Utah Authorizes Precious Metal Coins As Legal Tender

The Utah legislature passed a bill this week allowing gold and silver coins to be used as legal tender in the state – for the value of their precious metal, not just the face value of the coins.

“By itself, this doesn't really mean much. Private businesses have always been allowed to accept whatever form of money they want for goods, including barter. But we think it's symbolically significant: The measure draws attention to the fact that the U.S. dollar isn't stable… and the government of Utah is encouraging its citizens to use gold and silver,” wrote Porter Stansberry, financial analyst. “The bill's sponsor, Brad Galvez, explained, 'If the dollar continues to fall, what this will do will help stabilize the value of the dollar in Utah, so it helps stabilize the economy.'

“That may be true in some limited way, but the real benefits of gold won't accrue until the U.S. Treasury and the entire banking system begin using it as a monetary reserve.”

Unlike paper (fiat) currencies, gold can't be printed and its supply can't be easily manipulated by the government, Mr. Stansberry concluded.

In the absence of the gold standard, there is no way to protect savings from confiscation through inflation. There is no safe store of value… The financial policy of the welfare state requires there be no way for the owners of wealth to protect themselves. - Alan Greenspan, “Gold and Economic Freedom,” 1967

Mr. Stansberry pointed out that some investments have gained almost 1000% during the time he has held them in his portfolios.

Seabridge Gold SA 4 years, 73 days 995%

JDS Uniphase JDSU 1 year, 266 days 592%

ATAC Resources ATC 313 days 542%

Silver Wheaton SLW 1 year, 185 days 345%

Jinshan Gold Mines JIN.TO 290 days 339%

Medis Tech MDTL 4 years, 110 days 333%

ID Biomedical IDBE 5 years, 38 days 331%

Northern Dynasty NAK 1 year 343 days
322%

Texas Instr. TXN 270 days 301%

PSIA Stansberry MS63 Saint-Gaudens 5 years, 242 days 273%

Over the period of 2009 to the present, gold is up 80%, while the world's reserve currency, the U.S. Dollar, is down 40% and stands at a negative 20% factor compared to its relative worth in 2009.