🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1991Jun14.183424.654@noose.ecn.purdue.edu> G E Derylo
writes:

   I'm no economist, but wouldn't the introduction of that much gold
   and platinum into the market *drastically* decrease its value,
   making this a questionable financial venture? Sure, I know these
   materials also have crutial industrial applications, so we're not
   just dealing with jewelry here.

   But we're talking about a cubes of pure gold and platinum 25.53 and
   53.09 feet on a side respectively. I would think this kind of find,
   if it were dug up tomarrow in the middle of Nebraska, would do
   really nastiy things to our gold-based (?) economy.

   Can anyone with some econ background comment on this?

The gold and silver that the Spanish brought back from the New World
messed up the European economy quite greviously.  Galloping inflation,
with too much money (precious metals, of course) chasing too few goods.
This caused a lot of instability, first economic and then political.

The diamond cartel (de Beers) very stringently limits the supply of
diamonds, to keep the price high.
--
Mary Shafer  shafer@skipper.dfrf.nasa.gov  ames!skipper.dfrf.nasa.gov!shafer
           NASA Ames Dryden Flight Research Facility, Edwards, CA
                     Of course I don't speak for NASA
            "Turn to kill, not to engage."  CDR Willie Driscoll