Hrattle, you state "but gold comes nowhere near property or equities over the long term".

That is not true; in 1975 it took 357 ounces of gold to buy an average house in Toronto. This year it takes 365 ounces to buy an average house in Toronto. You must also not forget than an average house in 2008 is much larger and of much higher quality than an average house in 1975. Therefore today you get much more 'house' for a certain amount of gold than 35 years ago.

Gold shines, everything else tarnishes!