Time to chime in. I have been away for some time. Bought a house. Have been spending more time with my three children, meeting new friends, etc.

I hope that Bull is right - that the survivalists are wrong. Still, it doesn't hurt to prepare a bit. My concern is not that some outside entity is fighting for control of us, as the collapse occurs, but rather that we end up spoiling our sand box and fighting over the yucky remains like small children. There could be serious collateral damage from that.

I have lived through a currency crisis, and was fine because we had dollars. I have to wonder is any currency safe, since a dollar crisis is VERY different from the Ruble crisis I lived through in 92-93. For those who missed it, when I arrived in Kazakhstan in September 1992, the Ruble converted at 265:1. In one year, that ratio went to a 1800:1 ratio. That's a more than 600% devaluation. And, even values converted to dollars were not stable. Imported candy bars and soda went up even in US dollars. Goods went into hiding, and would only come out for very large dollar sums, since much was siphoned off before it came to market. Barter and the black market were huge. The stores were empty. You needed connections and US dollars, Brit pounds, yen or D Marks to get real food. The old men who had silver coins sitting in parks were very popular, and silver probably saved them. Many who did not have things that could be sold for dollars were wiped out financially in about 18 months of hyperinflation. The vast majority lost everything, and the few that had a little silver or neat assets to sell for dollars sold what little they had for food, but were better off than the average Russian/Kazakh.

I think this move in gold is for real, and I think we're going to see some impressive moves in the junior space in the next 3-5 months as naked shorts panic. I just think, in a very Armstrong-esque kind of way, it's time. The fact that most Gold Bugs and newsletter writers don't believe it is for real is in line with Jim Sinclair's prediction years ago to that effect.

If you have a chance to read Our Crowd by Birmingham, do it. It's fantastic.