“They shall never get the upper hand!” said Alfred.
“That’s right,” said St. Clare; “put on the steam, fasten down the escape-valve, and sit on it, and see where you’ll land.”
“Well,” said Alfred, “we will see. I’m not afraid to sit on the escape-valve, as long as the boilers are strong, and the machinery works well.”
Harriet Beecher Stowe, Uncle Tom's Cabin
The dollar took back a little from its drop yesterday, and gold and silver commensurately gave up a little of their gains.
What is most striking is the manner in which gold and silver are trading as currency crosses. While this makes sense within a certain market context of short term valuations, it tends to overlook, if not completely ignore, the commodity feature of the metals.
This is what makes them unique among currencies. They are self-sufficient. They have no counterparty risks or true masters, as they are not created, only discovered and exchanged.
It is a modern monetary phenomenon to believe that when it comes to monetary valuations, anything goes.
And for it time it does. Until it does not.
And then the dislocation caused by the reckoning of the balance sheets of theoretical values with hard realities may be quite impressive.
Have a pleasant evening.
