Ron Paul Has Just Guaranteed He Will Not Be Elected !

[billt]

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_much_gold_has_been_mined_in_human_history

It's hard to believe, but if all the gold ever mined was weighed, it would amount to between 140,000 and 160,000 tons. That would be a cube of approximately 62 feet on a side. A cubic inch of gold weighs 11.06 oz.  Bill T.

[fullautovalmet76]

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_much_gold_has_been_mined_in_human_history

It's hard to believe, but if all the gold ever mined was weighed, it would amount to between 140,000 and 160,000 tons. That would be a cube of approximately 62 feet on a side. A cubic inch of gold weighs 11.06 oz.  Bill T.

Not to argue but that is from wiki.answers after all. And the question is like asking how many trees have been cut down throughout human history.

[tombogan03884]

Actually FA that number has been floating around for at least 30 years.
And historians have a surprisingly good idea of gold out put over the centuries.

[fightingquaker13]

The questionis why are we having this discussion? Why fetishize gold? Its a commodity like any other. No different than tin or rubber or coal. Its value was based on the fact that its shiny and rare. In short, its perceived or market value, not any intrinsic value. Its really no different than paper money, except that there is a finite amount of it. Now, that finite amount is grossly inadequate to cover the dailey transactions of a global economy. Ultimately all currency, whether its paper, wampum or gold bars is based on its utility and and perceived value. Gold is not adequate. We have two choices. Either deal with fiat currencies and treat them the same way we do stocks and bonds, or go with some substitute for gold. Either way we will never escape the fact that money is worth exactly what someone is willing to trade you for it. Its ALL perceived value. The search for an absolute value is a fool's errand.
FQ13

[tombogan03884]

Gold, Silver, and other commodities have value in themselves. Metal coinage replaced straight barter because it was easily transported, could be worked into more or less uniform weights and did not spoil.
I thought you studied history ? This is pretty basic. Paper has no where near the value it is supposed to represent since it can not be used for anything else except wiping your ass.
Gold and Silver CERTIFICATES had value because they could be redeemed for metal of that value.
Federal Reserve notes have no actual value except that assigned them by a bunch of lying incompetents .

[Sponsor]

[fightingquaker13]

Gold, Silver, and other commodities have value in themselves. Metal coinage replaced straight barter because it was easily transported, could be worked into more or less uniform weights and did not spoil.
I thought you studied history ? This is pretty basic. Paper has no where near the value it is supposed to represent since it can not be used for anything else except wiping your ass.
Gold and Silver CERTIFICATES had value because they could be redeemed for metal of that value.
Federal Reserve notes have no actual value except that assigned them by a bunch of lying incompetents .

And what use is a gold coin the size of a quarter except that someone decided it was worth $500 or $10,000 depending on its rarity? Look Tom, this is a key point. Let me remind you of Gresham's Law. Long version is this: "Between two currencies of equal market value, the one with the least intrinsic value will prevail". Short version is this: "Bad money drives out good".
 Look at our own economy. No one wants cash. They want visa or direct deposit because the handling charges are cheaper. Hell, UT gave you a discount on tuition if you paid by visa over the phone or online as they didn't have to pay to have someone open the envelope and take the check to the bank. Gold is intrinsically as useless as paper unless you want it for industrial purposes. Ask yourself this. Three weeks into a disaster, would you trade a gun, bottled water, or food for gold any quicker than you would for a fistfull of $100 bills? Hell no. Money, all money, represents a store of value. How MUCH value that currency represents depends entirely on its perceived utility to the buyer. Think of all money as poker chips. The blue is worth more than the red because we aree that its so. How much is a blue worth? Ask me at the point that you want to cash it in on something of actual value.
FQ13

[billt]

Think of all money as poker chips. The blue is worth more than the red because we aree that its so. How much is a blue worth? Ask me at the point that you want to cash it in on something of actual value.
FQ13

Not really a good comparison. A poker chip is only as good as the casino who issued it. Yes, in Vegas, Reno, and Atlantic City, casinos will redeem each others chips out of common courtesy, and because it keeps people gambling and spending where otherwise they wouldn't. But try to buy a gallon of paint at the Home Depot 8 blocks from the strip with a $20.00 chip from the Stardust, and they'll tell you to take a hike. It's basically worthless out of it's domain.

Gold is recognized as a Worldwide standard of value because of it's rarity, along with the fact so little of it has existed in the world at any given point in time. Much the same with Silver, Platinum, and other rare heavy metals. Paper and poker chips can also be easily counterfeited, not so with gold and silver. The entire profession of assaying is based on that.   Bill T.

[tombogan03884]

FQ, you really are an idiot.
The Law is a special case of the usual effects of price controls by government: in this case, the government’s artificial fixing of an exchange rate between two or more moneys creates a shortage of the artificially under-valued money and a surplus of the over-valued money.

[Pathfinder]

Back to Ft. Knox for a second. I remember when Crane and the others went through (I was living in Illinois then myself). What strikes me now is one simple fact. Years ago, this was allegedly the process at Ft. Knox: Gold never leaves (or rather, is never supposed to leave) Ft. Knox. Ever. When a nation submitted certificates (dollars backed by gold then silver), an amount of gold was moved from one room or area to another to transfer the wealth. When Crane and the others were allowed into Ft. Knox, they were simply shown the rooms (some of the rooms?) so who knows whose gold they were looking at? That is why there is need of an audit, to (a) confirm that gold bars are in fact still there, and (b) which ones, if any, are still ours (i.e., belong to the US).

Back to the FQ-bashing already in progress!    Someone pass me the popcorn, please?

[billt]

When Crane and the others were allowed into Ft. Knox, they were simply shown the rooms (some of the rooms?) so who knows whose gold they were looking at?

Every gold ingot stored at Fort Knox is stamped so identifying it. We do not store foreign gold there. During World War II we did store the Crown Jewels of England as a favor to Churchill, to prevent the Nazi's from stealing them. There was also a report that the Constitution was also stored there during the same time frame.  Bill T.