Risk

I take all types of risks every day, as do you, the reader.  Life is full of risks, and there is even a field of endeavor called “Risk Management.”  I risk my safety when I go out in my car, that some reckless or drunk driver won’t crash into me.  I take a risk when I go to a restaurant, that the food is not full of harmful bacteria.  I take a risk that my bank doesn’t fail. That’s why I use a five star, non-national, locally owned bank.  Virtually no risk at all.  Flying is a risk, as is climbing a set of stairs.  Casting a vote might elect the wrong candidate, and a criminal could rob you.  Risk, risk, risk.

When you order something ’on line,’ you are taking a risk that you will receive the item as it was advertised.  When you order gold or silver from me, my son, or daughter, there is a risk that you won’t receive it, even though we have done over a billion dollars worth of business since 1977, and have never lost anyone’s money, gold or silver.  Who knows?  An earthquake could wreck the Brink’s warehouse from where most of it is shipped, but the risk is infinitesimal, as is the risk of not having your gold or silver arrive at your home, when purchased from us.  That’s why we carry insurance, as do most people.  To minimize life’s risks.

We have been in business for 34 years, and have earned our A plus rating from the Better Business Bureau.  However, one of the largest dealers has an “F” rating, so the risk of purchasing from M…. is far greater than purchasing from us.  Ever wonder why we seem to be the only or virtually the only web site which has prices posted?  Let me tell you why.  If you go to a firm that doesn’t post their prices, as we do, (they change constantly to match market prices), it is probably because they want you to call them so they can sell you something they make a lot of profit or commission on, or they want to “bait and switch” you into numismatics, or some other high profit item.  They also want to get your name and phone number so they can call and annoy you endlessly, trying to sell you something.  We NEVER call anyone, figuring that if you want or need something, you’ll call us.  When someone calls you, you can bet that it is not for your benefit, but theirs!

Of late, there have been lots of new dealers sprout up, and do lots of expensive TV advertising. Is there a risk from dealing with a new guy on the block?  The inside cover of the new NRA “Freedom” magazine, has a full two page ad in brilliant color for gold and silver.  Glenn Beck has several gold advertisers.  Guess who pays for all the expensive advertising?  Not just for gold and silver, but any advertising in phone books, direct mail, TV, radio, billboards, or what have you?  The customer of the advertiser pays for the advertising, in increased costs.  We spend nothing on advertising.  Not a penny.  We depend on word of mouth and reputation, and it works well.  Maybe that’s why we seem to be the cheapest, longest in business, and most reliable.

Some say my columns are responsible for our successful business, and that may be partially true, except for one thing.  My columns are read by hundreds of thousands, and hundreds of thousands don’t buy from us.  Maybe my columns help our competitors as much as us, as there is no way of telling.  It doesn’t matter, I like to write.  There’s an inner satisfaction in telling like I think it is, and especially when it all seems to come true, as it usually does.  I wrote and warned about the stock market and real estate crash, and dozens of other risks, which came true and will continue to do so, I really believe.  I have harped on the silver-gold ratio for years, and it has come true.  In the last few years, gold has gone up 390% and silver has gone up 460%.  I think silver will continue to out perform gold, till the ratio returns to 16 to 1.

Why take a risk with your assets?  We measure our wealth with dollars, just like we measure length in inches, feet, yards, and miles.  We measure building height in storeys, speed in miles per hour, temperatures in degrees, and there is a measurement for practically everything.  All measures stay rigidly the same, and if they didn’t, civilizations would collapse.  Suppose a measure changed?  Suppose inches, volts, or gallons changed?  Just imagine the confusion!  But dollars change every single day, and 99% of people either don’t realize it, or can’t think of what to do to protect themselves.

If your boat leaks, the risk of it sinking is a high risk, and you really shouldn’t go out fishing in it.  If your tires are bald, it is a bad risk to take a trip on them, and if you have a can of food that is bulging, the risk of eating from it is great.  If you see thousands of termite queens in spring, you’d better call an exterminator, and if your dollars are losing value, you ought to GET OUT OF THEM! The risk is far too great. If you stay in them for a 1% interest rate, you are being decapitalized.  We have far more than 1% inflation, and the very dollars you are saving in, are losing value, which is just another word for inflation.  They’re printing billions of dollars people; and the more they print, the less they will buy, and this includes gold and silver.  Nuf said?  The financial risk of keeping your surplus assets in dollars, is absolutely frightening.

Many first time customers. are actually scared about transferring their dollars into real, historic, beautiful, real, money.  They think the risk is too big. They have some trust in little, un-backed, pieces of scrip, known as dollars, because that’s all they have ever known.  WAKE UP OUT THERE!  GET OUT OF DOLLARS!!!  What to get into? Any physical thing priced in dollars, because their prices will go up as dollars lose value.  It just so happens that gold and silver are historic money, and are not only beautiful but easily bought, sold, and stored.  You don’t consider it a risk buying gold or silver jewelry…why would you worry about buying bullion gold and silver?  Makes no sense.