Through out history gold has been the medium of exchange; the store of value. Paper money displaced gold early in the 17th century; first used in Massachusetts then by the states during the Civil War. The banking industry’s genesis was initiated early on by warehouses which issued a receipt – thus a warehouse receipt – entitling the holder to redeem the receipt for the said amount of gold as defined in the receipt. As the industry blossomed it became apparent that the holders of receipts very rarely requested the physical gold; they only transferred the receipts. Thus the warehouses evolved into lenders realizing that a call for 100 percent of the gold at any one time was not a probability.

The 18th through the 21st century became the glory days of gold. Banks became behemoths lending more gold than they had in inventory. When a run on a bank occurred, which it ultimately did, culminating in bankruptcy and ruin. As the United States entered the 20th century as the world’s big money player the world treated the dollar as if it was good as gold.

This was true up until 1971.  Not dismissing the illegal taking of individuals gold by FDR back in 1933 (see executive order 6102).  The world was on the path of becoming a dynamic and risky adventure from 1971 on; the dollar was no longer convertible to gold, the dream of El Dorado became a reality by inventing paper gold on a scale never seen before. The physical gold window had closed, the dollar pyramid scheme began.  Hence the printing of paper money on a scale never seen before. Economies were on financial cocaine, a euphoria that is still manifested by governments gone wild. More printing enabled the exalted to exert control of economies, countries and world politics. But good times don’t last forever.

Entering the 21st century has proved that the dollar panacea has a long reach, but things can changes in a quant moment. Across the globe one country after another has defaulted; Greece and Argentina head the list. Is it possible that the United States is next?  A probability that cannot be counted out. What brings us to that conclusion is the loss of faith in the United States. We are no longer control world events – Obama saw to it.

Future obligations are the tail wagging the dog and that is about to become the albatross under our neck for the next two decades. Obligations are coming due. And the question remains, who will be responsible to pay them. for sure you can’t count on today’s youth to hand over their hard earned cash.   17 Trillion and counting is a gargantua number, that is just debt, counting social security, medicate obligations and interest on the debt we are looking at a google type number closer to 100 trillion. $100,000,000,0000,0000.

Another relevant question to ask a politician of the goldbrick variety is:  Will we ever be able to pay back the money we owe?   Don’t expect a straight answer.  The next question is, Will gold provide a solution to political largesse?