All times are U.S. Mountain Time
(Yesterday's Discussion.)
Gold Standard (2/21/03; 23:43:24MT - usagold.com msg#: 98177)
Fuel Cells?
This is a bit off-topic, although the gold/economy/energy/economy/oil/economy interconnections are pretty significant to members of this fine forum.
I am not a scientist or engineer by any means, but I do attempt to analyse and comprehend things in a logical fashion.
I have been interested (as an observer) in fuel cells since Daimler-Benz injected millions into Ballard of Canada possibly a decade ago. All of the current interest in fuel cells appears to be biased towards a "hybrid" fuel cell, where the active constituent is petrol, in order to "crack" hydrogen for combustion purposes from the complex-carbon/hydrocarbon molecule.
To this end, a fuel cell stack is nothing more than filling up your car with petrol at a petrol station, but instead of burning the petrol, you "crack" the hydrogen out of the petrol through an electro-catalytic process, and then burn the hydrogen, in a conventional fashion. The "exhaust" then becomes water vapour, carbon dioxide and the remnants of the "cracked" petrol.
The proponents of such a system claim increased efficiencies and lowered photochemical and other nasty emissions, but it seems to me that this hybrid system is fundamentally flawed, if people are dreaming of the endless possibilities of "free" power from directly burning hydrogen.
It is interesting to note that the proponents of this system, (which is intended to produce "combustible" hydrogen) say that a "pure" hydrogen system is far superior, with the only by-product being water vapour, BUT that the distribution network for pressurised H2 gas is many years into the future.
Why is this so? Why spend countless millions of dollars on a hybrid system based upon petrol? As far as I can see in Australia, there is already a nationwide network of compressed gas delivery, with LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) being almost universal, and CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) being available in most large cities.
Surely it would be relatively simple to deliver compressed H2 in a similar fashion?
Maybe not, maybe not....
Firstly, H2 gas does not occur in great quantities in nature. Hydrogen normally floats around as a very reactive free radical, ready to combine with most other elements or compounds given an appropriate energy or catalytic input.
The "stable" (but explosive in the presence of oxygen - remember the Hindenburg?) H2 gas molecule is normally the byproduct of energy intensive chemical reactions.
For example, put a substantial amount of electricity into plain water, and you will get oxygen at the anode, and hydrogen at the cathode (or maybe it's the other way round!). Put a fair bit LESS energy into SALTY water, and you get (I think!) hydrogen, oxygen, chlorine gas, and caustic soda (Sodium Hydroxide). And so on, down to exothermic chemical reactions, that produce H2 as a by-product.
What I (as a self-confessed layman) can see is that the production of hydrogen for storage/dissemination as a fuel is that it is net energy inefficient. Put simply, the amount of kilowatts or giga-joules that you put into the production of hydrogen is going to be less than the energy output of ultimately burning that hydrogen.
The only way that this can be good for the environment or the economy generally is by way of nuclear or hydro/wind power being used to primarily obtain hydrogen gas.
The second issue which springs to mind is the storage of hydrogen. I may be totally off the mark on this, but I cannot think of any container, no matter how strong, that could effectively contain hydrogen under pressure, without being an explosive danger.
Let me explain. Hydrogen gas (H2) is the smallest compound molecule known, with an atomic weight of 2. What sort of molecular structure of any containment vessel could stop these tiny molecules of H2 from leaking out? Nothing! Unless you have the molecular equivalent of a force field, you are always going to have a rate of leakage of H2 from high to low pressure zones.
How does the high pressure hydrogen tank behind your back seat look now? No wonder it's almost impossible to buy a new car with a cigarette lighter!
In summary, then:-
(a) there's a reason that "hybrid" hydrogen fuel stacks using present petroleum based fuels are being touted, and that reason is that "pure" hydrogen as a primary fuel is just a pipe-dream. Conclusion - we will still be at the mercy of petroleum producers.
(b) hybrid, and indeed "proper" hydrogen fuel-cells, are being promoted as a "clean" and "efficient" energy source for transportation, when they clearly will not be.
(c) fuel-cells are being promoted in a "we don't have to worry about those goddamn Arabs" fashion as an answer to immediate future concerns, and I think this is nothing more than hog-wash.
Sorry about the long, off-topic post. To get on-topic again, I hope that silver catalysts for all sorts of uses continue to be discovered every day.
Has anyone noticed that silver isn't exactly a slave-follower of gold these volatile last few weeks?
Silver and Gold - acquire as much as you can carry!
mikal (2/21/03; 23:42:25MT - usagold.com msg#: 98176)
U.S.A.- My country tis of Thee, sweet land of liberty
http://www.etherzone.com
THE U.S. GOVERNMENT IS DYING
FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM... ITS "STAKE IN THE HEART"
By: Michael Rivero
The US Government is dying. Its ultimate fate was sealed the moment the Federal Reserve Fiat money system was put into place. Like a recreational drug user enjoying that first chemical rush, those who created the federal Reserve luxuriated in the seemingly endless flow of money pouring forth from the Federal Reserve, money used to prolong and consolidate power, money spent without worry in the full knowledge that it was going to be someone else's problem to pay it all back.
But now the US Government is paying the price for that glorious free-spending time of so long ago. Like a recreational drug user now turned hopeless addict, the government has taxed profitable businesses into seeking friendlier homes in other lands, and has turned to looting trust funds and playing bookkeeping games trying to hold off the final collapse...
The U.S. Government is Dying: No longer able to conceal the financial losses, the US Government, like a desperate addict, is turning to crime as a source of funds, crime on a global scale, conquest, war for profit, call it what you will, an invasion of a nation is different from an invasion of a home only in scale.
The US Government has been making bad decisions since at least the 80s. In hindsight, a government composed almost entirely of lawyers should not have been expected to know anything about how to run an economy based on manufacturing. As a result, legislation was passed that encourage manufacturing to leave this nation. The lawyer/politicians, rather than admit error, tried to conceal this loss by inventing the "service economy", a ridiculous notion that one can prosper a nation by doing each others' laundry for a fee. The service economy did not bring money into the nation, it merely moved what was left around faster, increasing opportunities for taxation. The effect of this was that cash flowed from the people to the government, good for government struggling with a crushing debt load, but bad for the people for the nation, 80% of whom suffered a steady decline of living standards throughout the 80s and 90s.
Minus the manufacture of actual products, investors flocked to more speculative ventures, many of which turned out to be gigantic stock manipulation swindles.
But rather than address the problems, the government started playing its own bookkeeping games, looting Social Security and claiming it was a budget surplus. Knowing that the stock market was in trouble, the "Plunge Protection Team" was created to use government sanctioned rigging to keep the numbers high, as a political banner, even though such activity made the underlying problem of over-valuation much, much worse.
The loss of manufacturing to other nations meant that Americans had to buy more and more products once made in the USA from companies in other nations. This created the present $1.5 billion a DAY trade deficit. Normally, such a trade imbalance would drive the value of the dollar down, but a devalued dollar makes that portion of the government debt held by foreign interests increase, since the debt is held in the currency of the lending institution.
This was the rock and hard place the US Government found itself in. So deep in debt it cannot even make the interest payments, unable to sell products to generate revenues to pay that debt because manufacturing was taxed into relocating, and a threatened collapse of the dollar that would force a default on the debt and ruin the standard of living Americans had worked so hard to achieve.
From that perspective, a war of conquest to grab oil and to force the conquered nations to use the dollar to keep demand for the dollar high looks like the best option for a bankrupted government.
But is it best for the people?
Let us say for a moment that we do go to war. Let us say we conquer several nations and force them to use the dollar. How does that change life here in the United States? We would still have a totalitarian government deeply in debt. To maintain its legitimacy, that government would still have to shackle you and your children to that debt. We still would not have a tax system conducive to creation of new manufacturing in this country. In other words, even winning the war would not improve our lives. All that would be accomplished after all the blood was shed and the money was spent was that the very same people who got us all into this mess would continue in power.
Let's try the other option. Let's say that the US Government, unable to initiate a war, or starting one but unable to carry it out, watches as the world switches to the Euro, and the over-valued and frankly worthless debt-stricken dollar collapses. The Federal Reserve collapses. The people will not tolerate another "bail out" especially of an institution which has been such a curse on the common man. As the banks and stock markets collapse, the US Government will get dragged down with the whole mess.
But the people will still be here. Those 288 million Americans and their skills, will still be here. And like our Founding Fathers they will simply form a new government, one that starts out free of the huge debts run up by 100 years of reckless spending by the old government, a government made up, not of lawyers, but of teachers, engineers, doctors, the people who KNOW how to make a civilization work. Yes, there will be a time of confusion, as was the case when the USSR collapsed. But as was demonstrated in the new Russia, following that confusion will be a time of opportunity for all the people with the strength and courage to take advantage of it.
Bush wants a war to save the present government. And by supporting his war with our money and the blood of our children, all we buy is more of that same government.
mikal (2/21/03; 23:29:42MT - usagold.com msg#: 98175)
Why U.S. deleted chunks of Iraq's weapons report
Clinton Admits, "We have a lot to answer for, and he [Saddam] is basically partly our creature."
Excerpts From Clinton Interview between former President Bill Clinton and James Fallows, of The Atlantic Monthly, on October 21, 2002.
I'm neither fish nor fowl. That is, I believe that he [Saddam Hussein] is very bad. We have a lot to answer for, and he is basically partly our creature. I'm not criticizing President Bush on this because I did the same thing. I've sat there and pontificated about how [Saddam] is the only guy to use chemical weapons on his own people. Yeah he did it, and the Reagan Administration was for him when he did it. Nobody raised a peep then, because he was against Iran. We now know that he got his anthrax strain from an American company while we looked the other way. We also know that, or at least a British journalist has alleged, that Casey [the head of the CIA under Reagan] tried to give him cluster bombs. I don't know if that's true or not 'cause I read it in the British press and you never can tell. I wouldn't give it the same credence I would if I read it there [points at The Atlantic].
I think they [the original Bush Administration] feel badly about abandoning the Shiites. At least we tried to protect the Kurds. And, so... I'd like it if it happened. On the other hand, if it happened as a result of our initiative, it would be a very high price to pay. Because of what I said out here today. We are trying to create a process. I didn't exactly adhere to the Levin view [referring to Senator Carl Levin of Michigan], because I don't think you can treat the UN like a shrine. It is an institution that is still becoming, it's not where we want it to be. We, and others, sometimes cast our veto votes in ways that are more about us than about the global interests.
So I think we have to try to give the sanctions one more chance. He's not going to live forever, there are options for regime change short of bombing the living daylights out of them. And we know that these... we know that the inspectors have gotten a ton of stuff out of there. But the effort of trying will bring us together."
Dollar Bill (2/21/03; 23:14:57MT - usagold.com msg#: 98174)
Forum Administrators
Whatever the sins of ORO and Another, they managed to skate past the limits and were ushered out the door.
Unless the gata folks show some signs of learning, and some form of redemption from thier self embraced "lunatic fringe"
mentality, I propose to the table that they are also, "past the limits". And have earned removal.
Daniel Druff (2/21/03; 23:14:35MT - usagold.com msg#: 98173)
ElGordo
http://www.fuelcellcontrol.com/alkalinebasics.html
"Silver Catalyst" is not discussed in your link...very disappointing, sorry.
Not to worry, Silver is much too important a resource to be used in batteries...film for Throwaway Cameras is bad enough.
Thank you
ps: I'm sure Black Jack would agree.
Dollar Bill (2/21/03; 22:50:05MT - usagold.com msg#: 98172)
Chris Powell
Hi Chris, Ive had a kindly view of you for I guess a couple years. I just figured you hung out with the wrong crowd.
You said this yesterday regarding gata and my complaints:
"There's a lot to laugh at in the world economy -- and a lot to be angry at too. Let's work for the right balance"
Im with you there.
I read the forum from top down and I dont, as of yet, check the names or bypass because of the author. Maybe you can understand my distress at reading gata writers who write things like this stuff the last few days here.
Let me edit to shorten the post.
Look at this, murphy gleefully celebrates and trumpets and WANTS chaos and destruction. In the article that he hoped would be a hand gernade or nuclear bomb thrown at the worlds financial system, titled "panic is near if the gold is gone" He says that by him publishing this he, gata, will be "shaking the world's financial system to its core"
(wonderful Chris!)
And said that "that officialdom doesn't want this exposed"
(How heroic! right Chris ?)
The logic is simple -- sell the gold, hammer gold prices, hide inflation, print money free of gold's warning function, drop interest rates, "Simulate a gold standard" as Greenspan said on Feb 11, 2003. It created a world-wide "Goldilocks Economy. This was the motive for the gold scam and why the Euro Area went along with the game.
(Uh Chris, what exactly does "Goldilocks economy" mean?)
We find the core of the World Gold Council's incompetence and uselessness as a promotional body...
..that makes a mockery of the WGC and its vaunted Gold Field Minerals Services statistics section and its rediculous----
These Hush-Puppied bozos at the WGC don't even bother to read the....
-(When gata gets is wish and "panic" comes, I will of course applaud gata, and I wonder, can I make a motion that murphy become king or whatever and save us from the hushpuppies? gata views the us as an imperialistic nation ripping off the world, as you know, from a recent message.
Here is sector, chiming in as representative of gata here in messages of the last couple days)-
"If one knows one's mortal enemy is low on ammunition then the analysis regarding the enemy's future tactics becomes a bit easier. The dollar retreat.."
" When the destruction of the dollar is complete the disintegration of the US will begin. Politically we are already split. Further Balkanization will occur...each region fending for itself -- under totally new rules. What will the new rules be? There won't be any."
Well Chris, I just dont think I am reading gata (and you) wrong. I come here to read sane people trying to understand
and learn. gata is not capable of learning. gata pridefully lets the article call them "lunatic fringe" because in thier
delusional arrogance, they are SO right, and SO preposterously self righteous, that they wear the lunatic fringe lable as a badge of honor.
I have 4 boys that have hopes of a life that is not a destroyed mess that your group would LOVE to be responsible to provide. I can hardly believe that I find myself confronting such madness that your group CLEARLY is possessed by. Your group NEEDS to go to some church and somehow try to find your way back.
Waverider (2/21/03; 22:47:20MT - usagold.com msg#: 98171)
Wanted: An anti-deflation man (or woman)
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Japan/EB22Dh01.html
Snippit:
"Japanese officials were slow to recognize the danger of deflation in the 1990s but are finally taking it seriously, going so far as to warn other members of the G7 rich countries' club that the disease may be contagious. With that backdrop, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi continues his stoic search for a new central bank governor."
Waverider: More on deflation in Japan and the upcoming BOJ govenor change.
BTW: I awoke to the CBC this morning to a news reporter in the Gold markets in Baghdad - seems the Iraqis are buying Gold at a furious rate in the face of political uncertainty.
ElGordo (2/21/03; 22:29:10MT - usagold.com msg#: 98170)
White Hills here is some info on "that guy"
http://www.littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=5614_Nuclear_Buddies_for_Life
The Link above has the picture of Chirac selling nuclear tech
to Saddam.
Saddam Hussein (second from left) at a nuclear reactor in France in 1975. Jacques Chirac (current president of France) is at right in the glasses. Saddam wanted a nuclear reactor capable of producing plutonium for nuclear weapons. France supplied its Osiris reactor which was named Osirak (Osiris + Iraq]. It was being erected when it was destroyed in a Sunday strike [June 7, 1981] by the Israelis, timed to save the lives of the French scientists helping with the construction.
Stratfor.com reports that what Chirac called his "close, personal relationship" with Saddam dates back to late 1974, when Chirac traveled to Baghdad and met the #2 man in Iraq: Vice President Hussein. During that visit, their main negotiation issue was Iraq's purchasing of nuclear reactors. In September 1975, Chirac personally took Saddam on a tour of a French nuclear plant. He expressed his desire to help Iraq with its nuclear program, and "the Iraqis bought a 70-megawatt reactor along with six charges of 26 points of uranium enriched to 93%." That's enough weapons-grade uranium to produce three to four nuclear devices.
Baghdad also purchased a one-megawatt "research reactor," and France agreed to train 600 Iraqi nuclear technicians and scientists. France also agreed to sell $1.5 billion worth of weapons to Iraq - for which they got a lucrative oil contract. In 1987, the Manchester Guardian Weekly quoted Chirac as saying that he was "truly fascinated" by Hussein.
elevator guy (2/21/03; 22:23:47MT - usagold.com msg#: 98169)
CoBra(too)-98159
CoBra-
I understand how the US is viewed by the rest of the world. (Its not without cause.)
Most Americans don't really know what their government is doing, why it makes war when it does, we don't know what deals our government makes behind our backs.
"We the People" have not run this country since the Federal Reserve Act was signed into law. If not then, then lets say at least not since the last 50 years or so.
The country is effectively run by the monied elite, who are not really American patriots at all, they are international banksters, who feed the public crap like maybe Osama is in Iraq, (that was an early trial baloon, discarded in favor of "weapons of mass destruction"), so they can make war on Iraq and steal their oil. Its ridiculous, what we are told to believe. Not everyone beleives the line. There are many protestors, but mostly we all feel that the government will do whatever it wants in the end.
Black Blade (2/21/03; 22:08:22MT - usagold.com msg#: 98168)
CSFB Workers Threw Out Papers
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A37657-2003Feb20.html
Snippit:
A criminal investigation into Credit Suisse First Boston Corp. banker Frank Quattrone's activities has found several employees who threw out documents after receiving e-mails from him and an underling urging staffers to "clean up those files," sources familiar with the probe said.
Both the U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan and the New York attorney general's office are investigating Quattrone. CSFB put the star technology banker on leave earlier this month after discovering e-mails that suggested Quattrone advocated document destruction on Dec. 5, 2000, two days after he was told that the company had received a subpoena from a federal grand jury.
Black Blade: The "Enron of Banking" could soon be on the ropes. Hopefully the investigation will be a serious one, however, these investigations usually turn out to be mere grandstanding events by Eliot Spitzer for political mileage. The SEC is a joke and the NY US attorney's office is a toothless tiger in these cases. In the end Quattrone and CSFB will get a slap on the wrist. Nothing more.
Golden Bear (2/21/03; 22:01:56MT - usagold.com msg#: 98167)
White Hills (msg#: 98166)
http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/
Dear White Hills,
please visit the link above, scroll down about half way, and look at the picture of Saddam shaking hands with his friend.
How does your "analysis" explain this photo Sir?
The Bush administration knows that there is no way out for the US economy, it is doomed. Only Iraqi oil as collateral will save the administration from the unpleasant backlash from its citizens when the economy finally implodes...
Gold will be one mighty big life raft in the great tsunami that is coming, whether the US secures Iraqi oil or not. Either way, there will almost surely be negative consequences for all.
White Hills (2/21/03; 21:24:07MT - usagold.com msg#: 98166)
Saddam @ Cerac of France
I am not sure of how to spell his name so just will call him that guy from France. It seems as some reports are beginning to surface , no doubt due to the guy from France threating his eastern neighbors and stating that they missed the chance to be quite, that Saddam and the guy from Iraq have a personal relationship going way back when the guy from France helped Saddam with his Nuclear program. Seems that The guy from France considers Saddam a personal Friend. Rush Limbaugh has been talking about this for the last couple of days. Maybe when we occupy Iraq we will find out the evolvement that France and Germany has with Saddam. Maybe we will find out that the worst case scenerio as presented by the US is far worse than even we thought. At any rate we will all know soon enough. Keep in mind that we don't buy oil from Iraq, we don't have contracts for Oil with Saddam and don't do business with him. France and Germany do. Whats going to happen to the economy, the dollar and gold started long before 9/11 and the results of this war will have some affect short time but will not change what most of us on this forum thinks is going to happen. White Hills
ElGordo (2/21/03; 21:21:20MT - usagold.com msg#: 98165)
Druff here is the link
http://www.fuelcellcontrol.com/alkalinebasics.html
Look at the diagram in the upper right corner.
The bottom catalyst in the diagram is Silver.
New catalysts are silver with rare earth oxides.
No Platinum.
Daniel Druff (2/21/03; 21:11:35MT - usagold.com msg#: 98164)
ElGordo
Is this a true statement?
"Alkaline Fuel Cell technology is currently unique in that it can be made to work with non-platinum catalysts. Silver, Rare Earth Metal Oxides, and Carbon are all practical candidates."
What is your source for the above statement?
BTW, CNBC announced earlier today that Mr. Paul O'Neill, our recently retired Secretary of the Treasury, has been hired by Eastman Kodak...can you believe it? Sec. O'Neill will be a board member and who knows what else...maybe he will try to keep silver prices in check like he did with gold as our Treasury head.
The use of Throwaway Cameras is an insult to the benefits of silver. If there is anything to this fuel-cell business perhaps Mr. O'Neill will have a dickens-of-a-time trying to justify the frivolous use of a diminishing resource in the not too distant future. Simply put, there is not enough of the stuff to go around.
Thank you
Brett Woods (2/21/03; 20:50:57MT - usagold.com msg#: 98163)
@sector msg#:98103
While admitedly it certainly looks bad that, as you point out, there is/was an "over statement of world gold reserves by each bank reporting that they BOTH retained title to loaned or swapped gold."
Clealy logic, and accountants would say that, "only ONE bank had the title."
But I have to ask about your opening statement that divestiture of CB gold 1993-2001 was "used to suppress the price." I like to think that however misguided, the motive was simply to expand reserves by gaining exposure to the "expanding" economy, keeping in mind that concensus spoke of gold as a barbarous relic and that a logical extension of going off the gold standard would be a reduction of gold reserve and a replacement of it with the new reserve, the currency itself. It would seem an appropriate thing to do, given that Europe was adopting a new currency and would need reserves of it, and that economists world wide were suggesting that we were evolving to a "New Economy."
Certainly those who recognized that a new trend toward replacing gold reserves with paper reserves was taking place, could capitalize on the fact.
I am still not convinced that there was a "new" attempt to reduce the value of gold visa vie currency, specifically -beyond the logical extension of Keynsian economics begun decades earlier. I think the jury is still out. I'm not convinced that any single party would have the power or forsight.
Sundeck (2/21/03; 20:04:31MT - usagold.com msg#: 98162)
Asians are underwriting the US offensive
From article by Rowan Callick in The Weekend Australian Financial Review 22-23 Feb 03.
Some snips and figures may be of interest:
"Japan's reserves rose $US64 billion in 2001 and $US40 billion in 2002 and today total about $US460 billion."
$US reserves held by some Asian countries:
Japan $US460B
China $US273B
Taiwan $US165B
South Korea $US123
Hong Kong $US112B
Singapore $US82B
India $US74B
Thailand $US37B
Malaysia $US35B
Indonesia $US25B
Total: $1.39T
"Overall, Asia owns half of the US Treasury debt held overseas."
According to the article, these reserves have been built up largely to guard against a repeat of the 1997 Asian economic crisis.
"There are, of course, currency implications. If the US dollar keeps weakening, this will diminish the returns from Asia's American holdings."
"In time, Asia will be a net importer of capital again and resources will flow in. For now, and crucially for the US as it prepares for a costly war and occupation of Iraq, it can take comfort from being bankrolled by the savings of Asians."
Sundeck: Take comfort? I suppose there is truth in this. While-ever the US is the major destination for Asian exports (like chips and other manufactures) there will be a reluctance for Asian countries to sell the $US and weaken the purchasing power of its major customer. But will developing domestic economies within Asia and other export markets take over some of the role played by the US in the past? This may see a gradual sell-off of $US savings to fund domestic investment.
Cheers
Ten Bears (2/21/03; 19:52:26MT - usagold.com msg#: 98161)
Post Message #98141
Apologies for misspelling, poor punctuation, and sentence structure. This infernal machine does not work properly in the a.m. when I do not wear my glasses.
Cavan Man (2/21/03; 18:59:20MT - usagold.com msg#: 98160)
Deficit Spending
Pentagon: $28B Spent on Fighting Terror
Friday February 21, 2003 11:00 PM
WASHINGTON (AP) - The costs of a war with Iraq would be on top of the $28 billion the U.S. military has already spent battling terrorists in Afghanistan and around the world since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, Pentagon officials said Friday.
Excluding preparations for confronting Iraq, that is what the Pentagon had spent through last Sept. 30, said Defense Department spokesman Lt. Col. Gary Keck.
The global fight against terrorism is now averaging $1.6 billion monthly, including $750 million in Afghanistan, he said.
The antiterror spending compares with an overall defense budget of $366 billion for the federal budget year that started last Oct. 1.
But that amount is expected to grow significantly in coming weeks, with or without a war.
Members of Congress and aides said that in coming weeks they expect President Bush to request $20 billion more for the military for this year - excluding any costs of a war with Iraq.
The money would be for replenishing accounts the Pentagon has dipped into for its ongoing campaigns in Afghanistan, the Philippines and elsewhere abroad. In addition, the military has incurred more security expenses at home, such as air patrols that have periodically circled some major U.S. cities.
If there is war with Iraq, the Pentagon will need even more money. White House officials are still trying to decide when they would seek funds to pay for the conflict.
So far, the United States has spent $2.3 billion deploying troops and equipment to the Middle East in preparation for possible war with Iraq, Keck said.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, several congressional aides said they believe that figure understates the actual expenses. Last September, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated that it would cost $9 billion to $13 billion to deploy a force to the Persian Gulf.
Pentagon officials, who have questioned the accuracy of the CBO report, say there are more than 150,000 U.S. troops in the Middle East, an amount analysts expect to grow to 250,000. Also present are four aircraft carrier groups and hundreds of aircraft - numbers that are also expected to rise.
Besides the $20 billion request expected for the Pentagon, the administration is also expected to seek billions for other efforts.
Turkey seems likely to receive at least $6 billion in U.S. aid. Jordan and perhaps Israel, Egypt and other regional allies are probably in line for billions more, lawmakers and congressional aides say.
In addition, the administration may request extra funds for rising domestic security expenses and other initiatives that could bring the midyear spending package's price tag to $40 billion, aides say.
CoBra(too) (2/21/03; 18:19:21MT - usagold.com msg#: 98159)
A Glass of Bordeaux and a Baguette ...
versus a Coke and a Hamburger McDonalds style - with or without French (what a stench) Fries - is kind a comical target for a boycott.
Not really discussing the merits of the french cuisine vs the fast food served on soggy buns - the implications of the theme is a fall-back to the "cool war" - nutrition vs malnutrition. Or, if you boycott my wine - that's OK - though I'll kick out McDonalds - as they've been stinking up the landscape for too long, anyway! ... See the one directly across the Vienna Opera House - used to be a famous cafe ...
I guess, I'm just a little p...d by Mr. Rumsfeld, who's horizon seems somewhat narrowed by former Desert Storm experiences. The diplomacy of the guy is mindboggling. As is his threat to pull out 70.000 troops from Germany.
- Don't you think Germany was occupied for too long - more than 60 years - and the Germans had to pay for it ...
As I don't want to say that the Iraq controversy is going to be abandoned - GWB is hell bent to go ahead - and he will
- the final victory may blow up the precarious stability of the region. Toppling US friendly governments as the Saud's and may turn the region into a war zone for ever.
Uh, OK - political topics ... though, this scizophrenic WAR Cry -Saddam has to go - is at best another hedonic attempt to deflect from the real and fundamental problems.
The hegemonial Dollar Reserve status - after having wreaked havoc among the 'developing countries' under the guidance of a mafios IMF, World Bank and similar institutions tied to the FED and its creatures like ESF and SEC et al - is to be protected against all odds.
Looks like the dikes are breaking. The global opinion is turning. The US is seen as war monger and the bully of the street gang.
If the war against Iraq becomes reality - as it will - because re-deploying troops of that magnitude, or even not deploying same - would be a political catastrophe for the US Administration.
So - here we go - deploy the troops - put Bagdad, Basra and most of Iraq to ashes. ... and then, we'll wonder about consequences ... The war premium will be no more oil from the region and if any you've got to pay for it in real terms - GOLD!
cb2
PS: Mr. G. - I'm afraid to be too simple to understand J.J.
- even if it rings a bell - which would be too much of a coincidence.
21mabry (2/21/03; 16:20:14MT - usagold.com msg#: 98158)
goverment
IMO I think a major problem we have is former high ranking goverment officials taking high paying private sector jobs when they leave office.Many times these jobs are in the same sector they were regulating,come on,this has to be a reward for playing ball with them,I grow more disgusted every day with the way things are run.
USAGOLD / Centennial Precious Metals, Inc. (2/21/03; 15:18:04MT - usagold.com msg#: 98157)
What you need to know before you buy your first ounce of gold...
http://www.usagold.com/cpm/goldhelp.html
Q. What makes USAGOLD / Centennial Precious Metals different from its competitors in terms of its interaction with clients?
MK. Our business philosophy allows us to take a more laid-back approach. We don't employ a room full of brokers spinning the phones day and night. We don't have multi-million dollar advertising expenses dictating what kind of advice we give clients. This is all by choice. I decided long ago that I didn't want the headaches that go with managing a large number of brokers and the support staff and facilities required. At the same time, we get hundreds of requests each month for introductory information packets. We do not make cold calls. We do not work mailing lists. We do not call people at all hours of the day or night. We do not use marketing and sales gimmicks -- leaders, bait and switch, and the rest of it. We primarily work with clients who have discovered us, like what they see, and want to form a long term relationship with a reputable and reliable gold firm.
Q. Does the "laid-back approach" limit your business?
MK. Yes and no. In the short run, "yes." In the long run, "no." We probably lose a few prospects to the aggressive companies which use hard-sell tactics but we will not be changing our client-friendly approach. We know that not every prospective investor is going to become a client of USAGOLD / Centennial. However, we know that the client who chooses us is likely to be the type of client we are accustomed to doing business with. We work with a large number of professional people and business owners -- active, retired and semi-retired. In fact, we work with clientele that span the economic spectrum and all walks of life. Getting back to how our approach sets us apart from our competitors, we get quite a few disgruntled high net worth clients who come to us after being run through the mill by some of the boiler-room operations I've referred to earlier. They are usually grateful that they found us.
Q. And finally, is there anything else you would like to share with us?
MK. Fundamentally, we believe that we are here to serve the client. Anyone who has done business with us will vouch for the courteous and professional service he or she has received. Our staff is carefully chosen and it shows. We get referrals on nearly a daily basis and are kept busy with strong repeat business. I would also like to call attention to the solid informational services offered at this website. We believe that any of our clients or visitors will find USAGOLD head and shoulders above anything else out there. I would encourage anyone attending this site to have a look around. We also publish a very good hard copy newsletter called News & Views: A Bi-monthly Review of Forecasts, Commentary & Analysis on the Economy and Precious Metals. Above and beyond that, the most important thing is the way we treat our clientele. From first inquiry through order fulfillment, we want to make the gold investing experience as pleasant and rewarding as possible. We have a large and satisfied clientele and that's the way we want to keep it.
USAGOLD / Centennial Precious Metals, Inc. (2/21/03; 14:39:23MT - usagold.com msg#: 98156)
Ally yourself with a gold broker that is knowledgeable and also cares...
http://www.usagold.com/Order_Form.html
In the September 2000 issue of News & Views: Forecasts, Commentary & Analysis on the Economy and Precious Metals USAGOLD-Centennial Precious Metals' founder and proprietor Michael Kosares said:
"[M]uch of this issue is devoted to oil, inflation, international politics and gold. . . . . Though the dollar continued to rise against most international currencies during the past month, most currencies ( including the dollar) were depreciating against real goods. . . . AND IT IS THE TREND THAT HAS ECONOMISTS CONCERNED. Crude oil, which must be purchased with dollars, is being blamed as the chief culprit. When the dollar price of oil rises, it fans the inflationary fires of nearly every nation in the world. All of this could at some point inspire a dollar rebellion among the nations of the world, with both oil producers and oil consumers capable of finding fault with the dollar simultaneously . . . . In such a case gold, of course, would become one of the primary beneficiaries and the dollar could go into a tailspin."
Take note that was written in September, 2000. Those who took advantage of Mr. Kosares' analysis -- and many did -- have been rewarded in two ways:
1. They averted disaster in the stock market.
2. They have participated in gold's meteoric rise.
News & Views is available to our clientele only. However, the latest issue is back from the printer and available to prospective gold investors who request an INFORMATION PACKET on one-time only basis. We invite your request.
If you would like to get a feel for the thinking that forms the basis for market conclusions like the one featured above, take advantage of the offer to include THE ABCs of GOLD INVESTING: PROTECTING YOUR WEALTH THROUGH PRIVATE GOLD OWNERSHIP. A prompt with ordering information will come up after you submit your request for the INFORMATION PACKET.
ElGordo (2/21/03; 14:24:53MT - usagold.com msg#: 98155)
Silver used in alkaline fuel cells
http://www.fuelcellcontrol.com/alkalinebasics.html
In 2002 the major issue in Fuel Cells is cost reduction and head of the wish list is a reduction in the catalyst cost. Currently this involves Platinum, which is expensive, and explains the current trend of pushing the envelope on current density. Our Zetek Stacks have a catalyst content of USD 1000 per kW.
Alkaline Fuel Cell technology is currently unique in that it can be made to work with non-platinum catalysts. Silver, Rare Earth Metal Oxides, and Carbon are all practical candidates.
Operative (2/21/03; 14:17:10MT - usagold.com msg#: 98154)
Refinery Fire, a follow up on earlier post by Sir Slingshot
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A41659-2003Feb21.html
Government "pretty sure" was not terrorism.
ElGordo (2/21/03; 14:12:55MT - usagold.com msg#: 98153)
@Operative
I'll need a shovel too! :-)
Operative (2/21/03; 13:55:37MT - usagold.com msg#: 98152)
@ ElGordo
http://www.fishinggiant.com/fishinggiant/hodgman-waders.html
" ...CPI...inflation subdued..."
My Dear ElGordo,
When venturing out into the swirling murky waters of government figures may I suggest you obtain a quality pair of waders. They may help in keeping one dry, however there is little to do about the decaying stench.
I have posted above link for your perusal.
<Smile>
Operative
Brett Woods (2/21/03; 13:45:03MT - usagold.com msg#: 98151)
Prometheus msg# 98092/ Curious/ Caradoc - Brilliant.
I'm having a really good chuckle -more or less just on the inside tho. As BB often points out, things are grim! Here are my playful additions to the scenario where I fill in a few details:
***
Prometheus: Suppose there's a certain very well connected investment bank CEO who gets himself appointed to a high position in the government. Maybe he made a lot of bribes, er campaign contributions, to the new administration, or something. Anyway, after he gets appointed, he makes a name for himself as a brilliant operator, Mr. Fixit, and general all around Go-To-Guy for the new administration....
***
It being an election year, Mr. Fixit thinks how he can get the ball rolling without questions from any oversight committee. Once the ball was rolling the rest of the team, bankers and institutional investors, should start to jog along beside it. But the first kick might be noticed. Of course, the Secretary of the Treasury can operate directly on an order from the office of the President. Congress wouldn't need to debate the matter. He unfuroughed his brow and picked up the receiver.
"Yes" the Secretary of the Treasury agreed. Treasury Reserves could be sold domestically and in Europe, replaced in effect by a large purchase of T-Bills. It would reduce the burden of equilization payments....Sure, now that I think of it, with the right accounting it could even show that the President was reducing the deficit, perhaps even runnning a surplus.
"We could book the sales as collateralized loans, collateralized because the bullion will never leave the vault, paper sales only. We could still count it as reserve that way. Let's say for example, we sell 20% of the National treasury....Ha HA hA....on paper, of course - on paper! That 20% we could count as resreve and only change its name. Call it "Custodial bullion" instead of "Reserve bullion" for example. Nothing to worry about I shouldn't think. Once the sales are made. No one ever wants to take delivery! Only farmers buy these contracts for legitimate purposes. All others are speculators. Can you imagine some bloody farmer type both wealthy and crazy enough to actually take delivery of our national reserve! Ha HA hA! "Dr. Evil?" Ha HA hA! ...at any rate, I'll draw up some protocol language that you can present at the ministers' conference. It'll help the respective central banks to disseminate the new numbers."
Mr. Fixit not only begins the process of selling off the national reserves of his own country, carefully by-passing yet another international treaty, but argues persuasively at a G8 ministers conference for the other wealthy countries to take the same tack. He tells them of the way they can generate currency without losing possession of their security. He likens it to feeding a mouse a piece of cheese on a string. After it's swallowed, you simply pull it back out. He argues also that, in the interests of harmony and stabilization, the proceeds from sales could go to buy instruments in one leading currency.
Mr. Fixit calls his former employers, and updates them on the progress of the mission....
***
ElGordo (2/21/03; 13:25:56MT - usagold.com msg#: 98150)
Agilent cuts 4,000 workers
Palo Alto, California, Feb. 21 (Bloomberg) -- Agilent Technologies Inc. will cut 4,000 jobs, or 11 percent of its staff, after the company had its biggest quarterly loss because of falling demand for computer-chip and telecommunications testing gear.
``The quarter turned out even tougher than we planned,'' Chief Executive Edward Barnholt said on a conference call.
_______
The rally must be over the report of no consumer inflation.
CPI "they said" was down. With energy prices sky
high > "inflation is totally subdued". What a joke.
We have bogus numbers again. When the chickens come home
to roost, they will be coming in hard.
ElGordo (2/21/03; 12:56:14MT - usagold.com msg#: 98149)
Chavez goes on attack
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N21379712
CARACAS, Venezuela, Feb 21 (Reuters) - It's hard to recall the humbled Hugo Chavez of April, who spoke of God, peace and reconciliation with his foes after surviving a 48-hour coup.
These days, Venezuela's paratrooper-turned-president spits out words like "attack" and "battle" and says he is going on the offensive against the "terrorists" and "fascists" who have defied him.
"I sheathed my sword (after the coup) and I was wrong," Chavez told a cheering crowd of thousands at a pro-government rally this week. "I have been forced to draw it again, and I will never ever sheath it."
___________
More violence could be on the horizon.
Daniel Druff (2/21/03; 11:44:18MT - usagold.com msg#: 98148)
THE USES OF SILVER
http://www.youhavegottobekidding.nut
1. Throwaway cameras
2. Medical uses too numerous to list.
********************FLASH*************************
Please excuse the theatrics but guess who's going to work for EASTMAN KODAK...I rest my case.
Thank you
mikal (2/21/03; 11:16:02MT - usagold.com msg#: 98147)
Conclusion to the summary of uses
http://www.goldinstitute.org/uses/industry.html
Excerpt:
INDUSTRY AND AVIATION
AIRBAGS
AIRCRAFT ENGINES
AIRCRAFT WINDOWS
ENGINE SYSTEMS
FIRE BUNKER GEAR
FOOD-FRESHNESS SENSORS
GOLD CATALYSIS
PROTECTION OF AIR FORCE ONE
AIRBAGS
Details of gold application are listed under each heading, each page. Thanks- mikal
mikal (2/21/03; 11:10:03MT - usagold.com msg#: 98146)
@Black Blade- Just a few more
http://www.goldinstitute.org/uses/medicine.html
Excerpt:
MEDICINE AND HEALTH
DENTISTRY
EYE SURGERY
LASERS
RESEARCH
RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS TREATMENT
THERMOMETER
mikal (2/21/03; 11:05:21MT - usagold.com msg#: 98145)
More uses
http://www.goldinstitute.org/uses/lasers.html
Excerpt:
LASERS AND OPTICS
ASTRONOMY
COPY MACHINES
PHOTO CDs
SATELLITES
SECURITY SYSTEMS
ASTRONOMY
mikal (2/21/03; 11:01:34MT - usagold.com msg#: 98144)
http://www.goldinstitute.org/uses/electron.html
Excerpt:
ELECTRONICS AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS
COMPUTERS/SEMICONDUCTORS
POWERCHAIRS
SPACECRAFT
TELEPHONES
TELEPHONE WALL JACKS
TVs AND VCRs
COMPUTERS/SEMICONDUCTORS
mikal (2/21/03; 10:55:41MT - usagold.com msg#: 98143)
@BlackBlade
http://www.goldinstitute.org/uses/
Excerpt:
THE USES OF GOLD
Choose from the following topics to learn more about interesting applications of gold.
ELECTRONICS AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS
LASERS AND OPTICS
MEDICINE AND HEALTH
INDUSTRY AND AVIATION
Gold's superior electrical conductivity, its malleability, and its resistance to corrosion have made it vital to the manufacture of components used in a wide range of electronic products and equipment, including computers, telephones, cellular phones, and home appliances.
Gold has extraordinarily high reflective powers that are relied upon in the shielding that protects spacecrafts and satellites from solar radiation and in industrial and medical lasers that use gold-coated reflectors to focus light energy. And because gold is biologically inactive, it has become a vital tool for medical research and is even used in the direct treatment of arthritis and other intractable diseases.
CoBra(too) (2/21/03; 09:58:52MT - usagold.com msg#: 98142)
Placer Dome ...
http://www.elkodaily.com/display/inn_news/news1.txt
could have been one of the best gold co's on the globe - hadn't they spoilt it as Jhonny come lately's to the hedgers purgaturio. Which seems to get bigger rather than reduced.
What a shame as they soon may be fighting for survival in spite of super deposits like Pipeline. cb2
Ten Bears (2/21/03; 09:53:53MT - usagold.com msg#: 98141)
"All I really need to know I learned in kindergan"
In the first half of the last century, children were introduced to moral concepts by animal stories in the tradition of Uncle Remus. One story I recall was about a squirrel named bushey-tail (first name George?)who was persuaded by his associates to go too far out on a very dangerous limb. The morals of these stories were similar to Kipling's "Gods of the copybook headings" and not to be ignored.
Those concerned about the current world situation and having interest in wealth/purchasing power preservation might want to consider; Gold has more in common with real wealth than conceptual wealth (income,capital gains etc.) and may at some future date be taxed {confiscated)as real property is currently The state security apparatus has according to information posted here recently, noticed via the federal register that gold investment purcrases are soon to be recorded on some entity's long black list. Perhaps it is a good time to convert some other asset to gold before gold winds up on a confiscation list..either gradual by tax or some other more drastic measure.
Mr Gresham (2/21/03; 09:44:36MT - usagold.com msg#: 98140)
Once Bitten...
http://www.msnbc.com/news/875480.asp
Images of people fleeing burning buildings...first one, no exits; this one, they hadn't observed where the exits were.
Herding instincts? And the sheep are always slaughtered. Great white? Or just another prey species?
CoBra(too) -- wondered if you noticed the name of the fire chief interviewed in Chicago, going by the initials J.J.?
slingshot (2/21/03; 09:15:57MT - usagold.com msg#: 98139)
Fire
Propane refinery on fire in Staten Island, New York.
Slingshot------------<>
kramrich (2/21/03; 09:08:34MT - usagold.com msg#: 98138)
Natural Gas spike!
Natural Gas pirces spiked this morning. Looks like energy prices are going up farther.
steady (2/21/03; 07:32:29MT - usagold.com msg#: 98137)
thats not my work but i did find it somewhere !
gold and silver honest money for honest people!
steady (2/21/03; 07:31:07MT - usagold.com msg#: 98136)
swaps loans evidence?
found this
The problem of gold loans extends past the bank of Portugal and the Philippines. Here are two central banks that have lent out far more than the 70% reported by Portugal that seemed like such a shocking amount. In these two instances the gold is deposited with the Bank of England and the BoE manages the loaning of the gold and pays gold interest to the depositor.
The farce is that all the loans are short term. Theory being that since it is a short term loan that the IMF allows the gold to still be counted as monetary reserves. The problem lies in that all the gold cannot possibly be returned to everybody at once should the need occur. The IMF treatment of gold swaps further allows the potential for double counting of monetary reserves when the gold swapped by one central bank can now be counted by both banks.
The truth of the matter is that gold has been in a deficit position and a lot of the gold is now worn as jewelry and cannot be returned to the bank. The end result of this is that the loan eventually must become a sale. It is a shame that the central banks responsible for the monetary health operate in such a fashion.
Page 39 of the central bank of Norway 2001 Annual Report
Gold reserves and claims on the IMF
International reserves also include Norges Bank's gold
Reserves and claims on the IMF.
Norges Bank's total gold reserves amount to just
under 37 tonnes, of which 33.5 tonnes consists of gold
bars deposited in the Bank of England. In addition,
Norges Bank has a collection of gold coins of historical
value and a few gold bars used for exhibitions. The
gold bars deposited in the Bank of England are constantly
on loan to other financial institutions for periods
of up to six months. At end-2001, the market value
of the gold reserves was NOK 2 346 million, less 20
percent on the basis of a principle of prudence.
http://www.norges-bank.no/english/
From the central bank of Denmark?
Today most of Danmarks Nationalbank's gold is deposited with the Bank of England in London
http://www.nationalbanken.dk/dnuk/hist.nsf/side/Danmarks_Nationalbanks_gold_sent_to_the_USA/The_German_clearing_account!Opendocument
From page 123 of the 2001 annual report
8 Gold
The gold stock amounts to 66,601 kg (2000: 66,605 kg), of
which 61,502 kg (2000: 62,439 kg) has been lent.
http://www.nationalbanken.dk/dnuk/Publications.nsf/side/Report_and_Accounts_2001/$file/beret-UK01.pdf
Here is another CB that has lent out half of its gold. Not all banks report on lending activities as they consider it confidental but I think by now you are getting the picture quite well.
Central bank of Finland
Annual Report 2001 page 67
The Bank's gold reserves amount to 50,000 kg. About half of the gold reserves are invested. The bulk of the investments are short-term gold deposits while part of the investments makes use of long-term interest rate swaps. A risk management unit separate from the portfolio management function is responsible for the risk management of the foreign reserves and monitoring compliance with limits. This unit also sets the benchmark portfolios, calculates returns on actual and benchmark portfolios and continuously monitors developments in the returns. The unit reports on risk management issues to a Board member who is not responsible for investment operations.
1. Gold and gold receivablesThe Bank's holdings of gold total 1,577,418 troy ounces.
http://www.bof.fi/eng/6_julkaisut/6.1_SPn_julkaisut/index.stm
Clink! (2/21/03; 06:48:56MT - usagold.com msg#: 98135)
@ prometheus, caradoc
Oh my gosh ! I'm finally reading too much of these conspiracy theories on goldbug web forums. It's getting to me, blurring the division between fantasy and reality. You see, I am a mild mannered engineer who used to own a nice villa in the South of France (and would do so again in an instant) who is quietly salting away as much bullion as he can afford. Does your story have a happy ending ? Does he live happily ever after with his wife and kids. Does he ? Does he ?! Come on guys, don't stop here, you've got my life in your hands. I can't stand it ! Aargh !
Ahem. Sorry about that. Back to writing my product requirements document ......
Clink! (2/21/03; 06:36:05MT - usagold.com msg#: 98134)
Pension funds
So let's see if I have this straight :-
Because of (over)endebtedness, interest rates have been drastically lowered in order to stave off bankruptcy of many major companies. Because of (over)lowered interest rates, many major companies risk bankruptcy because they can't meet the liabilities of their private pension funds.
Sounds like a lose-lose situation to me......
Prometheus (2/21/03; 06:18:26MT - usagold.com msg#: 98133)
CARADOC
I got a good hearty laugh out of your proposed movie script. Of course, my idea for the protagonist would be a mild mannered engineer who, just by using his own imagination, and the raw power of his own intellect,cracked the biggest bank robbery in history. But he was much too wise to write a book about it. He just bought as much of the gold as he could, very quietly salted it away, and then bought a nice villa in southern France ...
Of course, he had plenty of help in his detective work from some of the saviest free thinkers in the country. Some sort of chivalry society on the internet where the posters all address each other as knights and ladies.
Regardless, I think we all need to heed Aristotle's dictum:
Gold, get you some.
P.
silvercollector (2/21/03; 05:51:36MT - usagold.com msg#: 98132)
A must read article
http://www.insightmag.com/news/370641.html
The other day I was yapping about Phillipine 'double-counted' gold. A ultra-timely article regarding 'lost gold', co-incides with the current debate. Please also note the Portugese CB dilema.
TGIF!
Operative (2/21/03; 05:37:16MT - usagold.com msg#: 98131)
Coffee, and your Morning Briefing
http://abcnews.go.com/wire/Business/ap20030221_484.html
Enjoy, and welcome to friday, you made it!
Operative (2/21/03; 05:06:15MT - usagold.com msg#: 98130)
Pension Funds: The Big Screw
http://www.Bloomberg.com/feature/feature1045752633.html
Not a bright future ahead for those waiting for pension checks.
Black Blade (2/21/03; 05:02:48MT - usagold.com msg#: 98129)
Market Indicators
http://www.mrci.com/qpnight.asp
US market index futures are slightly lower, the USD is lower, gold is higher, oil and gas are higher, and grains are higher. At 6:30 est we get the CPI data. Higher energy prices are cited for the high PPI data yesterday and is expected to blow away expectations for today's CPI data. The record trade deficit number is expected to impact the GDP data resulting in the "double dip" recession even though according to the official arbiter of recession, the NBER still considers the US economy in recession using a more broad measure of economic data. Could be an "entertaining" day on Wall Street today.
- Black Blade
Black Blade (2/21/03; 03:23:37MT - usagold.com msg#: 98128)
Gold, titanium bonded with remarkable results
http://www.navakal.com/news/science/200302209026.asp
Snippit:
In a major breakthrough, a Singapore researcher has developed a new technique that bonds titanium and gold. The outcome is an attractive silver and gold strip, with each metal retaining its individual properties, such as the strength of titanium and the malleability of gold, Earlier attempts to do this at temperatures less than 100 degree C had proved unsuccessful, with the products turning brittle or unstable, according to a report in The Straits Times. Singapore Polytechnics principal lecturer Loh Peng Chum, who has developed the technique, said the new method, apart from giving jewellers new ideas, could also have industrial applications in the semiconductor industry.
Black Blade: Gold as an industrial metal? I recall research on gold for use in catalytic converters and air purification systems at low temperatures but have not seen any real world applications as of yet.
Topaz (2/21/03; 03:22:47MT - usagold.com msg#: 98127)
@ Belgian.
http://www.macroanalytics.com/html/zarandbondseurusd121103.html
Here's a look at what might be the killer (paper) trade of the decade Sir B.
With what we (think we) know to be the future of Gold, those averse to holding Bullion in possession would do well to consider the merits of ZAR Bonds to flesh out their Gold exposure.
Still Yielding double digit's WoW!
Nothing will substitute for the real thing tho.
Black Blade (2/21/03; 03:08:02MT - usagold.com msg#: 98126)
Tocom Lowers Gold Futures Daily Trading Limit Back To Y40
http://library.northernlight.com/FE20030220590000022.html?cb=229&dx=1006&sc=0#doc
Snippit:
With recent price volatility subsiding, the Tokyo Commodity Exchange Thursday decided to lower the daily trading limit on gold futures contracts back to Y40 a gram from Y60/gram starting Friday, a Tocom official told Dow Jones Newswires. The exchange raised the limit to Y60/gram last week after gold futures fell by the daily limit Wednesday and Thursday. Ryoichi Seki, an official with Tocom's International Affairs Section, said the exchange's bylaws allow for the expanding of the daily trading limits in times of heightened market volatility. "The market has become more settled and that's the reason why the limit was returned to Y40," said Seki.
Black Blade: Yeah right.
Black Blade (2/21/03; 02:29:47MT - usagold.com msg#: 98125)
Asian and Euro Markets Awash In Red
http://quote.yahoo.com/m2?u
Equities markets worldwide are lower as the grim US economic data released yesterday and weak US market performance send shock waves ripping around the globe. Should be a lot of entertainment on Wall Street today.
- Black Blade
GratefulForGold (2/21/03; 01:50:51MT - usagold.com msg#: 98124)
My apology
Caradoc, I apparently misread and misunderstood you. I apologize for my misperception.
Waverider, no, not PMSing. Maybe TofBSing.
Good night, and thank you.
ElGordo (2/21/03; 01:44:48MT - usagold.com msg#: 98123)
Dire Straights or a Flogging Recovery
Paris, Feb. 21 (Bloomberg) -- The French economy barely grew last quarter, as companies such as Alcatel SA and Schneider Electric SA scaled back investment and production.
Gross domestic product expanded 0.2 percent from the preceding three months, the government said. That's the slowest pace since the economy contracted in the final quarter of 2001. Growth was 1.2 percent last year.
A flagging recovery in Europe and the U.S., together destination of three-quarters of France's exports, has damped business and consumer confidence. The threat of war in Iraq has also pushed oil prices above $30 a barrel since the start of the year, leaving little scope for an economic rebound soon.
``I hope we're at the bottom of the cycle, but it depends on what happens elsewhere, such as Iraq,'' said Richard Shirrefs, chief executive officer of Eurotunnel SA, operator of the Channel tunnel rail link between France and the U.K. ``If we're not, we have some pretty dire things in store for us.''
Belgian (2/21/03; 01:36:04MT - usagold.com msg#: 98122)
Re:
@ Carl H : My #98045 was a too condensed fact-posting in addition to your #98042/43 postings (oil for euro and goldmining). Will the combination/collusion of a new Iraqi puppet-regime and external oil-exploitants, increase or decrease the chances for oil for euro ?
South African mining is living some Big legislative changes now...Is this a precursory process for rightout nationalization + International control of goldmining as during the goldstandard era ? Will the sudden change of private Gold ownership in South Africa, affect the rand's exchange rate and therefore the flexibility on mining ?
In both domains of oil and Gold...so many Big changes are occuring that one must conclude that something is ahead.
Sector : Since you stick, strictly, to your research done on official Gold reporting...I can only add that I have the greatiests of doubts/reserves, about ALL official AND private statistics and bookkeepings.
Gresham : Privatized Gold...? Are we really that far, already ? A dream scenario, no ?
All : Had the pleasure of watching " Gore Vidal ". How is he percepted by the forumers ?
Waverider (2/21/03; 01:17:35MT - usagold.com msg#: 98121)
GratefulforGold
Bad PMS day?...that would be Precious Metals...
Topaz (2/21/03; 01:13:39MT - usagold.com msg#: 98120)
A new McArthyism...@ Promethius.
Rest assured Sir, your scenario will ring truer with every passing week - when a shmuck such as I can clearly identify the absolute value of Gold over Fiat, and put into place an accumulation programme (several Yr's ago) then surely those better placed to recognise this would have done so...by ANY means.
A "usual suspects" archive (names and faces)...will no doubt emerge via the Net and holding ill-gotten Gold won't be all it was percieved to be.
Good read Promy.
Caradoc (2/21/03; 00:57:40MT - usagold.com msg#: 98119)
GratefulForGold's post 98117
I'm sorry you took it as sarcasm. None was intended. I was responding to Prometheus's own description of his scenario as "[a} crazy thing running in my head like a bad movie script" and intended to add to the positive responses from you and from Curious (msg 98107).
In addition to providing a rational response to the query on motive for why bankers would be willing to unload their physical, Prometheus also provided the motive for the bad guys in what I think could be a very good movie script. Maybe even one with the ring of truth to it.
If I went too far in taking it upon myself to cast Segal as the film's central figure, I apologize. Meanwhile, I look forward to reading more posts from everyone here, yourself included.
Waverider (2/21/03; 00:13:56MT - usagold.com msg#: 98116)
India allows futures trade in grains, gold
http://reuters.com/financeArticle.jhtml?storyID=2259217&newsType=usGoldRpt&menuType=markets
Snippit:
"India on Thursday permitted domestic futures trading in 54 commodities including rice, wheat and gold, but some analysts said that for derivatives to succeed the government would first have to reform physical markets.The decision paves the way for bullion futures exchanges to be set up and opens a window for local traders to hedge risks," said Nayan Pansare, an official at trading firm Inter Gold Ltd. Suresh Hundia, president of the Bombay Bullion Association, said the association would seek government permission to set up a bullion exchange for futures trading in gold and silver. India, the world's largest gold consumer, imports nearly 70 percent of the 700 to 800 tonnes of gold it needs each year."
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