Author Topic: Germany wants its gold back. (Read 11675 times)

MillCreek · « **Reply #25 on:** January 16, 2013, 08:54:12 PM »

Quote from: Jim147 on January 16, 2013, 06:50:38 PM

You can have my teeth when you pry them from my cold dead mouth.

jim

Careful. Germany has some experience with that very thing.

red headed stranger · « **Reply #26 on:** January 16, 2013, 08:54:25 PM »

Quote from: Jim147 on January 16, 2013, 06:50:38 PM

You can have my teeth when you pry them from my cold dead ~~mouth~~ mouf.

jim

FTFY

Scout26 · « **Reply #27 on:** January 16, 2013, 08:56:54 PM »

IIRC, During WWII the Germans continued send to Switzerland gold as payment for it's WWI reparations. Guess were most of that gold came from. Actually, no not the camps. But from the looted vaults of the various central banks of countries they overran. Yes, there was some from the those swallowed up by the Shoah, but some/most of that was was stolen/looted by the various Nazi functionaries before hitting the Reichsbank.

And yes, Waitone is right, it used to be that if one country sold gold to another all they did was move it from one side of the vault to the other (or maybe just on paper even). I suspect that someone somewhere found at least one fake bar with all the right markings and that has created a "Oh, Schiesse!!" moment.

As if things aren't interesting enough...

MillCreek · « **Reply #28 on:** January 16, 2013, 09:21:33 PM »

On the 'Modern Marvels' episode on the gold reserve, they showed the staff at the NYC Federal Reserve (which holds more gold than Ft. Knox) rolling a cart of gold bars from one country's gold cage to another country's gold cage.

birdman · « **Reply #29 on:** January 16, 2013, 09:49:22 PM »

Quote from: Waitone on January 16, 2013, 08:41:36 PM

Here of late there has been a spat of nations demanding delivery of gold they have on account. Used to be gold was moved amongst the various vaults controlled by the FED or various banks beholding to the FED. The Chinese went on a gold buying binge and then announced it would be taking delivery of its gold and place it in vaults they were building in Hong Kong (IIRC). Normally those taking delivery would simply place the bullion in its existing form in their vaults. The Chinese went one step further to melt down and recast their bullion. In essence the Chinese are conducting a 100% physical audit of its gold. . . . which suggests salted gold bullion is worse of a problem than is generally thought.

Perhaps they know its a problem because they are doing it? I wouldn't put it past them.

Most salted bars are discovered due to:
1. weight variation, which can be easily detected
2. Ultrasound/eddy current or other NDE methods

Very rarely are they discovered through mass spec, so my wondering is why doesn't someone create an alloy or nano composite that looks like gold, has the same density as gold, can be made into a homogeneous bar, has enough electrical conductivity to exhibit nearly identical eddy current behavior, and has a comparable bulk modulus. I mean, it can't be that difficult, given the potential profit.

Waitone · « **Reply #30 on:** January 16, 2013, 10:15:28 PM »

Everything I read says tungsten is the substitute of choice. Evidently external testing is not conclusive. The only fail proof technique is core drilling but the reduces the value of the bullion by a small amount. What I think is driving the concern is banks loan gold reserves to each other which are then used to fatten balance sheets, etc. The practice is so widespread is there is concern the practice of salting is been institutionalized. China was the first to audit. The US has huffed and puffed about auditing the FED a portion of which will be an audit of our gold reserves. I think it reasonable for other countries to begin the process.

slingshot · « **Reply #31 on:** January 16, 2013, 11:37:07 PM »

My suspicion is that they are concerned that the gold will not be released if things go into the crapper and they want their's now.

Fly320s · « **Reply #32 on:** January 17, 2013, 08:54:27 PM »

Quote from: slingshot on January 16, 2013, 11:37:07 PM

My suspicion is that they are concerned that the gold will not be released if things go into the crapper and they want their's now.

That was my thought, too.

Waitone · « **Reply #33 on:** January 17, 2013, 09:33:34 PM »

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-01-16/all-aboard-gold-repatriation-train-first-germany-next-netherlands

Looks like the Netherlands will be next to repatriate.

Northwoods · « **Reply #34 on:** January 18, 2013, 12:59:36 AM »

I heard Glenn Beck this morning claiming we told the Germans it would take 7 YEARS to get them their gold.

I'm thinking they just need to hire Jeremy Irons to go get it for them.

French G. · « **Reply #35 on:** January 18, 2013, 04:02:38 AM »

There are mutterings that perhaps more gold has been traded between nations than actually exists. That'd be touchy.

RoadKingLarry · « **Reply #36 on:** January 18, 2013, 06:20:03 AM »

Quote from: French G. on January 18, 2013, 04:02:38 AM

There are mutterings that perhaps more gold has been traded between nations than actually exists. That'd be touchy.

That might leave a Mark.

Viking · « **Reply #37 on:** January 18, 2013, 06:22:59 AM »

Quote from: French G. on January 18, 2013, 04:02:38 AM

There are mutterings that perhaps more gold has been traded between nations than actually exists. That'd be touchy.

Ooops...

Ron · « **Reply #38 on:** January 18, 2013, 08:46:00 AM »

This is the stuff world wars are made of...

makattak · « **Reply #39 on:** January 18, 2013, 08:53:37 AM »

Quote from: Ron on January 18, 2013, 08:46:00 AM

This is the stuff world wars are made of...

No. Maybe "sparked by", but not made of.

What world wars are made of is aging, decaying empires losing their dominance and new empire seekers pushing them out a little bit sooner than their own collapse would have happened, leading to a massive war between multiple countries all with similar ideas of dominance.

(Anyone think that's not a good description of the situations in WWI and WWII? Austo-Hungarian empire in WWI and Britain in WWII?)

Oh, and look. What's the situation we find the world in now that the one superpower is going into self-inflictied decline!?

(Edit: stupid typos.)

Perd Hapley · « **Reply #40 on:** January 18, 2013, 09:12:53 AM »

Quote from: birdman on January 16, 2013, 09:49:22 PM

Perhaps they know its a problem because they are doing it? I wouldn't put it past them.

Most salted bars are discovered due to:
1. weight variation, which can be easily detected
2. Ultrasound/eddy current or other NDE methods

Very rarely are they discovered through mass spec, so my wondering is why doesn't someone create an alloy or nano composite that looks like gold, has the same density as gold, can be made into a homogeneous bar, has enough electrical conductivity to exhibit nearly identical eddy current behavior, and has a comparable bulk modulus. I mean, it can't be that difficult, given the potential profit.

Hey, look! An alchemist!

birdman · « **Reply #41 on:** January 18, 2013, 10:16:21 AM »

Quote from: French G. on January 18, 2013, 04:02:38 AM

There are mutterings that perhaps more gold has been traded ~~between nations~~ than actually exists. That'd be touchy.

...and true

HankB · « **Reply #42 on:** January 18, 2013, 03:24:56 PM »

Quote from: birdman on January 16, 2013, 09:49:22 PM

. . . why doesn't someone create an alloy or nano composite that looks like gold, has the same density as gold, can be made into a homogeneous bar, has enough electrical conductivity to exhibit nearly identical eddy current behavior, and has a comparable bulk modulus. . . .

Maybe because it would cost upwards of $10,000 an ounce and be radioactive?

Blakenzy · « **Reply #43 on:** January 18, 2013, 03:58:07 PM »

Quote from: makattak on January 18, 2013, 08:53:37 AM

No. Maybe "sparked by", but not made of.

What world wars are made of is aging, decaying empires losing their dominance and new empire seekers pushing them out a little bit sooner than their own collapse would have happened, leading to a massive war between multiple countries all with similar ideas of dominance.

(Anyone think that's not a good description of the situations in WWI and WWII? Austo-Hungarian empire in WWI and Britain in WWII?)

Oh, and look. What's the situation we find the world in now that the one superpower is going into self-inflictied decline!?

(Edit: stupid typos.)

Hmm, interesting.

AJ Dual · « **Reply #44 on:** January 18, 2013, 04:02:50 PM »

Quote from: RoadKingLarry on January 18, 2013, 06:20:03 AM

That might leave a Mark.

Poor RKL, waiting for someone to "See what he did there".

RoadKingLarry · « **Reply #45 on:** January 18, 2013, 10:23:04 PM »

Well, they are on the Euro now. Some of the folks here hadn't even hit puberty when the Mark was replaced,

Jim147 · « **Reply #46 on:** January 18, 2013, 11:10:53 PM »

Quote from: RoadKingLarry on January 18, 2013, 10:23:04 PM

Well, they are on the Euro now. Some of the folks here hadn't even hit puberty when the Mark was replaced,

I think I still have 10,000 Marks here. Maybe I should take it over to the courthouse and try to pay my tax bill with it.

jim

Scout26 · « **Reply #47 on:** January 19, 2013, 01:35:10 AM »

Quote from: Jim147 on January 18, 2013, 11:10:53 PM

I think I still have 10,000 Marks here. Maybe I should take it over to the courthouse and try to pay my tax bill with it.

jim

That would have been around $4-5,000 at the time they transitioned from the Mark to the Euro in 1999. What were (and are) you doing sitting on $5k in DM?

(I thought I was bad in that I have about DM400 in both paper and coinage that I brought back from Europe. Plus another Ostmark150 in fun commie aluminum coins and a few banknotes. IIRC, this is about $4.41 in real money.)

seeker_two · « **Reply #48 on:** January 19, 2013, 08:08:28 AM »

As history has shown, when Germany has financial problems, France gets nervous.....

birdman · « **Reply #49 on:** January 19, 2013, 10:43:18 AM »

Quote from: seeker_two on January 19, 2013, 08:08:28 AM

As history has shown, when Germany has financial problems, France gets nervous.....

The only German financial problems right now are caused by the rest of Europe, which should (but doesn't, which is actually shocking) REALLY worry Europe.

News:

Author Topic: Germany wants its gold back. (Read 11675 times)