Article By Charles Payne, CEO & Principal Analyst
These days there seems to be a new shocking poll out every day, but there was news this morning from Gallup that speaks volumes about why the economy isn’t moving. When asked the best long-term investments the reply was overwhelmingly…gold!
This is incredibly interesting stuff, but says Americans have lost faith in this country and in the powers that have the ability to keep it great. Interestingly, Ben Bernanke took a poke at Washington today, but it’s the fact the Fed and the Administration are so fixated on short-term bounces in the economy that the longer term potential is dimming. Rising debts and a weaker dollar are the one-two punch that ultimately hurts bonds, savings, and eventually stocks. People seem to understand this more than the experts.
There is an element of our future wrapped around an inner belief things are going to get better. It’s a self-fulfilling destiny that makes success possible in part because we know it’s going to happen. These days there are too many unknowns to be confident, and what we do know doesn’t suggest greatness. We know the government has grown in size and intrusiveness. We know this Administration wants to greet hard-earned success with harsh rhetoric and higher taxes. We know this Administration is trying to create a medical system that will dilute care and send costs soaring. We do know the Fed has no qualms printing money and probably will continue to do so.
Things have changed dramatically in the past ten years. There was a time when Americans invested in war bonds. There was a time you knew owning a piece of land in this country was the bedrock of future wealth. From what I understand, this is the first time Gallup has included gold as an option in this survey. There is no doubt years ago it would have had a negligible impact as witnessed in the organization’s 2003 survey on the best long-term investments.
