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Hi Basser- been keeping up. little flu bug has me but watching the gains on 3 million shares helps.LOL
.....al
latest from Ted Butler:
Real Silver Availability
By: Theodore Butler
(Editor's Note from Investment Rarities Inc.: It seems that the CFTC casts their net far and wide in search of mischief in the silver market. They've talked to everyone but Ted Butler. It’s imperative that they contact him. It’s hard to know what they are waiting for.)
Much has been written about the actual amount of physical silver that exists in world above ground inventories. Due to decades of industrial consumption depleting world inventories, there is remarkably little silver remaining. I have estimated perhaps one billion ounces of silver bullion equivalent exists at anywhere near current prices, and my estimates are much higher than most published estimates. Considering that the cumulative world mine production through the ages has been roughly 40 billion ounces, that means only 2.5% of that total production remains in bullion equivalent form. That’s shocking. This is one of the key reasons for buying silver, namely, there isn’t much left.
I’ve written countless articles over the years, trying to put this shockingly small amount of silver remaining into different perspectives. I’ve compared it to the total amount of money and credit in the world, namely, $11 billion of silver remaining compared to the many tens of trillions of dollars of money and credit sloshing around. Each ten trillion is a thousand times more than all the silver in the world is currently worth.
I’ve compared the amount of silver, in ounces and dollar terms, in per capita terms, namely, how much there is if evenly divided among the earth’s 6.5 billion inhabitants. For each man, woman and child, there exists 0.15 of an ounce. At current prices that’s around $1.65 a person. Not much of a surplus or overhang.
I’ve compared the amount of silver remaining above-ground to other commodities, and particularly to gold, it’s constant compatriot through millennia. I have explained that because gold was always highly valued as an investment and for jewelry, its high price prevented it from being industrially consumed, in stark contrast with what occurred in silver. Due to this plainly-observed historical reality, the world cumulative gold mine production of 5 billion ounces still exists in a relatively easy to recover form. So even though 8 times more silver than gold was produced throughout history, 5 times more gold than silver exists above ground today, due to silver’s industrial consumption profile over the past 100 years.
Further, when you assign a dollar value to gold and silver above ground inventories, given the current price disparity between the two, the comparisons are even more startling. Because gold is currently running at almost 80 times the price of silver, that means there is 400 times more gold than silver in the world in dollar terms. On a per capita basis, that comes to $660 per inhabitant, compared to $1.65 for silver. In the past, I’ve estimated that maybe one in a million knew these facts. My conclusion was the growing awareness of this situation alone would impact the price of silver for many years to come.
Today, I would like to look at the amount of above ground silver in a different perspective. This perspective is not unique to silver and applies to all investment assets. What I will say may not seem dramatic at first, but I ask you to think it through. I don’t recall seeing these thoughts in print before. My observations are just that - personal observations that I have contemplated for many years. If my observations and conclusions are correct, it could be considered another very bullish factor for silver. It has to do with what exists and what is available.
In today’s financial world, there is often very heavy daily trading of most investment assets, excluding real estate. Stocks, bonds, currencies, commodities, and especially derivatives are traded actively. Due to advances in computers and communications, it’s easier than ever to transact massive amounts of traded assets quickly. I have come to observe that the vast majority of all this daily trading, well over 90%, is just that - day trading. In other words, very little of this daily trading involves the accumulation or disposal of long term positions. Most of the trading involves quick in and out scalping-type transactions. My first observation is that long term holders are basically not involved in this daily trading.
Let me use COMEX silver futures as an example of what I am talking about, although I could use, quite literally, any other traded market. Certainly, I have never publicly suggested anyone buy a futures contract instead of real metal. Yet, even using a futures contract as an example, I think I can illustrate my point. That point is that in futures contracts, most trading is day trading.
On a typical day, maybe 20,000 COMEX silver futures contracts are traded, or close to 100,000 contracts in a week. The amount of silver that these contracts represent is enormous. So enormous that it would be absurd to think that real long-term silver holdings were actually being sold by old owners and bought by new owners. 100,000 silver futures contracts is equal to 500 million ounces of silver, not much less than a full year’s annual mine production.
Currently, there are around 80 to 85,000 silver contracts in existence (open interest). We know from published data, including daily open interest statistics as well as weekly COT data, that very few of the total existing open interest changes hands daily or weekly. Long term holders don’t trade that frequently and couldn‘t possibly trade in the amounts represented by daily and weekly volume statistics. Therefore, most trading must be daily in and out trading, with very little being carried overnight.
Away from futures trading, it is even more obvious that long term holders don’t trade frequently. They sit and hold. Think of how many times you buy or sell real estate, or real silver or gold, or bonds and stocks and other long term assets in a typical year. I would estimate, that over the course of a year, that no more than 5% to 10% of long term investment assets get turned over, including real estate. That’s over the course of a full year. Divide that 5% to 10% by the number of days in a year and you will come up with a very small percentage for how many long-term holdings are actually transferred daily.
This brings me to what I am driving at. When I write about there only being one billion ounces of above ground silver bullion in the world, I am vastly overstating the amount actually available for purchase at any point in time. As just discussed, very little, maybe 5% to 10% may be available for sale over the course of a full year, incredibly less on a daily basis. The distinction I am trying to make is between what may exist of an item and what is available for purchase or sale. There may be one billion ounces of silver in existence, currently worth $11 billion, but there may be only 50 to 100 million ounces, or $500 million to $1 billion available for sale in any given year. Not $11 billion.
As stated previously, this phenomenon is not unique to silver, it applies to all investment assets. But because silver’s inventory status is so limited to begin with, it takes on special investment significance. For example, when this phenomenon is applied to gold, it suggests that of the 5 billion ounces of gold in existence, only 250 million to 500 million ounces would be available for sale in any given year. But that still suggests a dollar amount of $200 to $400 billion being available for sale in any year, at current prices. (It’s that same 400 times more gold than silver ratio in dollar terms). My point here is simple - an item with only half a billion to a billion dollars potentially available for sale would experience much less selling pressure than an item with a potential $200 to $400 billion available for sale.
An additional observation is that the actual percentage of the amount of an asset that may be available for sale is influenced by price. At a low price, less is available than what would be available at a high price. The amount of what is in existence and what is available is a discussion that pertains to the supply-side of the supply/demand equation. Low prices constrict supply (availability), while high prices encourage supply to come to market. The current low price of silver will necessarily restrict supply and availability to lower levels than the normal 5% to 10% turnover of long-term assets.
What I am trying to introduce here is the difference between what exists and what may be available for sale. While we can all measure accurately the amount of visible silver in existence (in ETF’s and COMEX inventories) to the ounce, none of us can be sure of how much of that silver is actually available for sale near current prices. Just because we see it documented and visible doesn’t mean it is available for sale. Even the actual owners of silver stored in COMEX warehouses, for instance, are often surprised when they discover that their silver is counted as inventory. The first thing I hear from them when they discover this, is "my silver is not for sale." That’s my very point.
That this difference between what exists and what is available for sale is so underappreciated, is a powerfully bullish force for silver, simply because it won’t be underappreciated indefinitely. As it is, the small amount of silver in existence is bullish by itself. That amount being reduced drastically by the reality of availability is hard to comprehend. And if your head is spinning with trying to reconcile just how little real silver is available for purchase and the current ultra-low price, look no further than the great silver manipulation. It is the only plausible explanation. Help me fight that manipulation, but don’t fear it. Put it to your advantage by buying what little real silver is available.
Tighter Physical Supply?
There are a number of developments that may point to tighter physical supplies of wholesale silver. The amount of silver flowing into the big silver exchange traded fund (SLV) has been impressive since the first of the year. It looks like index funds have rebalanced their portfolios and this has resulted in the holdings of SLV reaching a new record of close to 230 million ounces, up 11 million ounces since the first of the new year.
Additionally, delivery patterns in the usually quiet January futures contract on the COMEX have resulted in a much higher than normal level of actual deliveries of over 1200 contracts (6 million ounces). This continues a pattern of delivery in the non-traditional months that started with the October contract last year. There has also been, over the past 6 weeks or so, an unusually large transfer of stored silver in COMEX-approved warehouses from the registered to the eligible category, of some 15 million ounces. The most plausible explanation is that the silver is being transferred into the cheaper to maintain eligible category because it is intended to be held (and not redelivered) for a long time. Interestingly, the amount of silver that has been transferred to the eligible category coincides with the amount (3000 contracts) taken by the raptors (the 9+ commercial traders) in the early days of the past big December delivery. I had never seen the raptors take such deliveries before.
In the "heard it through the grapevine" category, a very reliable source told me that the Central Fund of Canada issued new securities in their gold only fund, as opposed to their balanced gold/silver fund, to avoid the hassles of actually getting hard to find silver. Undoubtedly, this was a suggestion from their underwriters. If this is true (as I believe it to be) it is an accommodation to the silver manipulation, or rewarding bad behavior.
Finally, a reader gave me a heads up on a government web site where citizens can comment on a variety of issues. It’s called the Citizen’s Briefing Book and can be accessed here - http://citizensbriefingbook.change.gov/
The comments concerning the silver manipulation are thoughtful and interesting. Type in "commodity futures trading commission" to read, vote and/or register your own comments.
I don't know if I posted this to this board before or not, but here is my take on a total economic collapse. Do I think one will happen? NO. But I do believe there is a possibility however small. It's not so much the economic collapse I fear as the social disorder that will accompany it- watch Detroit for the trigger. As remote as I may think something like that may happen, it doesn't hurt one bit to prepare to a certain extent. I'm not one of those radical survivalists ready to move into a cave, but I see no harm in being prepared. My physical holdings of precious metals will do me no harm and a whole lot of good whether we have a collapse or not. Even if we don't there will definate hard times ahead for all that have not prepared. Wall street and the banks have taken care of themselves. Gov't will survive at any and all costs. It's up to the individual to prepare and protect himself.
.......al
You hit the nail on the head- major recognized coins
.......al
EBAY- actually quite the contrary. A very large majority of my silver is in US 90% pre 64 coinage. I do have other "stuff" that I have picked up along the way but my main goal is the US coins. They have the silver content which can be good for sale at higher prices, but also good to use in barter situations in a collapsed economy.
......al
from our friends in York, PA:
http://ydr.inyork.com/ci_11521252
A Phillies fan for eternity
Red Lion resident Sam Steckline had the Phils skipper make his mark on Steckline's final resting place.
By JIM SEIP
Daily Record/Sunday News
Updated: 01/21/2009 09:21:05 PM EST
Red Lion resident Sam Steckline, left, had Phillies manager Charlie Manuel sign his Phils-themed urn Wednesday at the York Sports Night celebrity reception.
Sam Steckline stood in line waiting for Philadelphia Phillies manager Charlie Manuel to sign his urn. Asked about his unusual autograph request, the Red Lion resident smiled.
"I'm a diehard Phillies fan," he said.
Steckline, 56, purchased the red, white and blue Phillies-themed urn from an online company, Eternal Image, which also sells Star Trek and Major League Baseball-themed caskets. The aluminum urn, with a manufacturer's suggested retail of $799, features a base in the shape of home plate and a baseball on top.
Despite being flanked at the York Sports Night celebrity reception at Heritage Hills Golf Resort and Conference Center by Hall of Fame pitcher Gaylord Perry and Hall of Fame receiver Raymond Berry, Manuel received
The line of fans waiting for Phillies manager Charlie Manuel's autograph stretched across the room at Heritage Hills.
the most attention. The line for his autograph stretched to the room's entrance, with about 75 people waiting for the skipper to sign bats, balls and photos.
And one urn, the final resting spot for Sam Steckline.
"That's my team," said Steckline, who hopes to be cremated after his death. "I don't feel like wasting land. So I'm all set when I die."
Organizers who realized what Steckline had in his hand, experienced a nervous moment when Manuel tipped the urn on its side to sign his autograph.
"I thought something was going to spill out all over the table," Sports Night's longtime emcee George Trout joked afterward.
Steckline wants to have each of the living Phillies enshrined in Cooperstown autograph his urn -- Steve Carlton
has already signed it -- but Steckline made a special exception for Manuel.
"It says 'World Series Champions 2008' on it, and who knows?" Steckline said. "It could be the last time I see them win it."
Asked about the urn, Manuel didn't look up from his autograph duties to note: "That's a first."
The Phillies skipper seems unfazed by the sudden stardom brought on by his team's unexpected playoff run. The Phillies' only other World Series championship came in 1980.
"Just meeting the fans," Manuel said. "And watching them. And seeing them. I think it was one of the biggest things of my life. You realized how much they loved it.
"Hey, nothing will ever top that parade we had. It was just absolutely fantastic."
Pegged by detractors as a country bumpkin when he and his Virginia twang arrived in Philly as a special assistant to the general manager in 2003, he has become a beloved character.
Manuel, to his credit, hasn't tried to change. He still sounds the same way. He still travels back to his hometown of Buena Vista (pronounced Bue-nah Vest-ah) near Roanoke, Va., in the offseason.
"Where I grew up, I wouldn't trade it for nothing in the world," he said. "I think it's part of who I am. I had a tremendous -- what do you call that? -- a tremendous childhood. Any time I get a chance to go back there, it's exciting. And when we win a World Series, it makes it more enjoyable. Everyone wants to see you, everyone wants to talk about it, and I've seen people I haven't seen in years."
The World Series skipper still hasn't won a coach of the year award. He's never mentioned as one of the game's best tacticians. But he seems content with his current turn in the spotlight. He's confident the final questions about the 2009 season will be answered. The loss of left fielder Pat Burrell will be "offset" by the signing of Raul Ibanez, he said. And "whatever (Ryan Howard) gets (in arbitration), he's definitely worth it."
He's the manager of the world champions. People bring him mementos, and yes -- even urns -- to sign. And it sounds like he's loving it.
"I've heard people say that we backed in or the Mets choked," Manuel said. "You know that's so far from the truth that it's unreal. ... They can take that and put that in their pipe and smoke it."
EBAYaim- just a suggestion, but stick to silver coinage you are familiar with. Personally I am almost strictly US silver coinage. Easy to buy and there has always been a market to sell when the time comes. However, I wouldn't hesitate to pick up Canadian Mapleleafs, Chinese Pandas, or Austrailian Koukabaras (sp) if the opportunity arose and the price was right.
........al
On one hand you have central banks all over the world trying to inflate their way out of the mess created by the greed generation. On the other hand you have investors watching all this going on and wondering how all this money being printed up is going to affect the purchasing power of their own holdings. It is certain to make for volatility in the gold and silver markets until it all comes to rest.
..........al
GM Lurker, I do believe Bee gave a plausible explanation. But yes it should officially come from the company. Trading debt for equity, especially to insiders is very positive IMHO. I'm away most of the day but will be back looking forward to the upcoming company release.
............al
Captain Jim- I strongly second seabiscuit's post. Unfortunately it's up to the individual to track these people on Ihub. If you look for it, it's quite obvious. Too bad we can't start a board that names names and Ihub handles.
..........al
There may come a time in the future as more and more people realize how worthless their paper money is becoming as the central bankers release more and more of it into the economy that this board may become overrun with posters about the precious metals. That may be a good time to start a separate silverbug board. In the meantime until that time comes I do believe most are comfortable with everything staying right here. We have some good people posting here and I'd hate to lose them. I've been into precious metals since the late 70's, have read and digested quite a bit of info since then and still have learned a lot from reading this board.
......al
littlejohn- 15% under spot wouldn't be bad if the spot price was the real world price, which it is not. For example, right now the spot price of silver is $11.22. To get the melt value of US 90% silver coinage multiply the spot price X .715
11.22 X .715 = 8.0223
melt value is 8.0223 X face value
Anyone willing to sell their 90% coins at 8X face value would have people knocking down their door to get it. Even on Ebay sellers are getting around 10X+ for "junk" silver. Time of day doesn't seem to matter, gold and silver are hot items on Ebay. Gold is acting in the same way. The spot prices and the real world prices have decoupled. It's called backwardation. Google it for a better explanation than I can give.
.......al
littlejohn- I have done some research on that in the past and recently. Most of these big advertisers buying gold and silver, send it bring it or whatever generally pay 15-25% under spot. Somebody has to pay for all that advertising. You would do better selling on Ebay.
......al
Yes, I saw this coming way back when and started buying up as many Krands as I could afford and get my hands on. Most came from Tulving. I also purchased a couple bags of 90% US coins at the same time period at around $4.70-80. I picked up more at around $6 and have been getting it in bits and pieces where I can. Mainly at auctions. I do believe silver will give a better % return than gold. New uses for silver are found every year consuming more and more of the metal. Many silver mines have closed recently as the cost to produce is more than the artificial spot price. I may be wrong on the silver as many more blogs are speculating the FED may just up the POG to as much as $10,000/0z. We discussed that here last week as the perfect place to put all those dollars being printed to avoid hyper inflation. It's all just a theory right now, but who knows. It seems everything the gov't does just makes things worse. We're up to almost $9 Trillion bailing out everybody when the gov't could have purchased all those sub prime mortgages for under $3 Trillion. The US economy is in shambles and the US gov't is bankrupt. No one in authority will admit it. Remember all that talk about an Amero currency? I pooh poohed it for a long time, but I'm not anymore. I also not too long ago believed the gov't wouldn't attempt to confiscate gold, but now I'm not even sure about that anymore. Obama is running around now say the problem won't go away this year. I think he is too short sighted. The pain has just begun and there's lots more in the cards for the USA.
..........al
EBAYaim- I was going to do that myself, but as I had been reading and posting here prior to my idea, I emailed 4G and asked for his OK to do so. Silver and gold historically are very close relatives and I didn't want to step on any toes by just up and starting another board. He invited me on board to add silver interests to the Goldbugs board so we are keeping it on one board. If the posting ever got out of control, which it hasn't even come close to breaking that plane we could segregate the two metals on 2 different boards. That doesn't preclude you from starting your own board. I just gave the short history here.
.........al
libel- agree there, I always said and have been labeled as a negative for it, why increase the A/S unless you are planning to sell them. I can't remember one time where a penny stock company has increased the authorized and not issued them into the float.
.......al
Yep, good old Clayton was blowing smoke up our collective rectal cavities while he was dumping shares as he PR'd the buyback. Does he have any friends at all left on this board?
.........al
Jim- I've always maintained to take the numbers from the TA as accurate rather than from any CEO. TAs can get into trouble for giving out false info and there is a liability issue too. A TA can only do what the company instructs it to do. They can't act independantly nor do what they think must be done. So the numbers have to be accurate. This issue was hashed out last spring and summer when Clayton was saying one thing and the TA was giving different numbers. Funny all those posters that were saying the TA was wrong have disappeared. I've got some of them membermarked. It's called follow the pump and dumpers and beware.LOL.
.......al
So it may seem. The real issue is Clayton and credibility. As of now the only thing they have in common is they both begin with the letter C.
.......al
Lurker- I don't think bankruptcy is in the cards either. I was just setting parameters to the extremes.
Another example- I played CMKX a few years back. Bought in at .0001¢. I got out at .0005¢ but it went as high as .0009¢ that day. I believe the O/S were around 100 billion, not a typo that was Billion.
.......al
Should we buy gold? I'm sure for every opinion that hits the internet that says yes we should, you could find another that says no the run is over. Separating the wheat from the chaff after reading dozens of articles can be mind numbing at the very least. Personally, I recco going far beyond the should or shouldn't buy gold articles. Look at economies of the main players in the world. Study macro economics and how it can affect currencies. A look at the dollar and how many more of them can they print. These are just a few items of many that will affect gold in the future. I'm sure several people posting on this board could add dozens more items. Bottom line - gold is not just a simple metal and a store of value. It can be complicated by many factors, hence my penchant for the macro view. But I do confess I am currently not buying gold. I loaded the boat at $350. But I am grabbing as much silver as I can afford for the same reasons I am pro gold. I also strongly suggest holding the physical and not buying paper gold unless you want to trade it like any other paper security.
......al
So far we can't accuse Clayton of dumping shares today.
.....al
LC- couldn't agree with you more. I'm sure we're not the only ones here wanting to know. Has anyone called Tony?
.........al
Hi basser- they have approved paperwork from the SEC for the uplist to the OTCBB. Going Nas or Amex will not be as difficult paperwork wise as they already have it done and approved. The barrier to higher exchanges is the share price. I'm sure they have enough shareholders. Divesting of the preferred by Clint could very well be to eliminate another barrier, we don't know. And it could be just wishful thinking on my part. Let's get this to the BB first.
.......al
LC- thanks for your input on that filing. Now the question remains- why? That is still a lot of votes to give up. Unless of course they were traded on a 1 for 1 with common shares. We may just have to wait for the next Q before we know, unless we get some input from the company. I would think that such an event that could well be considered major even in a larger company would merit some kind of explanation. We will just have to wait and see.
......al
Good question. With the super voting rights of the preferred issue, all Clint had to do is vote them to increase the AS at a board meeting. What would be the difference in converting or voting the shares if they wanted to issue more stock? Again this is IMHO, but to gain access to a higher exchange than the otcbb the officers of a company are not allowed to control the company thru the use of super voting preferred shares. Common shareholders must have a vote either in person or by proxy. This may just be a step in that direction, I don't know. In fact you, me or anyone else not on the inside can only speculate why this was done. Other opinions are certainly welcome. I've been wrong before, and will continue to make mistakes as long as I live.
.......al
LC- The preferred shares do not trade, so dilution isn't in play for those particular shares. What it does do, IMHO, is to give common shareholders a little more say in company affairs. The preferred shares of the company have super voting rights. I don't know the exact ratio but Clint has given up those super voting rights as treasury stock cannot vote. Again, IMHO, very shareholder friendly.
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This is an "I told you so". Pre season, I said your gators would be #1. Congrats to them.
......al
Correct. Those preferred shares have been returned to the company treasury. IMHO, very positive news. It's basically symbolic as those shares are not traded publically, but I'd like to still think the gang in Michigan still has some respect for their shareholders.
.....al
Basser- do you have a link for that filing? I can't seem to locate it. Must be gettin old(er).Thanks
........al
Is there any way to get their Ihub handles published? I have quite a file of pump and dumpers Ihub handles and I'd like to compare the ones in this action to my own.
..........al
If I had to place a bet on it, I would say Clayton is still dumping shares also.
..........al
Yes, the key is finding them. eom
It all adds up over a period of time, especially if it is the company dumping shares.
I don't mean to be disagreeable as most of us here are on the same page with this company. That PR yesterday should have moved this stock much higher. A subpenny pinkie with revenues of $1 million with such a low float is almost unheard of. I'm sure most of us have seen PRs from other companies with far less info and much larger floats take a share price parabolic. The question is where did all those shares that the MMs were selling come from? I didn't buy naked shorting and MM games a few months ago when those explanations were being offered as the float quadrupled, and I'm not buying it now. Someone is selling big time. The question is WHO?
............al
OS count updated in iBox. 42 million new shares since 12/3/08. As Alex was probably too busy trying to CYA from the SEC I don't think he was dumping any shares in December. IMHO the increase is more likely from the new management team. They did state in a release that they would need to raise funds to continue to operate. It looks like the same game with different people running the show.
..........al
Today's PR should have given the share price at the very least a spike. Not many pinks with such a low float with $1 million in revenues. Not many pinks with any revenues at all. I can only think of 2 possible explanations why the share price did not spike to at least 3-4¢. Clayton dumping more shares into the float playing the PR. Or Clayton has lost all credibility with investors and potential investors. There are still too many unanswered questions from previous PRs. Notice the common element in both explanations. That's where the onus lies and credibility must be restored.
......al
Apex silver (SIL) filed bankruptcy this morning. Many of their operations were in politically unstable countries. It is something to research when looking at junior miners.
.......al
From he Baltimore Sun
http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/bal-te.cowherd22dec22,0,814050.column
http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/bal-te.cowherd21p220081222055912,0,3048921.photo
Sporty caskets offer fandom for an eternity
Kevin Cowherd
December 22, 2008
You say you're a die-hard Orioles fan.
You say you'd follow the team to your grave.
Now you have a chance to do that - literally.
How about heading off to that big ballpark in the sky in your very own Orioles funeral casket?
*
Orioles-emblazoned urn Orioles-emblazoned urn Photo
Oh, this baby is a beauty, too: a cream-colored, 18-gauge steel model with Orioles logos up the wazoo.
Think about it. Orange handles. Black tassels. Your head resting on a fluffy white pillow embossed with an image of the ornithologically correct Oriole bird. Your eyes staring up for all eternity at the same image on the underside of the casket lid.
Best of all, you don't have to deal with all the doom and gloom that comes with being a fan. Because if the Orioles still stink, what do you care?
You're already dead! They can't torture you anymore.
Anyway, does this sound like the way you'd like to leave this mortal coil, friend?
If it is, at least one Maryland funeral home, Curran-Bromwell in Cambridge, will soon be offering a spanking new Orioles casket for your final journey.
And now that Major League Baseball is allowing use of its team logos on a line of caskets, you can bet lots of other funeral homes will be selling these babies, too, even if they're a little pricey ($4,499) for your average dead person.
"I'm pretty excited about the product," said Curran-Bromwell owner Colleen Curran-Bromwell. "I think it's a wonderful personalization idea. Perfect for the baseball enthusiast."
In the past, she said, people have asked her to personalize caskets with everything from the Nike Swoosh logos (Nike nixed that idea) to stuffed Oriole Birds inside.
She said when she heard about the O's caskets "I was like: 'Here we go! Finally there's someone who can tap into getting usage of a specific [brand].'"
The baseball-themed caskets, made by Eternal Image, a Michigan company, are being shipped to funeral homes across the country.
Clint Mytych, Eternal Image's 27-year-old CEO, said the caskets were a big hit when they were unveiled at the National Funeral Directors Association trade show in Orlando, Fla., in October.
"We sold every floor model we had, 13 in all," he said.
As he said this, I tried to envision all these funeral directors stuffing Yankees and Red Sox and Orioles caskets into the trunks of their taxis as they headed off for the airport and the flight home.
Mytych said the idea of being buried in a home-team casket is a logical extension of fans who ask for an old baseball glove or infield dirt from a favorite stadium to be interred with them.
When Mytych was asked if there has been any negative response to the logo caskets, he said: "Not really. Not from any funeral directors or anyone in the general public. Actually just the opposite. The funeral directors are excited to get behind our products."
Their products?
Yes, Eternal Image also makes logo caskets, urns and memorial markers for dog lovers, cat nuts, religious folks (via its Vatican Library Collection), fans of Precious Moments characters and Star Trek aficionados.
As I typed those last words, I tried to envision spending eternity in a cold steel tube decorated with the Federation Starfleet logo and photos of William Shatner playing Capt. James T. Kirk instead of a beefy Priceline shill and decided it would be too weird, even if you were dead.
Now some of you might be thinking: "Look, this business with the Orioles caskets is all well and good. But what if you want to go out with a winner? Where are the Ravens caskets?"
That's a great question.
And when you ask Mytych, he clams up like a witness to a mob hit.
He said Eternal Image does not offer NFL-logo caskets. And the company doesn't talk about potential licensing partners, as that would tip off the competition.
But he said Eternal Image hopes to sign on by next year with two or three "major sports brands." And he doesn't deny that NFL caskets would be a natural for his company.
My conclusion? Ravens caskets will be here before you know it.
"Oh, dear Lord!" Curran-Bromwell said when the subject is broached. "Every funeral home in Maryland would have them!"
Oh, you betcha. People would be lined up like in a bakery.
Does anything say "rest in peace" more than a purple casket emblazoned with logos of a fierce bird of prey, a large B tattooed on its head?
I don't think so.
Now throw in some personalized touches, like clumps of sod from M&T Bank Stadium and a photo of a glowering Ray Lewis bearing down on some poor running back, ready to rip his head off.
If that doesn't say "Take me now, Lord," to a Ravens fan, nothing does.
real gold over ETF;
By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
The Telegraph, London
Thursday, January 8, 2009
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financetopics/financialcrisis/4177766...
Merrill Lynch has revealed that some of its richest clients are so alarmed by the state of the financial system and signs of political instability around the world that they are now insisting on the purchase of gold bars, shunning derivatives or "paper" proxies.
Gary Dugan, the chief investment officer for the US bank, said there has been a remarkable change in sentiment. "People are genuinely worried about what the world is going to look like in 2009. It is amazing how many clients want physical gold, not ETFs," he said, referring to exchange trade funds listed in London, New York, and other bourses.
"They are so worried they want a portable asset in their house. I never thought I would be getting calls from clients saying they want a box of krugerrands," he said.
Merrill predicted that gold would soon blast through its all time-high of $1,030 an ounce, and would hit $1,150 by June.
The metal should do well whatever happens. If deflation sets in and rocks the economic system it will serve as a safe haven, but if massive monetary stimulus gains traction and sets off inflation once again it will also come into its own as a store of value. "It's win-win either way," said Mr Dugan.
He added that deflation may prove the greater risk in coming months. "It's very difficult to get the deflation psychology out of the human brain once prices start falling. People stop buying things because they think it will be cheaper if they wait."
Merrill expects global inflation to hover near zero, with rates of minus 1pc in the industrial economies. This means that yields on AAA sovereign bonds now at 3 percent will offer a real return of 4 percent a year, which is stellar in this grim climate. "Don't start selling your government bonds," Mr Dugan said, dismissing talk of a bond bubble as misguided.
He warned that the eurozone was likely to come under strain this year as slump deepens. "There is going to be friction as governments in the south start talking politically about coming out of the euro. I don't see the tensions in Greece as a one-off. It is a sign of social strain in countries that have lost competitiveness."
We all seem to be in agreement on the future. We just come from different viewpoints at times. That's a good thing as no man can think of it all at all times. I don't mind preaching to the choir. I have been reading several articles saying the FED may let gold go as high as $10,000. If you really think about it, it is one way to keep all those dollars being printed right now out of eventual circulation. Just a concept from a different point of view. I don't think the FED will have much choice. If the suppression scheme is kept up eventually more and more dollars losing purchasing power every day will find thier way into gold and silver anyway. Could anyone imagine T Bills going for 10¢ on the dollar?
.........al