But as time went on and I got older and maybe wiser by a brain cell or two, I started to see silver in a whole different light. By the time 2007 rolled around, and I had spent a few years “looking into this stuff,” my opinion swung 180 degrees. I still don’t much like it for jewelry, but that’s the mechanic side of me talking. When properly polished, it has its own form of warmth that I can indeed appreciate. It can look quite nice, as long as you keep the tarnish away.
When people ask me just “what the hell is it with your fascination about silver?” I simply chuckle. Any of you who have been readers for any length of time, you know that yes, I’ve mentioned owning physical silver for going on 14 years now. But, maybe not just for the reason you think.
I’ll fess up. I was a jeweler for a number of years and got to play with most of the precious metals. Gold, silver, platinum, Rhodium, etc. But by far, my favorite was gold. The luster, the patina, the weight, the malleability, the corrosion resistance, just made it absolutely gorgeous.
When you’re a manufacturing jeweler, or a bench jeweler doing repair work, gold is so fun to work on. It’s just a joy all around. Platinum was “okay” but certainly not as easy to work with and while it’s simply my own opinion, the shine of platinum, just looks too …“metallic” for my tastes, not the soft, warm glow of say 22KT gold.
Silver was clearly NOT my favorite metal. It was stupid soft, tarnished easily, and was so cheap, that often I had to charge more for the repair than the piece was worth, even if the repair was only 12 bucks. Frankly, and I’m being honest here, I just didn’t see any value in it.
But as time went on and I got older and maybe wiser by a brain cell or two, I started to see silver in a whole different light. By the time 2007 rolled around, and I had spent a few years “looking into this stuff,” my opinion swung 180 degrees. I still don’t much like it for jewelry, but that’s the mechanic side of me talking. When properly polished, it has its own form of warmth that I can indeed appreciate. It can look quite nice, as long as you keep the tarnish away.
What started to sway me towards liking the metal, had more to do with its history of being both money, and an industrial metal and…it’s health benefits. As a money, everyone knows that darn near the beginning of any recorded history, silver was being used for trade. It was fashioned into coins throughout history, and we’re talking thousands of years.
So, we know that for centuries untold, silver could be used as “money” to purchase goods. We know that it takes labor, human energy and time to produce it, giving it value. We know it’s relatively scarce, meaning it can’t be printed out of thin air, like dollars are. Therefore, it’s easy to see why silver would have a monetary value.
Frankly, I didn’t realize until about mid 2005, just how many other uses there was for this stuff. It seemed like every day, they were discovering more ways to incorporate silver into technology, from circuit boards, to space stations.
As it stands right now, silver is used in 101 common applications, and if you look at tangential uses, you could expand that into the thousands. Yes you read that right. Silver, which I had little respect for before I learned of its magic, is used in thousands of applications, because of its properties. What kind of properties? This is just a few:
Along with gold, silver is the most ductile (malleable) metal. An ounce of silver can be made into a wire 8,000 feet long. Silver is the best electric conductor of the elements; all other elements are measured against it. It is the only element that scores 100% conductivity, with the next closest element being copper at 97%. Silver is also the best thermal conductor of any metal but has the lowest contact resistance. Superconductors pair with silver to increase transmission of electricity, and are more efficient than when the superconductor acts alone. Printed electronics use silver ink for the development of Organic Light Emitting Diodes or (OLED) lighting.
I could go on and on. But the one area where silver is making more advances literally every few days is medicine. I’m going to state something here that sounds unbelievable but is factually correct. There is NO KNOWN bacteria that can survive in a solution containing silver. None. Not even the “super bugs” can stand up to silver.
Here is just a few of the common uses for silver in medicine:
Silver sulfadiazine used as a topical cream to treat burns. It made WHO’s list of essential medicines, as an anti-infective medicine. Silver Coated Foley catheters are used in urology to prevent urinary tract infections from catheter use. Silver halides are still being used in conventional x-ray film as an image receptor. Many third-world countries that don’t have access to advanced technology use this type of x-ray. Silver is used in bandages and dressings to prevent the spread of infection. There are also many uses as gels and ointments for minor scrapes and cuts. Surgical mesh, 3D Silver mesh to aid in support the organs or tissues during surgery. Conjunctivitis drops for newborn babies. Silver nitrate has been used for a long time as drops for newborns to prevent pink eye. I could go on forever.
Many of you who practice holistic medicine, know that colloidal silver has been proven to promote better health. It has been used for decades to treat everything from dental problems to lung infections.
This inexpensive metal, that I didn’t have much use for or respect for, has evolved into something almost mystical to me. So, when I go off on one of my rants and suggest that you “get some” of this metal, in the form of silver eagles, rounds, 10 ounce bars, etc. just understand that I’m not pushing it for my gain. I don’t get a penny if you buy 1000 ounces. I’m simply suggesting that for all its uses, from money to industry to medical, and the amount of supply that keeps dwindling year after year, I have to believe in a higher value for this stuff.
They’ve suppressed it for years. They don’t want it competing with their fiat money. Manufacturing cartels have a hand in manipulating it lower, as they don’t want the costs involved if it gains in value. Yet in my opinion, and yes it’s just mine, Silver under 70 bucks a share, is the most mispriced commodity on planet earth.
For more than 15 years I’ve said that silver belongs over 70 and in 2011 it made 50 before they beat it senseless. My position hasn’t changed. I think it’s still got a date with that number. THAT my friends is why I “push” this stuff. I hope you understand.