Short Term Trading Weekend Lounge: 9-11 August, page-23

Hi @Diver Dan

I arrived at my opinion about gold by examining the psychology of those who advocate for it. What stood out is the respect for gold is based wholly on how a person responds to their own fear. A person who seeks to protect themselves by hoarding gold is adopting the pessimistic view and also is projecting their subjective outlook onto others [i.e. because they are fearful and know that others are fearful they expect that everyone else will share in their assessment that gold has tangible value].

I think there is another way to frame things.
There's the optimistic path and the pessimistic path each with their own decision tree. While remaining mentally neutral...  the question one must ask is which path will one decide upon as the guide for one's choice of action?

The optimistic path also acknowledges the reality of danger and the natural response to feel fear. It differs from pessimism by examining how the dangers might best be dealt with in a creative way. The psychology of optimism is one of allowing fear to inform one's intellect. The pessimist is allowing fear to dictate to their intellect.

In concrete terms... how will owning gold address real World, tangible problems [the ultimate source of fear itself]? Allocating one's wealth to accumulate gold is to squander purchasing power. Those funds are better used by buying into copper, lithium and graphite which supports the alternative energy economy we so desperately need to avert the worst effects of Global warming. Investing in medical research companies, although high risk, is better than squirreling cash down the golden rabbit hole. The optimistic path is limited only by one's capacities for imagination. The pessimistic path leads down into a psychological dungeon.