What is your confidence in the US dollar?

Your confidence in the US dollar over the past 5 years has...

  • Gone up a lot

    Votes: 2 2.9%

  • Gone up a little

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Stayed the same

    Votes: 6 8.8%

  • Gone down a little

    Votes: 5 7.4%

  • Gone down a lot

    Votes: 40 58.8%

  • I'm doing what Crosshair is doing and distancing myself from the US dollar.

    Votes: 7 10.3%

  • Crosshair is Crazy.

    Votes: 4 5.9%

  • I have no idea.

    Votes: 4 5.9%
  • Total voters
    68
C

Crosshair

New member
We have all seen the latest price increases, especially in fuel. About two thirds of that increase can be traced to the dollars declining value. In trying to postpone an inevitable recession, the federal reserve has failed it's primary mission of maintaining the Fiat dollar as a store of value. (Actually, Fiat money has never been a good store of value.)

The oil price problem is a dollar problem

In 2000 a barrel of oil cost $23.32/€25.57. Today that cost is $108.98/€70.50. Copper, lead, and other metals are climbing in cost for the same reason. Partially because of increased demand and partially from our devalued currency. It's not the oil companies, it's our own government that shares much of the blame.

I hate to sound like an alarmist or some tinfoil hatter, but lately I have been investing my money into things other than dollars. Other people I know are putting their money into investments that are traded in Euros and other foreign currencies. Considering the price increases, 22 rimfire ammo has been a good investment. I have seen my stores of it increase in value across the board by over 10% over the past year or so and some by almost 20%. 7.62x39 I bought years ago has tippled in value. I have been buying guns now as a way to store value. (Ruger MKIIs and 22/45s are my current safe investment. Keeping a steady eye on the used market for good deals.)

I have been buying scrap lead not only for casting boolits, but as a relatively easy way to store currency. By smelting it into ingots I instantly increase it's value and the price of lead has been going up as well. Sure you need allot of it to have any serious value, but something is better than nothing.

I still have investments in dollars, but even my safe investments don't feel safe enough to me. I have been looking at foreign investments like others have been doing.

So what does everyone else think and/or what have you been doing?
 
I've just been waiting for the dollar to regain it's value in the world. Overall, I don't travel, so exchange rates don't really bother me. I could care less about how our dollar compares to a euro because I don't spend euros, I spend greenbacks :D

We're in for hardships in America, everyone can agree on that. But like the depression, the fuel chrisis of the 70's, the big stock market crash, etc. WE WILL RECOVER. Might take a couple of years, but everything will be back to normal for us eventually. (Well, except the price of fuel. That'll never recover back to $1.50 that we American's got used to. Besides, gasoline engines are over 100 years old, and we need to figure out the hydrogen fuel thingie anyway. I want my darn flying car!!!) :cool:
 
All in all I have little faith in the dollar I feel we are in for a very rough time,
excessive spending, war. nation building, trade deficit and a fast growing
population of under educated folks along with loss of manufacturing is
going to change life in America dramatically. It is an opinion only but I
believe those in power (our corporate controlled government)want
it to be so.
 
Just a few short years ago the Euro was actually .98E to the Dollar. As of Friday, in round numbers it is $1.56 to the Euro.

It is very very good to have old Dollars banked as Euros. :D:D

Even better is to own property in Europe! :D:D:D
 
Everything is cyclical, and we will always be the number one economy in the world as long as we continue to have the vitality and spirit we have. The influx of fresh blood from all over the world demonstrates that, and adds to that. Twenty years ago it was the yen, now it's the Euro...

And since their currency is so strong, guess where they are spending it?:D

WildswmboisrakingitinalreadydownintouristtownAlaska ™
 
If the two thirds of the increase in oil cost is due to the change in value of the dollars how does this explain that in May of 2007 oil was at $60 and there were .74 dollars per euro and right now (May 2008) oil is at $132 and there are .63 dollars per euro? This is a decrease in the dollar of 15% and an increase in the cost of oil of 120%. Doesn't seem to work out to 2/3s. Maybe my calculator is broken.
 
Actually from 2000, relative to the Euro, the dollars is down 37% while oil is up 574%. So, if the change in the cost of oil was 100% due to the drop in the dollar, oil should be up 59% (off by about one order of magnitude).
 
I'd like to know who voted that the dollar has stayed the same in value.
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I'd like to know what poll you're referring to...

My take on the dollar is the oil issue. OPEC is basically an "untouchable" monopoly. The federal government doesn't want to lift a single finger to break it up. They're cashing in big time on tax revenue.

The EPA and bunny huggers kept any oil companies from building any refineries in any significant numbers in the past 30 years. Now, instead of state of the art clean efficient refineries, we have old worn down ones that's being constantly pushed to their limits. Also, they've kept us from drilling for our own oil. There's plenty out there contrary to popular belief on our soil as well as the ocean. We should have opened up the market for smaller companies to compete in the oil industry. This would break up the monopolies in due time and it would work itself out by giving the customer more choices where to buy gas.

So, how this has to do with the price of tea in China is that we've become reliant on other countries for a commodity that's key for stability of our economy.

Now, we're paying for it. We should have seen the global market on the horizon in the '70's. If we would have secured our own ways of acquiring and refining our own oil we would be set by now with a strong economy.

Trade deficit and other issues affect the dollar of course. But, oil has hit us harder than anything else...even the housing market.
 
If the dollar falls to far we wont be able to pay the foreign investors back the loans they have already made us. The dollar goes down and so does the rest of the world's banking systems and economies. We are all interconnected. When the dollar goes down the Japanese build auto plants here instead of in Japan.
The food we grow becomes cheaper and US farmers plant more acreage to meet demand for exports.
Oil too expensive? We burn coal instead of oil, there is lots of it and I'm sure we can come up with some new technology to use it in an evironmentaly responsible way. We start drilling in ANWR and offshore for more us oil, and cars get smaller.
While our money may seem to be losing value, against European currency, that is an abstract concept in terms of the real standard of living difference. It still takes way more Euros to live well in Europe than it takes dollars to live well here in the USA.
If you have ever lived in Europe for a period of time you will see there is a great difference in the way we live from how folks in Europe live. Go to your local mall and but a pair of levis jeans for $20 on sale, take them to London and you can sell them for $140, thats the real exchange rate difference. Its a lifestyle exchange rate that is greatly in our favor.

If you are thinking of saving up for some armageddon, Toilet paper, ammo, Tampons, booze, batteries, fuel, and canned food are worth more than gold bars.

I dont expect to see the end of our way of life in my lifetime, there will just be adjustments.

JMHO YMMV
 
I dont expect to see the end of our way of life in my lifetime, there will just be adjustments.
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There sure has been adjustments, I can no longer eat the things I can't afford. I can no longer drive up to the hills and do my thing. I can no long purchase American Products I love. It use to be a nice chunk of beef twice a week. Now it's Chicken, Pork, Chicken and some tough old stuff they call round steak!

The problem is not Oil, It's the damn Dollar!

No Foil Hat Doned!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6NfXk7Bvc8
 
I could care less about how our dollar compares to a euro because I don't spend euros, I spend greenbacks
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You might spend greenbacks, but any thing made overseas now costs more greenbacks because the dollar is worth less compared to their currency.
 
Actually from 2000, relative to the Euro, the dollars is down 37% while oil is up 574%. So, if the change in the cost of oil was 100% due to the drop in the dollar, oil should be up 59% (off by about one order of magnitude).
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Your right, this is because of the other countries coming on line with there needs.. The dollar is still taking a crap!
 
I could care less about how our dollar compares to a euro because I don't spend euros, I spend greenbacks
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What about the Copper we get from Chile, the electronics from Japan, the optics from Europe, the ammo from Russia, the oil from the Middle East. It is extremely important what your currency is trading for on the market.
 
A weak dollar can be a pain in the keister (like when ordering custom grips from Norway), but it can also be good. The rest of the world can now afford to buy American goods, so exports take an upswing. We'll shake off the stupid scam-loan crisis eventually, and when that happens the increase in exports will add up to a stronger economy, a stronger dollar, and then the rest of the world will stop buying our goods and we can go back to importing everything and making dumb investments. Really, I can't say which part of the cycle I prefer...
 
The arbitrary jacking-up of oil prices, of course, adversely affects the strength of the dollar, rather than the inverse of that as some here seem to believe.
 
Also, going back to the gold standard is not workable. The US doesn't mine much gold anymore, but the Russians sure do. Determining the value of a currency by a metal that you can not control the supply of is not too bright.
 
Also, going back to the gold standard is not workable. The US doesn't mine much gold anymore, but the Russians sure do. Determining the value of a currency by a metal that you can not control the supply of is not too bright.
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Agreed, the gold standard has its problems, but Fiat Money is worse. In over 2,000 years of history, Fiat money has been debased and resulted in economic collapse of the hosting economy.

If you want your currency to be a store of value, it needs to be backed by something.
 
It doesn't cause economic collapse, it causes an endless cycle of boom and bust. You're just too pessimistic, Crosshair, you only see the glass half empty and disregard the fact that it will fill again in a few years.:D

For the sake of argument, what are our other options besides "fiat money" and gold? It would have to be something we have a lot of... Coal? Nuclear weapons? Corn?
 
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