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Presenting Warren Buffett's "Gold Cube"
Recall from Warren Buffett's 2011 letter to investors:
Today the world’s gold stock is about 170,000 metric tons. If all of this gold were melded together, it would form a cube of about 68 feet per side. (Picture it fitting comfortably within a baseball infield.) At $1,750 per ounce – gold’s price as I write this – its value would be $9.6 trillion....You can fondle the cube, but it will not respond.
Below is what said gold cube containing all the world's gold would look like, with distinctions for the various types of gold currently in existence:
source: Deutsche
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But what would a tungsten cube look like?
http://periodictable.com/Samples/074.68/s7s.JPG
Looks like the Borg Mother Ship - Resistance is futile!
Gold “investors” do absolutely nothing for this country whatsoever. Hoarding gold instead of investing in bonds and equities demonstrates a sick narcissism and complete disregard for building the economy. Real investors actually help people by investing in blue chip companies employing thousands of Americans, or buying US treasuries and enabling the government to do its job. What do gold investors do to help the economy? Absolutely nothing. Unlike real investors Gold hoarders are purely in it for themselves, and serve no purpose to society whatsoever.
DONT FEED THE TROLL!
No positive, No negative, No comments!
Buffett invests in things that respond when he "fondles" them.
Hmmm.
Question for Becky Quick....
GOLD $50K Bitchezzz...
AND ... SILVER IS Up Today...
Repeat To Fiat MillionDallor ... GOLD $50K
Idiot central banks intent on devaluing to save their buddies asses. Gold and silver will always be their nemesis, and my priority. Could give a shit about how productive my savings are when General Ben is intent on raping savers of the world.
Buffets archaic investment strategies, based on Keynesian insanity, is showing its true colors since 2009 in a world that has changed drastically, while he hasn't. Munger may as well die. The garbage he spews is a gross disservice to the young trying to understand how to manoeuvre in this ponzi.
I am also sick to death of the central bankster bullshit propaganda (so lovingly and incessantly repeated by the execrably disingenuous Jon Nadler of Shitco) that half of all the world's gold stock is held as "jewelry". This is a flat-out lie!
While the physical form of so much gold may be fashioned into jewelry, the bulk of all that jewelry is NOT worn or intended as a fashion statement or bauble, but is actually an INVESTMENT or alternate and traditional form of SAVINGS. The vast bulk of all the gold "jewelry" in India or the Middle East is actually investment gold, and should be included in that category.
The fucking central banksters and their corrupt financial system lackies will go to ANY length to try to distort and minimize the importance, and functionality, of gold as a savings and investment medium. They might just as (dishonestly) try to separate out of the "investment" category all of the world's gold bullion coins, and put all that gold in a separate category of "numismatics". That would be idiotic, yet they do the equivalent with so-called "jewelry" with nary of peep of protest.
me, disingenuous? come on!
I first saw the gold cube story in a Johnny Wonder comic in the Sunday paper sometime in the 1970s. At that time the cube measured 17 yards. That fact really struck me and I have thought about it every so often for the past thirty five years.
The real shocker would be the size of the total above ground silver cube. It'd be tiny. Most is lost and not recycleable.
I nearly MUNGERED in my pants after I read Warren Buffet's gold story.
I Buffetted through my nostriles.
How true. Furthermore, the article refers to the various types of gold in existence. The illustrated cube should therefore be contained within a far larger one, 4.65 times as long on each axis, labeled "Paper Gold Instruments".
The cube should show all forms of paper money folding out of it like a black swan origami ponzi towering thousands of meters over the tiny cube of tangible wealth.
I agree with MDB, gold will soon trade at 250 a pound and you still won't be able to eat it
Sweet, Icant wait for $.13 gas again!
That would be priced in the 'new' $US - like in Zimbabwe after the lopped 12 zeros off making 100,000,000,000 Old $Zim equal to 1 $Zim NEW..... sort of like the Retenmark compared to the DM under Weimar.
So we'll be having bread priced at a few hundred million in the old $US before a magic revaluation which will bring the price down to one cent in the new $US
PRICES ARE MEANINGLESS - It's the BUYING POWER that matters - and the $US is buying less and less over the course of my life, a trend that only seems to be accelerating.
gold will soon trade at 250 a pound
K, I guess
.
zirp = malignant
krugman / bernanke = malignant narcism
......and...cue the $8 egg
Give it up on the gold threads kito. Quit embarrassing yourself.
And btw, a gallon of milk in Maui is $8 now at some grocery stores.
For the deflationists, gold is both their Pandora's box and their kryptonite.
What if their Pandora's box was made of lead and there was kryptonite inside it?
What if WonderDog finally succumbed to carnal desire and had pure animal sex with Polly Purebread --- would he still be genitally locked to her for 30 minutes afterward like a normal canine?
Deep mysteries.
Becky likes Warren's "gold finger."
68 feet squared.... the size of Becky's vagina?
does squicky respond when senile warren fondles her?
Fondling has long been a passion of his, along with a great percentage of the rich and ruling class - by that I mean paedopilia.
http://educate-yourself.org/cn/franklincoverupexcerpt.shtml
in the franklin cover up from the 80s featuring sexual abuse of children - mr buffett's name came up in some measure.
Thats how you create the sociopaths that will run the world... And keep your family in power.
We like our troll! He funny!
At least you dont have to pay him in gold/silver to do his dance, just stuff his maw with paper. Dance Monkey!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlQjTEeW51I
I wonder if Kristen Stewart can stare him down and make him go away.
thank you for your support MScreant!
Hey MsC, good to see you. I haven't posted in forever, had to take a ZH sabattical. The signal/noise ratio exceeded my personal limits. All is well.
Glad to know it. I went through a major crisis, lost my home to a tree and tornado. I am rebuilt now and working out the finer details, but I am good too! I come and go myself.
Pladizow, would you shut up already? You're like the goodie two shoes in a house party that scolds people for laughing at holocaust / dead baby / pedophilia jokes. Don't annoy the rest of us just because you're too thick to understand the style of humor.
ok Plad
but you must know how much will power it is taking...
I would think you would refute the troll's statement with facts.
I'll wait....
I like this particular troll. With that in mind, there is actual truth in his post, so he falls a bit short today.
Gold is not a productive asset. The problem he fails to recognize within this post, which is basically his entire schtick, (his trolling serves as a mirror) is prudence dictates retaining value. The Fed will confiscate your currency, and banks/brokers/hedgies will eat you alive, unless you are among them, and even then you better be on your game.
I'm not in the junking business, except this once.
Avoid Malinvestment.
It's like Jesus said, Gold helps those that help themselves by investing in gold.
That's it?
I believe Jesus added, "bitchez"
I'd appreciate it if he would bring me back my hubcaps...
The phrase "God helps those who help themselves" is a popular motto that emphasizes the importance of self-initiative. The phrase originated in ancient Greece, occurring in approximately equivalent form as the moral to one of Aesop's Fables, Hercules and the Waggoner, and later in the great tragedy authors of ancient Greek drama. Although it has been commonly attributed to Benjamin Franklin, the modern English wording appears earlier in Algernon Sidney's work. The phrase is often mistaken for a Bible quote, but it appears nowhere in the Bible. Some Christians have criticized the expression as being contrary to the Bible's message of God's grace.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God_helps_those_who_help_themselves
Since they were engraved with the name "Cesar", Jesus rendered unto Cesar accordingly.
Nice.
Is there still a market for hub caps? Well, I suppose spinning hubcaps...
Bizarro!
Still laughing. Loved it!!!
If I recall correctly, Jesus said:
And this also:
And Jesus said unto them, "And whom do you say that I am?"
They replied, "You are the eschatological manifestation of the ground of our being, the ontological foundation of the context of our very selfhood revealed."
And Jesus replied, "Wha ... ?"
Jesus didn't say that. But Mohammed did say, "An ounce of gold is worth a dozen 9-year old brides."
He Also married one of his own biological daughters as part of his harem. Not a secret. So many creepy things from that guy.
Abraham married his sister. Mary was likely about twelve years old when she became pregnant and married Joseph.
Sarah was Abraham's half-sister. Same father; different mothers. Around that time it was acceptable to take half-sister as first wife and cousin as later, second wife.
If the "it was acceptable at that time" excuse works for Abraham then it ought to work for Mohammed as well.
Whatever you are refering to, was it acceptable at the time of Mohammed?
My point of acceptability includes the fact that there were other kings/leaders of people at the time of Abraham who had a half-sister as first wife and in later years a cousin as other wife. Whatever you are refering to with Mohammed, can you point to other notables at his level doing the same thing at that time?
The betrothal of girls to adult males has been common in many times and places including the Middle East in the 7th century.
It started strong but lost the usual twist in the end.
Maybe something like.
I think it needs a rewrite though..
How about:
Lemon wedge “investors” do absolutely nothing for this country whatsoever. Hoarding lemon wedges instead of investing in highballs and sparkling water demonstrates a sick narcissism and complete disregard for building the economy. Real investors actually help people by investing in yellow lemons employing thousands of Americans, or buying US Lemons and enabling the government to do its job. What do lemon wedge investors do to help the economy? Absolutely nothing. Unlike real investors lemon wedge hoarders are purely in it for themselves, and serve no purpose to society whatsoever.
Fucking awesome.
Maybe we all need to give savers more props, but that always falls on deaf ears among the consumption is resurection crowd.
You can't blame a saver for trying to protect his past sacrifice reflected in savings. Unless you're looking to loot from that there saver.
Maybe substitute "Lingerie" for socks? Or, maybe, combine with the lemon post, and use an underwear themed "lemon wedgies"? Or lemon flavored Lingerie? Sorry - I really suck at doing re-writes.
Sorry, I disagree. Anyone suggesting lingerie and/or women's underwear as a suitable substitute for stocks is an astute rewriter in my book. If you make them edible then cover the female performers in gold leaf we can submit a preview screening to the high end adult entertainment market. We'll call it "Buffett The Bullion Slayer Versus The Glistening Gold Cube".
Gold is not an "investment". Gold is "insurance" against the malevolence of governments and the ignorance of individuals such as you. Have a nice day playing with your paper assets!
Tuco
Gold is a physical manifestation of truth and endurance. Cream rises to the top and gold has over 1000's of years proven itself to be the perfect store of value for a man's labors. Seek truth and rightousness in what you do and you will find silver and gold set you free.
It's how you say '..take your TARP, bailouts. endless QE and central planning..and SHOVE IT'
Yep, gold can't be TARPed.
MDB, just to be clear, you realize that secondary market purchasers of bonds and equities aren't really putting money into companies or govt coffers, right? Just trying to understand your level of knowledge about how the capital markets work.
"Just trying to understand your level of knowledge about how the capital markets work."
Really? I thought his/her/its level of understanding is fairly obvious.
Elmer, I get your larger point. But, for those who may not be clear on this - assume you have equity in Company A and have a desparate need to exchange the equity for money. If nobody will buy those securities from you and Company A buys them, Company A will have less cash. If I buy those securities from you, Company A gets to keep its cash. So - the secondary market doesn't put more money into the companies coffers, but it acts in a way that allows companies to keep the money they have.
It is not too much of a stretch to think that, without a secondary market, companies would have a difficult time selling bonds or equities without some sort of promise to buy them back under defined circumstances such as emergencies. That creates a level of financial uncertainty for the company that the secondary market serves to take away.
RP, sure, the secondary market (used to?) exists as a pricing mechanism where we all (used to?) try and put a valuation on a business entity, and sure, I'll agree that as a pricing mechanism, it serves the function of putting a value on the equity-issuing or debt capacity of said entity.
But so many people confuse the primary market functions with secondary market functions I had to raise the point.
Yes. I was adding to what you were saying, rather than taking issue with it.
MDB,
I'll bite. Let's see if you can stay in character. Let's see if you can respond to a genuine question.
Is there not a time to withdraw support from the system? If investors cannot trust the market place (because of market manipulation and outright theft and vaporization), is it not time to shut down the market place and withdraw participation? And if one seeks to do that, doesn't gold and silver and the like serve a very important market function by storing value until such a time as the sytem is permitted to fail, and be reborn?
Hi MsCreant,
Love MDB's spooferino posts as do you, but I think his sarcasm makes the point your response misses:
How is investing in gold removing it from the marketplace? It is in fact preserving capital for the marketplace. We are actually doing the world a duty and by acting in our self-interest, also acting selflessly (is that the invisible reach-around??).
We may be removing that capital from the present financial system, but we are not removing it from the greater economy or the world in general. In fact we are preserving it so that our economies may rise once again.
You know, I don't entirely disagree with your central point. There have been times where I've been frustrated with my equity portfolio performance, and I've thought: "wouldn't it be great to just put everything into US Treasuries and just go off the grid?". I understand that feeling - I really do.
But then I realized something important. Pessimistic negative thinking is a self-fulfilling prophecy. If everyone piled into gold and silver, then credit would collapse and everything would crash, just as you feared. Storing value as dollars in the bank however, allows the bank to create credit to finance growth and spending. Investing in stocks and bonds produces real tangible value and reduces the chance of your apocalyptic scenario. I choose to be part of the solution, not the problem, and if I go down with the ship, at least I’ll be remembered as hero, and not a selfish goldbug trying to profit from the misery of others.
LOL, the ultimate ZH sock puppet.
Sorry, you're not fooling me MDB.
Well, Tyler needed somebody as the obligatory bad guy and lightning rod for indignation here, after the ZH demise of JohnnyBravo, RedNeckRepugnicants (and assorted sockpuppets), Leo Kolinasskiss, RobotLemming and Robert Bruschetta.
To paraphrase a famous quote, "If the trolls did not exist, ZeroHedge would have to create them".
I miss Rubber Balls.
Leo was much more fun to mock in his Keynesian and statist insanity, though.
His self-indulgent pity fests, however, were squalid and embarrassing in the extreme.
And what ever became of Spaulding Smailes and William the Bastard?
Somewhere, on a basement computer, an unshaven, pajama-clad, gold-hating troll checks the prices of silver and gold on Kitco and howls at the moon ....
"But, but, but, the shit is everywhere!
And it only costs $5 to dig from the ground!"
Ah, you would be referring to Jon Nadler, no doubt?
No, that was a Math Man quote. Hes long gone too.
You know it is funny that you guys mention it, what did ever happen to robotrader? That guy was around since zerohedge was a blog. I am a little shocked that I do not see him around more.
His user account no longer exists, which indicates that he has been banned.
But honestly, was "he" ever anything more than the shallow, kneejerk stocks pimp and troll that I remember him to be? I always assumed that RobotTrader was just a sockpuppet which Tyler(s) used to antagonize us just for fun.
LOL.
Well the system is going to go down anyways, whether you leave your capital in it or not -- this is a mathematical certainty. You can come to grips with that certainty and be a hero and preserve your capital for your family and your community, or you can succumb to the grand confidence game and participate in the crash.
We call those people suckers.
MDB how is your Facebook stock working out , your spawn most be real proud of daddy.
MDB already has an alterego that is a Super Hero in his own mind and his name is MarketDunceBagholder. His motto is "Holding the bag till the very end!"
I now understand your solution, does your facebook investment count as a charitable donation to the economy and country?
So you help the economy with your investments?
MDB you are a swell guy, giving till it hurts eh?
Greatness.
Fine. Be the solution! I'll be sure to drop a $100 bill into your tin cup when I see you begging on the street. Too bad it won't buy you a cup of coffee.
Actually it is very selfish to presume you as an individual can somehow change the direction of massive economic forces, not to mention arrogant, narcissistic and delusionary.
The end has already been written with mathematics long ago, by others, when they made greedy, hasty choices like Fed. Res. 'banking systems', 'elastic money' and Social Security 'safety nets'. Don't be fearful of the future, feel the universal force washing over you, cleansing through you (like an enema).
Embrace the collapse.
You don't have children, do you.
Society has been raped, and gold is the judge.
source: douche
FA Q ES OL
"Gold “investors” do absolutely nothing for this country whatsoever. Hoarding gold instead of investing in bonds and equities demonstrates a sick narcissism and complete disregard for building the economy. Real investors actually help people by investing in blue chip companies employing thousands of Americans, or buying US treasuries and enabling the government to do its job. What do gold investors do to help the economy? Absolutely nothing. Unlike real investors Gold hoarders are purely in it for themselves, and serve no purpose to society whatsoever."
So I suppose savers would fit into this category as well? Are you calling out the people who are trying to save? Whether someone saves their "money" which is nothing more than a representation of their labor in a bank account, in a coffee can, in gold or silver, or dog turds, what business of it of yours to tell them how to save their money? Perhaps they are saving for a college education, or for a rainy day, so they don't have to beggar the government/fellow taxpayer.
Fuck off MDB. I don't care if you are posting your shit for real, or sarcasm. You are a dick.
Maybe some of the readers here are not familiar with the name of Howard Buffet, the father of Warren Buffet, if not not they should read he said about gold and freedom:
http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig12/buffett1.1.1.html
Let's see...I help the gold/silver dealer keep his employees employed and if he also pays rent, I'm helping his/her landlord. He uses lights which keeps the local utility running and probably feeds his family which helps the local grocers, restaruants etc. Same for his employees. If I buy a safe to "hoard" my gold/silver, I've just helped that business too.
I suppose I could go on and on and on, or, you could just pick up a copy of a wonderful book written many years ago by a Mr. A. Smith, titled Wealth of Nations and educate your dumb ass.
BTW, if the government were really doing it's job, it wouldn't need any help as it already has an excess of funds for it's true and LIMITED powers/duties. Dumb ass.
So HFT are superhuman patriot heroes?
so are you saying that we should get rid of central banks?
Well put. You have to save your own ass, because nobody else will!
Sounds like your talking about Obama
Yeah, and the workers profit the most, because the profit of thier company is tranferred to the shareholders.
If 50% or 75% of the profits of a company would be given to those, who really made th eprofit with their work and labor, then i could follow this argumentation.
But in this system the profits are almost completely transferred from the hard-working to the non-working parasites.
You delude yourself into thinking that investing in the capital markets helps companies. It doesn't. All of the "value" is captured in the form of HFT taxes and fund manager fees.
If you want to "invest" and add value, invest in private startups developing solutions to the more intractable problems of today. I know a few hundred private nano companies that could use some investment right now, but our capital markets have killed LT investment in game changing scientific innovation...
What a lot of nonsense. What I do with my money is my choice. And if I don't trust the government, the fiat system and the reservebank, then I buy gold. And I don't, and I don't and I don't and I did!!!
2/10
Again, you miss the purpose of gold investment. The purpose is so we are not a further burden on the current stumbling bureaucracy. You fail to realize we are already willing patriots by paying our taxes for past State burdens, while procreating future generations to pay for the current government promises to Wall Street and the poor. We see the necessity, for us, to remove ourselves because we are the problem, through our responsible consumption and savings. What you cannot understand is we are allowing the current malfeasance and malinvestment to continue unchecked, so The Bureaucracy can reach its full potential. Why hate us, when we remove the barriers to progressive central planning? Print all the fiat you want! We will continue to help stimulate the economy by purchasing our assets from small businesses and making a it a growth industry. This in turn will make small business loans for similar business necessary. This way Wall Street can receive its corporate welfare, the poor theirs, and we will continue to provide for our family welfare without being a burden on The Bureaucracy. I think its a win win win situation, and you are being negative and condescending to true American heroes.
The "Real Investors" did not build that economy!
Gold "investors", by investing in gold equities, create thousands of jobs for geologists and technicians while advancing knowledge of the earth's geological structure. They also create hundreds of thousands of diffferent jobs, from mining to jewelery.
Best of all, these jobs instill a sense of what a dollar is really worth. Instead of creating dollars by a few clicks of a keyboard gold pins the value of that dollar against the effort to create its true underlying value; that being the work required to back it by gold.
.
.
?
I guess I could always invest in banksters. I'm sure they would "actually help people." And they will probably "help the economy" too.
Real investors actually help people
It seems you have investors confused with a philamperist. Investors want to make money, or at the very least perserve money.
so they persevere at preserving, but not perversely?
We don't usually see a reply to questions posed to MDB, but perhaps this one: If the static nature of gold impedes growth in the economy, what is the impact of holding cash? And if "hoarding" cash impedes economic growth, then shouldn't your criticism be harshest for the $1.7 trillion held by domestic corporations (http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/z1/Current/)?
Hey everyone, all together now: And justice for all
"Unlike real investors"
Do you mean like Blankfein and Diamon when they say "we're doing Gods work"
Whomever did the below ground reserves part is a propagandist. That figure is lower than proven reserves for western financial statement purposes let alone all the unmined reserves in Russia, South Africa, Mexico and other reserves to be found elsewhere. It's like all these people screaming peak oil based solely on Arabian oil output right before we hit the shale reserves. There is a lot of gold especially in Russia which is also why the gold standard will never happen. All those headlines about Russia adding gold to their reserves. Yes they do but they don;t buy and ounce off of world supply. That's the excess of their production on top of what they add to world supply
Wow...! 44 trolls signed in with MDB.
Goverment employees hard at it.
Make me puke.
you can't eat farmland
This guy really loves gold!!! Beware of Dutch evildoers who love gold so much they lose their genitalia in unfortunate "schmelting" accidents.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sr0gNJ090JA
I cant imagine who or what would or could respond to Buffet's geriatric fondling
Yes, the Oriface of Omaha fondled a silver cube much bigger than this, and in the short span from $6 to $7.50 the cube disappeared. PM to this man means time to go to sleep.
Uhhh, "What is Becky Quick," Alex?
Doop
While at Zero Hedge please enjoy you complimentry duplicate post. This is part of the guest services here at ZH. Thank you and enjoy your stay.
Enjoy your complimentary spelling error. But you do alright without eyes.
Actually, it is "all right", not "alright", which is not a word.
Good grammar: Yes we can!
Actually, 'alright' is indeed a proper English word, of quite well-established lineage for more than a century, since at least 1887, according to Webster's, quoting Gertrude Stein on the subject:
« The one-word spelling alright appeared some 75 years after all right itself had reappeared from a 400-year-long absence. Since the early 20th century some critics have insisted alright is wrong, but it has its defenders and its users. It is less frequent than all right but remains in common use especially in journalistic and business publications. It is quite common in fictional dialogue, and is used occasionally in other writing »
Also, "spelling" and "grammar" are two different things.
No they ain't.
'aiight.
That's a confiscation cube. See, the official sector only has 30% of the gold, after they seize the "other" assets.
Private sector gots 70% of the gold, and the official sector is pissed.
Buffet needs to find a recipe book for what sauces and side dishes go with Dollars.
Gold?!...phhttt...
Gimme some of them awesome Camden, NJ muni bonds...cha-ching baby.
We're going to need a bigger garment.
I'm going to need a bigger canoe...
I'm going to need a bigger backyard.
The 3 of us should form some sort of Simian Salvage Services company...
Monkey shines!
I was trying to think of three gold monkeys and what they would do.
See evil,
Hear evil,
Buy gold?
Needs work.
See the beast, starve the beast, buy gold?