Reporting the Facts, So Long as they Aren't Inconvenient or Difficult for Us to Explain to You Unwashed Masses
Oooooh, it must be time to panic:
The price of gold rose above 500 dollars an ounce for the first time for 18 years, propelled by strong buying from investment funds.
Gold hit 502.30 US dollars in overnight Asian trade before staging a retreat during European trading hours. The price was the highest since December 14, 1987 when it had touched 502.97 dollars.
Well, not really. Adjusted for inflation, gold today would have to cost over $830 an ounce, in order to match 1987 prices.
But remember: Just because the story is fake, doesn't mean it isn't accurate. A 60% difference is practically a rounding error to most people, right?
I think you should give the guy the benefit of the doubt. It's entirely plausible that the author was too stupid to take inflation into account.
I've learned that much of what, on the surface, resembles duplicity, often turns out to be the result of ignorance, laziness, stupidity or the ultimately lethal combination of all three.
This is an honest question here, deriving from lack of knowledge on the subject.
Why do we care about the price of gold?
Every month my father in law claims that gold is the best investment.
And every month I show him an inflation-adjusted chart of its value.
He still doesn't get it.
By the way, did you know it's an excellent time to buy gold?
Or so the talk radio ads say. And have been saying. For decades.
Garrett, I think that was one of the sayings of Heinlein's Lazarus Long: Never attribute to malice what can be explained by stupidity.
Hey Steve, don't be so hard on the author of the article. (S)he is probably a product of the US educational system and therefore being accurate isn't nearly as important as feeling that you're accurate.
I'm an engineer and therefore not really expected to write a coherent document, so it follows that we shouldn't expect a journalist to have math skills.
Robin, you aren't the only person whose father recommends gold as an investment. In 1980, my then boss asked me to recommend a "high-tech" stock for him to invest in. I suggested Intel. His father talked him out of it, and he bought Homestake Mining instead. Had he taken my advice, he could have afforded to abandon the business which employed me.
Hmmm....gold actually hit $800 an ounce during the Carter years (1978-79 IIRC). How would that translate today?
I've heard it said that the value of gold is constant, and it's the value of money that changes. Therefore gold is not a good investment for making money, but is a good investment for saving money.
Personally though, I prefer to invest my money in alcohol and video games.
