared at me like it did with cable and gold," he says. "The only way to make big money is to have the courage to put your eggs in one basket."

Sinclair helped Sutton buy rights to mine Bulyanhulu, then lobbied for it to do the same in adjacent lands. Sutton balked. It eventually sold Bulyanhulu to Barrick, and Sinclair decided to go it alone.

By the summer of 1999 Sinclair had invested $4 million in the lands near Bulyanhulu. He suddenly faced a sickening prospect. Gold had just hit a 21-year low of $246. Bears were predicting $150 soon, a price that could wipe out profits from even the most efficient of Tanzania's mines.

"I felt a pit in my stomach, like hunger," Sinclair recalls. "When I was a young trader I used to think I was invincible. Now I feel the risk."

Simple logic mitigated his fears. It costs most companies $250 (including back-office support) to extract an ounce of gold. With gold trading below cost, it made no sense for mining companies to hedge against further price reductions. Recognizing that such hedges meant that a major force pulling gold down would soon disappear, he reasoned that the bottom was near.

Over the next nine months Sinclair spent $1.5 million on tests measuring magnetic pull to help locate seams in his greenstone. Soon after the tests ended, in February 2000, news broke that some big mining companies had indeed stopped placing new hedges. Sinclair reached into his pocket for $5 million to buy more mining rights in surrounding lands. Barrick expects that the $199 an ounce it is paying to mine gold at Bulyanhulu will drop to $130 over the next three years.

Sinclair hopes to sell his operation to a big mining company soon. To do that he'll need to prove his gold can be as richly mined as it is in Bulyanhulu. And then pray that bullion doesn't plummet again.

It's worth noting that Sinclair's bullishness is catching on. One well-regarded bear, Andrew Smith of Mitsui & Co., surprised the markets in September by announcing that he expects the metal to go to $340.


Troy Boy (05/30/02; 08:16:10MT - usagold.com msg#: 76995)
POG
$$$$$328.2$$$$$$

Troy Boy (05/30/02; 08:14:31MT - usagold.com msg#: 76994)
Derivative Bomb
http://www.financialsense.com/editorials/sinclair_schultz.htm
Each of you need to read and understand this. These guys have assembled and tweeked the most profound study of this mystery to date. Truly the most profound case study on Gold and the pressure it could be under.
Those of you who are holding shares for hedging mines, if you want to see your investment stay an investment, you better start your writing campaign immediately to the officers of these mines.
This is unbelievable. 11% by the mines and 89% by the banks.
Hey Canuck, how many times over is a future ounce of gold bankrupt by these figures? Anyone?


Alchemist (05/30/02; 08:11:16MT - usagold.com msg#: 76993)
$$$$$$$$$323.9$$$$$$$$$$$
There will be continued downward pressure on price by the powers that be to curtail too much enthusiasm in the general public. I believe that they are allowing the price to move upward but not too quickly. Thus the downward pressure after the sharp rise recently.

Gandalf the White (05/30/02; 08:06:23MT - usagold.com msg#: 76992)
Notice -- Please do not wait too long before ENTERING your POG Entry
I must go to the "field" today as the ORCS are MASSING to help the cabal "HOLD Canuck's (05/30/02; 07:50:54MT - usagold.com msg#: 76988) 'line in the sand' today" !!!
The GOLD BRAVEHEARTS will see if they can do something about THAT !
JUMP SPOT, JUMP
====
PS: WHEN we all see Black Blade enter his number, we will know that the TIME IS REALLY GETTING NEAR THE DEADLINE.<;-)


YGM (05/30/02; 07:55:17MT - usagold.com msg#: 76990)
Gold Derivatives Scam by CBs'...............SINCLAIR & SHULTZ ARTICLE.
DESERVES ATTENTION, PRAISE........& EXPOSURE!
When I first posted it from the LemetroPoleCafe and then again from Jim Puplavas' site "Financial Sense" yesterday I assumed that there would be a great stir among Gold Advocates here.
Seems that the magnatude of these revelations have been lost on most. At first glance it appears just more of what many already knew or suspected, but if the reality of what the CBs' have exposed themselves to were ever to hit mainstream news (I spent half the night sending it about)
then I would say the Gold Manipulation Caper is going to draw it's final breath. No other single Gold article in my (and others) estimation will have such a profound effect on exposing what the Central Banks and Bullion Banks have been getting away with for the last 5-7 years....The end of the "Gold Wars" gets nearer week by week!.......Gold news writers like "YellowBrix" for Black Blades CNN article last nite need to have this information.(they now do) The more who recieve it the better chance of waking up the masses...

This has been primarily a propaganda "Gold War" since the beginning stages and only you fellow Gold Advocates can make the difference by insisting the media print the truth, otherwise forums have little effect in changing anything and only serve those who lurk or post....A conscerted effort by all will only bring about change that much faster. IMHO. Respectfully............YGM.


Canuck (05/30/02; 07:53:17MT - usagold.com msg#: 76989)
Spot just saw 327.40 and then backed off.....
.....they are protecting 328 BIG TIME!

Canuck (05/30/02; 07:50:54MT - usagold.com msg#: 76988)
Another 'line in the sand'
Inching towards 328, the intraday high on Sept. 28, 1999.

Agreed nickle62..... to the moon!!


Golden Bear (05/30/02; 07:46:42MT - usagold.com msg#: 76987)
$$$$ 324.0 $$$$
Time for a breather after POG's stellar run, and XAU is showing signs of overhead resistance.

Troy Boy (05/30/02; 07:46:15MT - usagold.com msg#: 76986)
gold today
Go spot go!

Jimbo (05/30/02; 07:45:06MT - usagold.com msg#: 76985)
BB on USD
Black Blade, here's a quick question. You said in a recent post:

"As I have been saying, it's the USD that is the driving factor here. Gold will rise in response to a weaker US Dollar. A weaker US Dollar is a necessity if the US is to pull out of recession, stem the flow of US workers being shipped off to the growing "Bone Pile", and to stimulate a renewed search for "cheap energy". This morning the USD is weaker again."

Everything I've been reading agrees that gold will rise as the USD falls in value. However, as the dollar falls, inflation also will rise, forcing Greenspan to raise interest rates (probably in August). Do you see this having a negative effect on gold's value? If you don't, can you explain why? Thanks.



YGM (05/30/02; 07:28:18MT - usagold.com msg#: 76984)
Very Positive Gold News Getting Out There (Mainstream)
http://www.cnet.com/investor/news/newsitem/0-9900-1028-9974862-0.html?tag=ats
Gold rally pauses but more bulls come to party
5/30/02 2:50 AM
Source: Reuters

LONDON, May 30 (Reuters) - Gold prices hovered close to their highest point in more than 2-1/2 years on Thursday, supported by a sickly dollar and military tension from Kashmir to the Middle East.

Gold was set or "fixed" in the London morning session at $324.65 a troy ounce, down from Wednesday's fix of $327.05 an ounce which was its highest in nearly five years.



Gold has been on a winning streak, gaining 17 percent since the start of the year as investors piled into the metal to shield themselves from violence in the Middle East, Afghanistan to Kashmir and from the rocky U.S. stock market and dollar.

The latest fix, though lower, still put the precious metal back to levels not seen since October, 1999.

The lower fix in a wood-panelled room at merchant banker and bullion house N.M. Rothschild and Sons was tied to profit-taking in the spot market where gold fell to $324.45/324.95 by 0942 GMT from overnight levels of $326.40/326.90 in New York.

Future price direction was tied to the dollar's fortunes against the euro and whether the metal would again prove itself as a "war commodity" if war broke out between nuclear rivals India and Pakistan over disputed Kashmir.

"Dollar weakness...remains the theme in the bullion market at the moment...With the dollar continuing to look weak, gold looks set to make further gains," said John Reade, analyst at UBS Warburg.

Renewed fears about the strength of the U.S. economic recovery sunk the dollar, allowing the euro to claim a 15-month high against the U.S. currency after a slump on Wall Street where stocks closed lower.

"Next resistance on the upside is $330 with any further weakness in the U.S. currency and unrest in Kashmir likely to be key price drivers in the near-term," said Deutsche Bank.

MORGAN UPS PRICE FORECAST

U.S. investment bank J.P. Morgan became the latest to join the rank of gold bulls, predicting a higher bullion price this year and next.

J.P. Morgan forecast gold would average $305 an ounce in 2002, higher than its previous forecast of $290 an ounce, and $325 an ounce in 2003 rather than $310 an ounce.

"We believe there is more upside opportunity in the gold price rather than downside risk in the medium term due to inevitable reduction in gold supply as mines age," its gold analyst John Bridges said.

"Given the much improved fundamentals for gold and the challenges facing alternative investments we do not see this a one-off spike," Bridges said.

Gold has averaged around $297 an ounce this year, up from $271 an ounce in 2001.

Gold analysts have raised their price projection for the precious metal this year because of a bullish cocktail of strong market fundamentals and political uncertainty, a Reuters survey of analysts showed this month.

A survey of 12 analysts forecast an average gold price of $306 a troy ounce, up from a forecast of $290 an ounce in a similar survey conducted last January.

Gold has shone this year, but further gains to recent record highs were seen some way off.

Gold gained more than $40 an ounce to reach over $400 an ounce when Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990 and topped $850 in 1980 against a backdrop of the Iranian Revolution and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan which spurred unprecedented buying in gold.

Copyright 2002, Reuters News Service




goldenboy (5/30/02; 07:24:16MT - usagold.com msg#: 76983)
Price Guess
$$$$323.10$$$$

The PPT after an exhaustive search, finds 3 tons of unencumbered gold in Upper Volta. The Upper Voltans, drive a hard bargain and get triple the face price of gold in loan guarantees. Neither side intends to repay the other, and of course the deal can be settled in fiat. The gold hits the market along with some silly rumours ar precisely the right time to knoch the market down a measly couple of bucks as each such attempt is met with ferocious short covering by gold companies.


Zhisheng (5/30/02; 06:53:01MT - usagold.com msg#: 76982)
Price of Gold
$$$328.9$$$ is in the middle of a thus far unfilled plausible range of prices. Latest quote of June Gold was $324.2. Gold has been tending to reach its weekly high near Friday, so could happen.



Topaz (5/30/02; 06:43:13MT - usagold.com msg#: 76981)
How quickly and queerly they react..
This droopy dollar sure is having an effect here in OZ - Gold producing Hedge funds are enjoying a stellar run (on a FALLING local currency POG) and Primary producers are rushing the Saleyards to offload their stock in response to a 5% uptick in the A$.
It appears we, and Japan etal (those countries who class the USA as a MAJOR trading partner) will seek to maintain the status quo via rate controls going forward (I'm thinking) and in Aussies case, further prime the existing domestic bubbles (R/E, SM, etc)
Boy... these guys have a LOT of balls in the air!


LeSin (5/30/02; 06:42:52MT - usagold.com msg#: 76980)
EU & Russia - "realize market economy principles" "energy PRICING POLICIES"
http://top.rbc.ru/english/index.shtml?/news/english/2002/05/30/30124703_bod.shtml

"A joint statement was released following the summit in Moscow, in which Russia re-affirmed its commitment to reforms aimed at liberalizing energy markets. Russia also pledged to gradually realize market economy principles in its energy policy, including pricing policies."

Snip:__________________________________________________
---------------------------------------------------------
EU & Russia's Oil Pricing Policies equals or simply stated as OIL PRICED IN EUROs, Yes?

Cheers "S"


LeSin (5/30/02; 06:36:47MT - usagold.com msg#: 76979)
Russia's Gold Reserves Increase to New Record Levels
http://top.rbc.ru/english/index.shtml?/news/english/2002/05/30/30144520_bod.shtml

Central Bank's gold reserves set up new record
The Central Bank's gold reserves amounted to $41.7bn on May 24, 2002. It means that the reserves added some $1.1bn over the previous week. This has been the largest advance in a seven-day period since the Bank started to publish information on its gold reserves several years ago.
This growth was some $500m more than the previous one in the period from May 10 to May 17. On the whole the Central Bank's gold reserves have surged by more than $5bn from $36.5bn to $41.7bn since the beginning of the year.

The increase in the gold reserves has been more considerable over the past two months. In this period their volume has never eased back. In the period from March 29 to May 24 the bank's gold reserves went up by $4.4bn, which was almost 12 percent



nickel62 (5/30/02; 06:31:43MT - usagold.com msg#: 76978)
Canuck Your post of the Sinclair article is powerfull
On another note...I would like to take this opportunity to once again offer homage to the Golden Cheesehead memorial qoute.....TOOOOOOOOOOOO DAAAAAAAAAA MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! all rights guaranteed to Golden Cheesehead, circa 1999 GOLD IS HEADING STRAIGHT UP I LOVE IT>>>>>>>

Black Blade (5/30/02; 05:44:34MT - usagold.com msg#: 76977)
Guerillas Storm Kashmiri Base
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-1771749,00.html

Snippit:

NEW DELHI, India (AP) - Suspected Islamic guerrillas stormed a police base in Kashmir, killing two officers, and cross-border shelling killed at least 28 other people Thursday amid international efforts to avert a full-fledged war between India and Pakistan. The new violence followed a U.S. State Department warning on Wednesday that ``irresponsible elements'' could spark a conflict between the nuclear-armed adversaries against the wishes of both governments. ``The climate is very charged and a serious conflagration could ensue if events spiral out of control,'' spokesman Richard Boucher said.


Black Blade: Not good. Edging closer to the abyss.



Canuck (5/30/02; 05:05:23MT - usagold.com msg#: 76976)
Here's a good one as well
http://www.financialsense.com/editorials/sinclair_schultz.htm
Sinclair's 7 point list is very good.

Canuck (5/30/02; 05:01:57MT - usagold.com msg#: 76975)
@ Waverider, All
http://www.gold-eagle.com/editorials_02/willettalway053002.html
snip:

Gold Debate
It is likely that there will be another terrorist attack in the U.S., turbulence in the Middle East and India/Pakistan could escalate, and the U.S. dollar may continue to fall. Yes, the reasons why the price of gold may continue to climb are plentiful.

By contrast, the reasons why the POG could soon collapse are equally abundant: a terrorist attack against the U.S. may not materialize, geopolitical fears (war) may subside, and the U.S. dollar may hold its ground

snip:

With this in mind, general terrorism/war/U.S. fears, news of producers reducing their hedge programs, a pause in central bank sales, and isolated demand (Japan) for hard gold is largely responsible for the latest rally in gold. However, these occurrences alone are not enough for gold to sustain its bull run. Rather, the 'expected unexpected' must transpire to proliferate the uptrend ('expected unexpected' meaning a further drop in the U.S. dollar, terrorism, war, strengthening demand, etc).

Comment:

Brady mentions that the gold market is very forward looking, like the SM's. 'Expecting the unexpected' is priced in. Dollar dropping and a 'war' premium is already priced in. If the unexpected does not occur gold may drop.

Interesting how hunches go, eh? I loaded up on shares last Friday with the intent of bailing out on Monday if the 'unexpected' did not occur. I figured I had it in the bag with the US markets closed and CDN markets opened. I was sure gold was going to get whacked Tuesday (because the unexpected did not occur) and missed the Tuesday rally. Strange how things go.

Anyway Brady's article is very good, he examines the good things going on in gold while throwing in a caution or two.

Have a golden day.

Canuck.


Black Blade (5/30/02; 05:00:47MT - usagold.com msg#: 76974)
Olympian Gold
http://www.nationalreview.com/kudlow/kudlow052902.asp

Real money is up for very good reason.

Snippit:

While stock markets have struggled to regain their stride this year, glittering gold has become a runaway investment story. So far, gold funds are up nearly 60% in 2002, with the gold price moving up to $320. That's its highest mark since mid-1999. Gold is on fire.

Conventional mainstream economists always argue that rising gold prices reflect "special factors" in the world, such as war or other international tensions. So the consensus crowd attributes the current gold rally to the global war on terrorism, ongoing Middle East tensions, and even recent bomb scares in New York. But there's much more to the gold spike than that. "Gold and only gold is real money," said banker J.P. Morgan early in the last century. He was right then and he is still right today.


Black Blade: OK, but you won't hear Kudlow say this much on CNBC. However, he goes on to say that the rise in Gold is a reaction to inflationary pressures and increased money supply. I would say that is rather simplistic. On CNBC he usually attacks those who hold Gold and infers that they are somehow "unpatriotic" Americans. Kudlow talking out of both sides of his mouth? Hmmm...

BTW, I did read SJ Kaplan. He sure missed out on a wild run on Gold. If he had invested and sold yesterday he would be crowing like a studly rooster – instead he appears to be seething in regret.



Spartacus (5/30/02; 04:45:01MT - usagold.com msg#: 76973)
Goldman's Dudley Warns Of Risks Of Sharp Dollar Decline
http://www.forexnews.com/outgoing/link/wraphead.asp?loc=http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?x39408654

WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- Goldman Sachs Economist Bill Dudley said a sharp decline in the dollar presents one important risk to the consensus view of a sustained, non-inflationary economic recovery.

"A sharp dollar decline would hurt U.S. growth prospects," Dudley said in an economic comment Wednesday. "The nominal trade deficit would widen initially and the yield curve would steepen. It also would raise U.S. inflation."

Dudley said this risk is "significant" because the dollar is significantly overvalued. He said a sharp decline in the dollar's value would prove difficult for policymakers, placing the Federal Reserve in an uncomfortable position as both the growth and inflation outlook deteriorated.


Cavan Man (5/30/02; 04:30:29MT - usagold.com msg#: 76972)
US and Europe
May 30 — After a church service during President Bush's week-long European tour, French President Jacques Chirac surprised Bush, who had not planned to speak, by leading him to a stage and delivering a long speech that included criticism of U.S. policies.


BUSH’S VISIT WITH Chirac was the third in as many countries where he had found his message drowned out by Europeans with other plans.
In Berlin, while Bush waited to address the German Bundestag, the president of the parliament, Wolfgang Thierse, criticized the U.S. president's positions on the environment and international cooperation. Bush has developed a comfortable relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but even he had undercut Bush earlier in the trip by vigorously defending Russia's support for an Iranian nuclear power plant just after Bush had said Putin "gave me some assurances that I think will be very comforting for you to listen to."

At the same time Bush's longtime critics back home are beginning to find their voices, world leaders were less deferential of him during his week abroad than they had been as he assembled his anti-terror coalition after Sept. 11. The stereotypes of Bush as a bumbler were revived by European opinion makers, an impression Bush fueled by his uneven performance during the trip, which ended Tuesday night. Even as Bush assuaged some European concerns about his policies, analysts said, he aggravated doubts about himself.
Bush, who at one point volunteered that he was feeling the effects of jet lag, had a heavy schedule, with events sometimes lasting until midnight. The result reinforced what Philip H. Gordon, director of the Brookings Institution's Center on the United States and France, called "the perception in Europe that he is unsophisticated."

BLOW TO REPUTATION
This blow to Bush's reputation came even as he "effectively addressed many of the concerns that the United States in general, and Bush in particular, felt Europe no longer counted," Gordon said.
National security adviser Condoleezza Rice acknowledged the cultural dissonance but said Bush had delivered his vision of the transatlantic alliance's new responsibility to confront terrorism and weapons of mass destruction. "He is the American president, and of course Americans are different. But what has held the Old World and the New World together are values," Rice said yesterday. "You can't go through what we've just been through on September 11th and not feel very strongly the support of your friends, and that's what the president went to express."
White House officials said the trip was productive based on the feedback U.S. officials are getting from their counterparts in the capitals Bush visited. These officials said a key purpose of the visit was the private meetings the president held as he continued developing relationships with other heads of state. "The Germans, the Russians, the French are over the moon; they're so pleased," an official said.
This official said any awkward moments should not detract from the historic nature of the Treaty of Moscow, the agreement that Bush and Putin signed to reduce their nuclear arsenals by two-thirds, five months after Bush announced he would withdraw from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty of 1972. "Remember the predictions of dire consequences and Armageddon if the president got out of the ABM Treaty?" the official said. "Instead of a new arms race, what you have is historic arms reduction."
Advertisement


Some of the reviews support the White House argument. The German newspaper Welt am Sonntag, as translated by the BBC, complimented Bush for having "stayed true to himself" with his speech in Berlin's Reichstag. French newspapers were filled with stories of how the U.S. president considered France his closest ally in the war on terrorism.

BOOST IN RUSSIA, GERMANY
Paul J. Saunders, director of the Nixon Center, a foreign policy think tank in Washington, said Bush had a mixed reception in France but probably helped his image in Russia and Germany. "A number of the German parliamentarians expected to see a two-headed monster and were pleasantly surprised that the president has just one head," he said.
Yet that was not the singular view in Europe. London's Independent said from Rome that Bush "sometimes seems unsure which European country he is visiting." An article in London's Daily Mirror began by saying, "Bumbling George Bush was lost for words last night." The Times of London carried a preview headlined, "How the Atlantic widened under George W. Bush," then followed up with a dispatch beginning, "Like certain distinctive wines, President George W. Bush does not travel well."
In Rome, the left-leaning La Repubblica newspaper played down the importance of the summit, which was perceived by many there mainly as an attempt by Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to burnish his credentials as an international statesman.
‘Like certain distinctive wines, President George W. Bush does not travel well.’
— THE TIMES OF LONDON
Noisy street protests and media criticism against U.S. presidents visiting Europe are hardly new. The elite of European government and media spoke with amusement of Bush's folksier moments, including his decision to thank Putin for mowing the grass and the widely shown video of the president discarding his gum in his hand before signing the treaty. Bush's put-down of an American reporter who asked Chirac a question in French has become the emblem of the trip in much of the European media.
Stephen M. Walt, a professor of international affairs at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, had said the trip consisted mostly of feel-good photo opportunities that were insufficient "to overcome the friction which results from genuine conflicts of interest or differences of opinion between the United States and Europe, and which have been exacerbated by the administration's rather cavalier attitude toward European opinion."

‘VERY PLEASED WITH THE TRIP’
No matter what the circumstance, administration officials said everything was fine. As Bush prepared to leave Russia, Secretary of State Colin L. Powell declared that "the president is very pleased with the trip, as you might well imagine, and we all are." In Rome, Powell pronounced that "President Bush is this afternoon finishing up what we believe has been a most successful and historic trip to Europe."
Yet even Powell, the top internationalist in the administration, acknowledged the truth of one of the Europeans’ largest complaints: that the United States, while listening to European views, goes its own way. The administration will "continue to stick with those positions that we believe are the right positions and the principled positions," Powell said.
"The president is that kind of a leader," Powell said. "He speaks clearly, he speaks directly, and he makes sure people know what he believes in. And then he tries to persuade others why that is the correct position. When it does not work, then we will take the position we believe is correct."

Correspondents Peter Baker in Moscow and Keith B. Richburg in Paris and staff writer Karen DeYoung in Washington contributed to this report.

© 2002 The Washington Post Company




Black Blade (5/30/02; 04:05:52MT - usagold.com msg#: 76971)
Gold Hedging Report
http://www.thebulliondesk.com/reports/barcap/uninteresting.pdf

A short pdf file from Barclays Capital on Gold hedging.


perform (5/30/02; 04:05:13MT - usagold.com msg#: 76970)
Gold Price Contest $$$$349.90$$$$
Message, Imho, they are no longer in a postion to interfere with the gold market, as they are most likely all swapped out.

perform (5/30/02; 03:57:54MT - usagold.com msg#: 76969)
Gold Price Contest
$$$$349.90$$$$

Black Blade (5/30/02; 03:47:14MT - usagold.com msg#: 76968)
Pakistan defends first-strike nuclear policy
The title of the article (previous post).

Black Blade (5/30/02; 03:45:34MT - usagold.com msg#: 76967)
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2002/05/30/1022569807833.html
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2002/05/30/1022569807833.html

Snippit:

Pakistan's new ambassador to the United Nations, Munir Akram, defended his country's refusal to rule out an aggressive nuclear strike today, saying it had to deter India's superior conventional army. Speaking only one day after he presented his letters of credentials to UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, Akram said India was "arming itself to the teeth" and Pakistan could not hope to match it. "We do not wish to expend our limited resources on building up a conventional defence which will completely debilitate our development," he told a news conference.


Black Blade: Edging ever closer to the abyss.



Black Blade (5/30/02; 03:19:19MT - usagold.com msg#: 76966)
Rumsfeld Off To Asia

Just in: Secretary of Defense just left for South Asia this morning to talk to Indian and Pakistani leaders. This is definitely not a good sign as officials said that he left "immediately" in an effort to head off a war in Asia between the two nuclear powers.

- Black Blade


Black Blade (5/30/02; 03:08:42MT - usagold.com msg#: 76965)
Dollar Faltering After Seven Years
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/020529/mighty_dollar_2.html

Snippit:

Dollar Faltering After Seven Years As World's Supercurrency. "I think we are at a turning point for the dollar, and we are looking for an extended period when the dollar will be declining in value against other currencies," David Wyss, chief economist at Standard & Poor's Co. in New York, said Wednesday. American manufacturers, however, have a different story to tell. The dollar's strength has opened them to intense competition from lower-priced imports and made their exports more expensive overseas.

The National Association of Manufacturers, leading a drive to pressure the Bush administration to change its policy on the dollar, estimates that the overvalued dollar has cost U.S. companies $140 billion in lost export sales over the past 18 months and resulted in half a million job layoffs. So far, Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill, the administration's spokesman on the dollar, has been unwilling to waver from the policy set by his Clinton administration predecessors, Robert Rubin and Lawrence Summers, whose mantra remained: "A strong dollar is in the best interests of the United States."

The weaker dollar will also mean higher inflation in this country. But with consumer prices rising by a tiny 1.6 percent last year, there is room for inflation to move higher without serious problems, economists said. They said the biggest danger in coming months is that a declining dollar will make foreigners less willing to invest in the United States because of fear their earnings will be worth less when converted into their home currencies. "The fear is that foreign investors could all run for the door at the same time, sending the dollar plunging," said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Economy.com. Such a development could send stock prices sharply lower and cause a huge jump in long-term interest rates. Foreigners hold about 10 percent of U.S. stocks and 35 percent of U.S. Treasury bonds.


Black Blade: As I have been saying, it's the USD that is the driving factor here. Gold will rise in response to a weaker US Dollar. A weaker US Dollar is a necessity if the US is to pull out of recession, stem the flow of US workers being shipped off to the growing "Bone Pile", and to stimulate a renewed search for "cheap energy". This morning the USD is weaker again.

BTW, speaking of the "Bone Pile", 3,500 more "Bags O’ Bones" from Nortel are being given there walking papers.



Black Blade (5/30/02; 02:44:21MT - usagold.com msg#: 76964)
Dollar falls
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/020529/us_dollar_1.html

Snippit:

NEW YORK (AP) -- Currency traders focused on the euro Wednesday, as it capitalized on the dollar's vulnerability and drew some support from strong French business confidence data. "What's happened here is you've seen the equivalent of a rubber band, where the momentum worked for a while but suddenly everybody looked around and said 'the dollar is overvalued' and the band started snapping," said Hayden Traub, head of global asset allocation at State Street Global Investors in Boston. "The market just remains enormously negative on the dollar, although you have to say this is becoming more of a euro strength move" too, with the euro also making gains against sterling, the Swiss franc and the yen, said Robert Sinche, chief currency strategist with Citibank in New York. Yet the dollar's recent fall has been relatively gradual, a factor that should allay fears of a crisis of confidence in the currency that could spark a stampede out of U.S. assets.

Black Blade: The overvalued USD should continue to decline.



Black Blade (5/30/02; 02:26:34MT - usagold.com msg#: 76963)
US May Evacuate Troops From India, Pakistan - USA Today
http://biz.yahoo.com/djus/020530/200205300135000044_1.html

Snippit:

NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- The prospect of war between Pakistan and India has forced the Pentagon to all but abandon its search for Al-Qaida leaders in western Pakistan and focus instead on the possible emergency evacuation of 1,100 U.S. troops from both countries, USA Today reported on its Web site Thursday. India 's foreign minister implored Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf Wednesday to follow through on pledges to stop terrorism in the disputed Kashmir region and warned of "the urgency of the situation."...


Black Blade: Looks more like war is inevitable.



Black Blade (5/30/02; 02:20:18MT - usagold.com msg#: 76962)
Oil Drops as U.S. Fuel Demand Disappoints
http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/020530/markets_oil_1.html

Snippit:

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Oil prices dropped two percent on Thursday, disappointed by U.S. demand for gasoline at a time when American drivers begin to pack up for summer holidays and take to the road. U.S. light, sweet crude fell 51 cents to $25.25 a barrel in Asia after the American Petroleum Institute (API) released its weekly U.S. fuel stocks report showing an unexpected rise in U.S. gasoline inventories. Monday's U.S. Memorial Day holiday kicks off the country's yearly summer holiday driving season when gasoline sales run at seasonal peaks until the Labour Day public holiday in late September.

Black Blade: Consider that the reason that gasoline inventories are rising when they should be declining at the start of "driving season" is that people are foregoing summer vacations. Why are they foregoing summer vacations? Maybe more and more people are concerned about the deepening recession and the growing "Bone Pile". No one wants to spend cash if they fear for their jobs and are concerned about the direction of the economy.



Black Blade (5/30/02; 02:06:42MT - usagold.com msg#: 76961)
World Markets Awash In Red
http://quote.yahoo.com/m2?u

Asian and European markets are mostly negative in overnight trading. Meanwhile the USD continues to plunge and looks to go sub 111 fairly soon. The foreign investment is leaving and that investment is needed to the tune of $1.2 billion/day to keep the trade deficit under control. Unfortunately that cash is going home to papa. Expect the USD to sink further.

- Black Blade


Spartacus (5/30/02; 01:56:43MT - usagold.com msg#: 76960)
The Euro
http://www.investavenue.com/article.html?ID=5277

According to BNPP Economic research, the US public sector deficit should reach USD150bn this year, ending a period of three years of public budget surpluses, which enabled the US government to repay debt. Government bond yield spreads have once again become a leading indicator for currency valuation, the relationship between government bond yields and EURUSD broke down in 1999. The US debt repayment and the focus on corporate bonds were responsible for EURUSD de-coupling from government bond yields. However, the situation has changed. The US government has stopped debt repayments and has increased bond-issuing activity. Accordingly, government bond market spreads might regain their importance for the EURUSD relationship.



Spartacus (5/30/02; 01:51:01MT - usagold.com msg#: 76959)
Yesterday's release of Euroland's March current account and balance of payment data is euro supportive.
http://www.investavenue.com/article.html?ID=5276

While USD weakness witnessed in April and early May was developing mainly against non-European currencies, the market seems to have changed horses.


Yellow Metal (5/30/02; 01:32:36MT - usagold.com msg#: 76958)
Export Import Bank (Corporate Welfare at its Worst )
http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=special&s=sanders20020521
Stumbled on this one and thought it might resonate here.
snippit
"One of the most egregious forms of corporate welfare can be found at a little-known federal agency called the Export-Import Bank, an institution that has a budget of about $1 billion a year and the capability of putting at risk some $15.5 billion in loan guarantees annually.

. . . .

Among the companies that receive taxpayer support from the Ex-Im are Enron, Boeing, Halliburton, Mobil, IBM, General Electric, AT&T, Motorola, Lucent Technologies, FedEx, General Motors, Raytheon and United Technologies.


. . . .

Since 1994 the Ex-Im Bank has provided $673 million in loans and loan guarantees for projects related to the Enron Corporation, leaving taxpayers exposed to $514 million.The bank approved a $300 million loan for an Enron-related project in India even though the World Bank repeatedly refused to finance it because it was "not economically viable."



Yup !
Something rotten here.
Perhaps this has been mentioned in these pages before now.
Probably has. Still the monetary guarantees aren't small potatoes. This doesn't qualify as a major scandal but just another nasty bit of business by the people in high places.






Black Blade (5/30/02; 00:39:51MT - usagold.com msg#: 76957)
Soaring gold sparks rush to unwind bets
http://cnniw.yellowbrix.com/pages/cnniw/Story.nsp?story_id=30217489&ID=cnniw&scategory=Metals+%26+Minerals%3APrecious&


Snippit:

APPREHENSION is building up in the gold market about the big bets taken by some banks that the bullion price would stay low. US commercial banks have held big derivative positions. If any of these banks took big bets on the gold price staying low, they would be doing so without future metal production to fall back on. One leading expert says: 'The potential for a squeeze is huge.' Some say that a rise to $330 would trigger more 'margin calls', forcing gold bears to put up more funds. Such warnings have been heard before, but the gold market, though global, is relatively small and can easily be swamped by huge derivative trades. Some estimate the 'short' position at 1,500 to 3,000 tonnes - six months' to a year's output.


Black Blade: Any wonder why the bankers (Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan Chase) are literally begging investors to sell their Gold? I for one would like to see some inter company memorandums at these investment houses concerning Gold. BTW, where did Henry Blodgett go anyway.



Black Blade (5/30/02; 00:30:10MT - usagold.com msg#: 76956)
AT&T's Credit Rating Lowered Two Levels to `Baa2' by Moody's
http://quote.bloomberg.com/fgcgi.cgi?ptitle=Top%20Financial%20News&s1=blk&tp=ad_topright_topfin&T=markets_bfgcgi_content99.ht&s2=ad_right1_topfin&bt=ad_position1_topfin&middle=ad_frame2_topfin&s=APPUIChQdQVQmVCdz

Snippit:

New York, May 29 (Bloomberg) -- AT&T Corp. had its credit rating cut to the second-lowest investment grade by Moody's Investors Service.

Black Blade: Ma Bell cut to "Junk"? How the mighty have fallen.



Black Blade (5/30/02; 00:17:45MT - usagold.com msg#: 76955)
Barclays' bad debt fears
http://money.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2002/05/29/cnbarc29.xml&sSheet=/money/2002/05/29/ixcity.html


Snippit:

Barclays shares fell 27 to 593p after the country's fourth-biggest bank lifted bad-debt provisions in response to "a more difficult business environment" and warned that costs are continuing to rise.

Black Blade: Another banker in trouble.





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