Are Precious Metals Illegal?

Precious Metals - Bans, Confiscations, Jail Time and Fines!

 Precious Metals are defined as Gold, Silver and Platinum. Precious Metals have been used in trade as a currency for 2400 years, preceded only by a barter system that included the trade of cattle and other livestock animals. Some evidence points to metal objects being used as a currency as far back as 5000 B.C...

The pound sterling, or pound, was the first national currency adopted by England's first King in 775AD. This currency quickly became the global standard for trade and was equivalent to 1 pound of Silver which was a vast fortune in the 8th century.

The United States used Gold and Silver coins from Spain until the adoption of a continental currency on February 17, 1776. The continental currency collapsed 5 years later due to hyperinflation that caused the currency to be worthless. This was because there was nothing tangible, or of value that backed that unit of currency. Congress later enacted the United States Gold Standard which allowed the creation of bank notes that were redeemable for physical Gold and Silver. This prevented inflation because money could only be printed in accordance with how much Precious Metals were available at the U.S. Treasury.

This system worked well throughout the rest of the 18th and 19th century, however due to the proliferation of debt, low working wages and irresponsible financiers lending money that was unable to be liquidated, the stock market crashed in 1929 that caused a subsequent 11-year long depression that was known as the “Great Depression.” 

Credit/Source: New York Times "On This Day" Twitter Profile.

The Biggest Heist in History

 During this time over 9,000 financial institutions closed their doors, only to be purchased later by some of the same people who caused the crisis. In the early months of the depression people flocked to the banks to demand their paper money be redeemed in their rightfully owned Gold and Silver bullion. But it would turn out that the Government printed more paper money (or receipts) than they had in bullion, this scheme of which, was aided by the big financial institutes and oligarch-esque financiers of the time.

In response to this ‘run on the banks’, Gold and Silver was made illegal for private ownership in the U.S., this move by Congress and the big banking corporations is known as the biggest robbery in the history of the world where nearly all privately owned wealth was confiscated from the U.S. population. This also allowed for the creation of the Federal Reserve (which is a privately owned entity) giving the power to the Government and Banks to print money, inflating or deflating the value of the U.S. Dollar as needed.

In the time since the creation of the Federal Reserve and confiscation of privately owned precious metals, the dollar has devalued 95% and Gold and Silver has gone up in value 95%. The U.S. Treasury (during the confiscation) seized nearly 7 times more Gold than they originally had meaning the U.S. Government effectively seized $2,400,000,000 dollars’ worth of Gold directly from the American people directly preceding Executive Order 6102. 

Pre-1933 Gold

Quick note for our stackers and collectors out there. 'Pre-1933 Gold' denotes Gold coins and bullion that was minted by the U.S. Mint prior to the Gold ban and it's awesome. It certainly comes with a premium but because of its history and the fact that it survived attempts from the Government to seize it make for a really cool conversation piece and we recommend you guys checking it out, if not, at least picking up one to add to your collection!

A photo of a beautiful Saint Gaudens Double Eagle minted in 1907.

The Government Says We Can Own It Again.

On January 1st, 1975, Gold and Silver ownership was made legal by the Ford administration, without restrictions, of any form including bullion in the U.S... However, Ford was unable to reenact the Gold Standard as this was an unpopular idea with lobbyist that include the same banking elites that purportedly manufactured the original crisis and beckons the question, can the Government seize property such as Gold and Silver again?

For the Government to look to do this again, a need to do so would have to present itself. Reasons such as devaluation from runaway inflation, financial crisis that leads the population to a barter system (undermining the official state currency) and of course in the event that investing itself is made illegal which is a popular idea and political system that is spreading through the western world.

This is anything makes the case for physical private ownership over ETFs and IRAs but that is the call for you or your financial advisor to make…

This article is intended for entertainment purposes and is not intended to be advice on how to invest. If you found this article interesting, please consider sharing it on your Facebook profile. We are a small veteran-owned business that provides Precious Metals such as Gold and Silver in a unique, subscription crate model and rely almost wholly on word of mouth. Try out one of our crates today and make sure to tell your friends and family.

Thank you. 

Hoard it before Uncle Sam bans it!