Monetary Metals in Wealth Management, Townhall, Inside Sources, and Barron’s

Keith Weiner and Monetary Metals were featured in several news outlets last month including Wealth Management Magazine, Townhall, Inside Sources, and a letter to the editor of Barron’s. Here’s a quick recap of each feature with a link to the original.

InsideSources: Is the Gold Standard the Economist’s Punching Bag?

Inside Sources ran an article titled Should the U.S. Return to the Gold Standard? No. Of course, we couldn’t read an article like that without some kind of response! Which is exactly what Keith did. Here’s a selection from his rebuttal:

“In many gyms, there is a punching bag in the corner. When someone feels frustrated or wants to show off, he can hit it. The gold standard is the punching bag in the economists’ gym.

In an InsideSources op-ed, David Beckworth and Patrick Horan argue, “A new gold standard would do much more harm than good.” They posit that we should not return to the currency price-fixing scheme of 1944-1971. They are convincing, but unfortunately, they knocked down a straw man.”

Read his counterpoint piece: Is the Gold Standard the Economist’s Punching Bag?

Wealth Management Magazine: Nominal Dollar Interest vs Real Gold Interest

“Are your clients happy with their dollar fixed income investments?” That’s how our article featured in Wealth Management’s Midyear Outlook Magazine begins. We make the case that with yields as low as they are and inflation as high as it is, dollar fixed income investments just aren’t cutting it for most investors. Thankfully, there’s an alternative – Gold Fixed Income. Rather than earn interest in dollars (which are debased by the Federal Reserve), you can earn interest on gold, which cannot be debased. Here’s a quote:

“By contrast to interest on dollars, interest on gold does not have to be adjusted for inflation. If you earn 3% on gold, you have a real 3% gain. And because gold has proven to retain its value over long periods of time, your principal remains secure as well.”

Read Nominal Dollar Interest vs Real Gold Interest

TownHall: The History of the Corruption of our Money Parts I and II

This month marked the 50th anniversary of an infamous day in monetary and economic history. August 15th, the day when President Nixon defaulted on the US’s obligations and closed the final convertibility of dollars into gold. However, this was the tip of a proverbial iceberg of bad decisions governments made interfering in matters of money and credit. The articles Keith wrote for TownHall trace that history from its origins, to the overgrown mess we find ourselves in today. Here’s a quick snippet from Part I:

“It is in moral terms that we should look at what they have done to our currency. Let’s begin at the beginning. People used gold and silver coins as currency. They adopted paper currency to have smaller, convenient denominations. But always keep in mind that convenience is a secondary consideration if you don’t trust the currency’s issuer…“

Read The History of the Corruption of our Money Part I

In Part II, Keith picks up where he left off, in 1913, at the creation of the Federal Reserve. From there he brings us up to the current moment. We are living in the Federal Reserve Note (dollar) system. What does that mean for us today and for the future? From the article:

“The dollar is failing, but not as a consequence of its increase in quantity. Rather, its quantity has increased rapidly because of the deeper cause which is driving it to eventual failure. It is an adulterated, spindled, and mutilated piece of paper. An irredeemable promise is a dishonored promise.

It is issued, not by a sound bank raising capital for a simple and honest investment. But by a government who counterfeits the once good-as-gold dollar. The root of the problem is not about purchasing power or inflation, any more than it is about quantity.

The root of the problem is fraud: the attempt to get something for nothing.”

Read The History of the Corruption of our Money Part II

Letter to the Editor at Barron’s: The Almighty Dollar

To wrap up the month, Keith wrote a letter to the Editor of Barron’s. The letter was in response to Randall W. Forsyth’s essay examining the dollar’s dominance 50 years after Nixon’s closed the gold window. The article has much to commend for it, but it leaves some pretty gaping holes as well. It concludes by advocating for a central bank digital currency to replace the dollar. Keith responded noting that a central bank digital currency “is not a replacement for the dollar, just the old dollar in a new form.”

Read Keith’s Letter to the Editor at Barron’s

Additional Resources on Central Bank Issued Digital Currencies

For those interested in a larger treatment of the issue of Central Bank issued digital currencies, check out Keith’s article The Fedcoin Is Coming, or check out his video interview below.