“We are in danger of being overwhelmed with irredeemable paper, mere paper, representing not gold nor silver; no sir, representing nothing but broken promises, bad faith, bankrupt corporations, cheated creditors and a ruined people.” – Daniel Webster, 1833

Taken a look at the interest your earning on your savings lately?  Pretty bad isn’t it?  Those days when you could safely put your money into a savings account and get a reasonable return are gone, and from the look of things they aren’t coming back anytime soon…Saving account interest rates move closer to zero.

As of this writing, according to Bankrate.com the average interest rate being paid on Savings and Money Market Accounts in the United States is 0.13%.

For 2011 the inflation rate averaged 3.14%.

Let’s see, you’re earning 0.13% and losing 3.14% of value…seems like a losing deal.

Which begs the question, “Why should you put your money in the bank, any bank?”  You’d be just as well served placing your money in the proverbial coffee can and burying it in the backyard.  (Maybe someone will dig it up in a few years and have a collector’s item, sorta like old Confederate dollars or Greenbacks.)

photo credit: ▲Bonard▼

Perhaps you should think about alternative ways to save your money.  Perhaps it’s time for a new way of thinking about wealth.  Because it’s not a question of saving dollars, Euros, Pounds or whatever, it’s a question of preserving wealth.

Historically paper has been a bad bet…and it’s a bad bet now.

“Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value —- zero.”

I suggest looking at the two traditional ways people have preserved their wealth and the value of their savings…silver and gold.

And to get started on saving with precious metals you can start here…Junk Silver coins for savings

Times have changed. Do something different. Trust in silver and gold.

photo credit: h.koppdelaney

I just can’t get enough of these projections, forecasts, predictions.  Here’s another one…

10 Predictions for Work and Economics in 2012

Especially relevant to this website are predictions #3 & #4:

#3 – The US Economy will do poorly

#4 – Well paying jobs will be ever more scarce

I tend to agree with the author because the root cause of both these woe’s are structural and not temporary.  The cure is simple – less tax, less regulation and less Government involvement, but this is not what government does.

Silver prices in 2012

Silver prices are still lower from their highs last year, which represents a great opportunity to pick up more coins and bullion at bargain prices.  I’m adding to my positions in both silver and gold in anticipation of a rough economy later this year, especially after the election.  For me, this is a buying opportunity.

Buy Junk Silver Coins

photo credit: sirqitous

The United States Mint has announced they have sufficient quantities of gold and silver eagles on hand for 2012 and does not need to release additional coins during the early part of 2012…http://yhoo.it/sjKQAU

They cite falling demand for these bullion coins during the fourth quarter of 2012 as a result of falling silver and gold prices.  This falling demand means there are sufficient stocks of the coins on hand to meet the needs of investors and bullion dealers in the short term.

What the article fails to mention is that the best time to buy silver and gold is when the prices have fallen due to lower demand.  This is the key component to “buy low, sell high”, which in practice is lost on most investors.  This is a great time to pick up some Silver Eagles or Gold Eagles.

photo credit: Tambako the Jaguar

Well here we go, 2012.  The festivities of the holidays are over and soon it’s back to work.  Here’s a final round-up of economic predictions for this year.

“Give me a one-handed economist! All my economists say, On the one hand on the other.” - Harry S. Truman

I’ve posted some gloomy predictions of the year ahead the past couple days (see Jim Rogers and Gerald Celente’s forecasts) but now, with the year actually here I’d like to post some forecasts from the mainstream establishment economists because the quote above is true, depending on variables, luck and chance there is often more than one possibility going forward.

Here they are, economic predictions from Top Economists…Economists make 2012 predictions.

• The economy will grow at a faster pace…depending on events and happenings in Europe.  (It’s that two-handed thing.)

•  Unemployment will remain relatively unchanged.

The economy remains vulnerable to outside shocks which may plunge us into recession.

All in all there’s not a lot of substance in these predictions, which makes sense seeing how the economists surveyed (“three dozen private, corporate and academic economists”) all represent the mainstream economic establishment.

As you would expect…

 A majority (56 percent) of the economists say the economy will get a lift from Federal Reserve policies. The Fed has said it plans to keep short-term interest rates near zero through at least mid-2013 if the economy remains weak. The central bank also has begun a campaign to try to push down mortgage rates and other long-term interest rates through next June.

Good luck in the new year.

photo credit: {Guerrilla Futures | Jason Tester}

Noted investor Jim rogers is another great source for financial insight going into the future.  Having made billions in the stock market as a partner with George Soros he retired and moved to Singapore with his wife and children.  An astute student of history, investing and the world situation Mr. Rogers is a well respected commentator on the global economic environment.

Here is the transcript and video from a recent interview he did with Australia’s Financial News Network.  You can reference the original article here…Jim Rogers on 2012.

Jim Rogers 2012 Global Outlook

Transcription of Finance News Network interview with American investor and author, Jim Rogers.

Lelde Smits: Hello I’m Lelde Smits for Australia’s Finance News Network and joining me today from Singapore is American investor and author, Jim Rogers. Jim, welcome to FNN and thanks so much for your time. Now for the benefit of our Australian audience, why did you choose to leave your homeland and set up in Singapore?

Jim Rogers: The main reason Lelde is that I’ve got two children who I want to grow up speaking perfect Mandarin. In my view the 21stcentury will be the century of China. I couldn’t keep up the Mandarin in New York, as much as I wanted to. You know, many parents do strange things for their children, they move near football coaches or music teachers or good schools. We moved to Singapore to maintain the Mandarin.

Lelde Smits: And why Singapore when you had all of Asia to choose from?

Jim Rogers: We looked at the Chinese speaking cities in China but the problem was the ones where we wanted to live are too polluted. I love Shanghai, I love Hong Kong, but the pollution is just too horrible. Singapore is the best of all worlds.

Lelde Smits: Well you’re clearly an investor with your eyes on global horizons, but what’s your outlook for global growth stepping into next year?
Jim Rogers: Well Lelde, I’m not too optimistic about what’s going to be happening in the world in the next two or three years, and maybe even longer. We have serious problems in the United States. You know, in 2002 we had an economic slowdown, 2008 was even worse because the debt was so much higher. The next time around the debt is going to be staggeringly higher. So, the problems are going to continue to get worse until somebody solves the basic underlying problem of too much spending and too much debt.
Lelde Smits: Could you elaborate on that Jim; If you believe problems are going to get worse because of too much spending and debt, what do you believe is the biggest risk to global growth in 2012?

Jim Rogers: Well definitely too much debt is, in a nutshell yes – I mean the biggest risk of course is the Central Bank in the US which keeps printing money. But they’re printing all that money as a result of the debt. So we have big problems of money printing, debt, too much consumption – be careful.

So far the solution being offered by governments around the world is to attack the debt problem by adding more debt.  To the common man in the streets this seems crazy, and it is.  As Mr. rogers points out, we are setting ourselves up for an even bigger crash in the future.

Lelde Smits: You recently returned from the States, how are folks there feeling about the economy?

Jim Rogers: I was surprised at how much optimism there is. Everybody still seems to think everything is still going to be OK. I guess they’ve been thinking that we’ve all been brought up that everything would be OK in next year or two, and it has been OK for the past 20 or 30 years. Unfortunately I think that’s false optimism and I would have been more impressed if I’d seen a lot of depressed people, but I see optimistic people.

As I travel around the country one of the most frequent comments I hear from my travel companions is, “There certainly isn’t a recession going on, look at all the people shopping and out in the restaurants.”  I certainly have to admit that there is a high level of optimism out there in America.  But the facts are the facts, we have a huge amount of debt piling up and a lot of people are suffering.  I fear there is a disconnect from the truth situation out there, leading people to fail to prepare properly.

Lelde Smits: So if everyone is optimistic, what concerns you about that state of American’s fiscal affairs?

Jim Rogers: Well the Central Bank, I mean the Central Bank controls monetary affairs but the Central Bank keeps buying government debt and the Congress keeps spending government money. So the combination of the Federal Government including the Central Bank, really scare me.

Scares me too.

Lelde Smits: But if the Central Bank isn’t fixing things, who is responsible for fixing this dilemma?

Jim Rogers: Well first of all, you could either abolish the Central Bank or put somebody in there who wouldn’t print money, or the Congress could just stop spending money. Unfortunately Lelde that’s not the way politicians work. They just worry about the next election, they want to get through the next election and they hope they can make everything all right until after the next election. So it’s Congress in the end, it’s the President in the end, but are they going to do something – no. They’re not going to do anything until there’s a serious crisis or semi-crisis.

See yesterday’s post on the top 12 trends for 2012.  We will have a crisis and the response from the government will most likely be less freedom and less economic liberty.  The political solutions will, at least in the beginning, make the problem worse.

Lelde Smits: Well what’s holding them back then if we have the threat of an imminent crisis, as you say?

Jim Rogers: It would horribly painful to do what’s necessary. The problem Lelde is that the measures that America needs and not just America, many countries but especially America needs, would cause huge pain for a while. But, Lelde, if we don’t take our pain now and we wait until the market forces the pain on us, then it’s going to be you know a systemic collapse.

It’s going to be very, very serious pain; you’re going to see riots in the street. You’re going to see serious, serious problems, maybe perhaps war even. It’s better to go ahead and take the pain now, while it would be terrible for two or three or four years, at least we’d get it behind us and start over.

Reminds of a scene from the Movie “Saw”…“Yes, there will be blood.”

Lelde Smits: OK, so we need to take the pain and we all know the way out of debt isn’t more debt. So what’s printing money going to fix and why is this even an option?

Jim Rogers: Printing money does nothing more than bide time. Throughout history governments have tried to debase their currency in the hope that they would somehow get better down the road, but it’s always gotten out of control. The debt has gotten higher, the money printing makes people feel better for a while but in the end its higher inflation, higher interest rates and then you have serious, serious problems.

Once inflation starts rising and gets out of control, it’s very hard to kill it. At this time we can still solve our problems, if you wait until inflation’s out of control then it’s very hard to solve your problems.

Jim Rogers on the 2012 elections

Lelde Smits: Turning to US politics now, and the US elections are coming up in November next year. Who are you endorsing Jim and why?

Jim Rogers: Well I don’t even want to get into who I’m endorsing and why because I mean after all, I’m just one voter and I would probably hurt somebody if I endorsed them. I mean in America, Gary Johnson and Ron Paul seem to understand the problems that are facing America. But I’m not in the business of endorsing political candidates – as far as I’m concerned Lelde, a pox on both of their houses.

Lelde Smits: Well if you won’t endorse a person, which policies do you favour?

Jim Rogers: Well, the only thing we can do is to cut spending with an axe – not with an axe, with a chainsaw. I mean we’ve got troops at over 100 countries around the world doing nothing but – the troops aren’t making enemies, but the presence of the American Military is making enemies. We’ve got to cut spending dramatically, we’ve got welfare programs; we’ve got entitlement programs in America that are just mind boggling. We really just have to take a chainsaw to spending of everything, across the board.

Lelde Smits: Obama just pulled troops out of Iraq, isn’t that a step in the right direction?

Jim Rogers: He pulled out most of the troops from Iraq; you know as usual, government propaganda is exactly that – government propaganda. There’re still a lot of contract people there that they’ve kept in Iraq, but yes that’s a step in the right direction. But again, we’ve had troops all over the world; it’s not doing us much good.

Lelde Smits: But Jim, can the budget be balanced by spending cuts alone. Shouldn’t policy makers also be looking at raising taxes?

Jim Rogers: Raising taxes doesn’t do any good Lelde, governments don’t create jobs. I mean have you ever seen a government create a new job? It’s people like your company that creates jobs. That’s the private sector where you create jobs. Taking money from the people who save and invest, and giving it to a bureaucrat, it’s going to give the bureaucrat a job and it’s going to give a few people jobs, but that’s not the way you solve the problems.

Lelde Smits: But as you mentioned Jim, even if we get new leaders, they’ll still be dealing with the same old debt situation. How confident are you that the US can even eventually get this debt situation under control?

Jim Rogers: Lelde, I’m not confident at all, I have absolutely no confidence at all that anything’s going to be done, even if somebody were elected. As I say, I think that the problems are so deep that when he started doing the right things, there would be staggering cries of pain and anguish. And then everybody would give up and try to go back to the old way. The only way it’s going to be solved Lelde, is a crisis or semi-crisis.

The problem is that our current political system is corrupt and dysfunctional.  It’s a problem of operating with a flawed economic philosophy (Keynesian economics, a fiat currency and a fractional reserve banking system) and the failed concept of the welfare state.  The system is incapable of resolving the problems that face us because they are inherently the cause of the problem.

“We have met the enemy and he is us.” – Pogo

Lelde Smits: OK let’s turn to Europe now, European affairs certainly haven’t left the headlines and continue to move markets. How effectively do you think EU leaders have addressed the region’s debt?

Jim Rogers: They’re not solving the problem either. At least they’re better than the US, they’re not printing so much money as we are in the US, at least they understand the problem they’re trying to cut the spending. But Lelde, if you look at the plan for any country in Europe, you’ll see they’re all going to have higher debt next year and higher and higher the year after that. Nobody in Europe yet is taking a chainsaw to their problems.

The spending cuts that need to be taken in Europe, just as in the United States, are politically painful.  This is why cutting them will be a last resort and significant cuts will only happen as the result of a crisis.

Lelde Smits: Now I know you are not the biggest fan of ratings agencies, but we have just seen a series of warnings and downgrades. So if Germany and France do lose their top-notch credit rating, how will the bailout funds be supported?

Jim Rogers: The solution to too much debt is not more debt, not more spending. The solution is to cut spending dramatically. All these countries should lose their credit ratings. It’s astonishing to me where these credit rating agencies have been? I mean we know that they’ve been basically wrong for 15 or 20 years about just about everything they’ve done. Lelde, please don’t pay – well you’ve got to because you’re a journalist, but I don’t pay any attention to those guys. I know they don’t know what they’re doing, why bother?

Lelde Smits: While on warnings Jim, the International Monetary Fund’s chief just said that the world faces a 1930s style Depression. Would you agree?

Jim Rogers: Of course, where’s she been? I mean, what’s wrong with her? Doesn’t she watch FNN? I mean for goodness sakes, if she could just know what’s going on in the world around her, she would have known that long before December of 2011.

Lelde Smits: So do you believe the eurozone and Euro currency can and will continue in its current form?

Jim Rogers: Well, that’s a very good question. I own the Euro; I’m having serious questions in my own head of what to do about the Euro. I don’t know – it certainly won’t continue in its current form in 10 years, maybe six or eight years. No, no that’s going to change dramatically. It conceivably can come out of all this stronger if they do the right things down the road. I own the Euro, I’m very worried about the Euro. I know there are going to be changes in Europe and in the Euro, but when and how, I just don’t know right now, but I do own it at the moment.

The Euro is probably good for now but, long term, it’s a gon’er.  Gold and silver are a better investment than the Euro going forward.

Lelde Smits: And how are we likely to see those developments play out on global markets?

Jim Rogers: Oh we’ve lost one decade in the West, as you probably know. I mean the American stock market is below where it was 10 or 12 years ago. So we’ve already lost one decade in the economy and in the markets, likewise in Europe. We’re gonna lose at least one more decade, maybe two or three. The Japanese have lost two decades so far, you know, the Japanese stock market is down 80 per cent, that’s 8-0 per cent from where it was 21 years ago. You have the same problems in the West; this is a long running festering problem until somebody faces reality.

Lelde Smits: Now as an investor based in Asia, how well do you believe the region will weather the economic storms brewing in the US and Europe?

Jim Rogers: Well, I’d rather be – I’ve moved to Asia, you know, here I am.

Lelde Smits: So you voted with your feet-

Jim Rogers: Yes I’ve voted with my feet. I’m just up the road from you , just up the airline from you, as you know. We’re here, this is where the future is, my children speak perfect Mandarin like natives. Their future is in Asia; therefore my future is in Asia. Asia’s going to suffer, don’t get me wrong. When the largest two economies in the world Europe and the US have problems, everybody’s going to suffer. Asia will suffer less than the developed world.

Lelde Smits: You say Asia will suffer, do you see signs this suffering has already begun?

Jim Rogers: Oh of course it has. If you look at China, China’s already got problems they have inflation. They’re doing their best to calm things down in China, wisely in my view, and then China’s been hit of course with the slowdown in America and Europe. So no, everybody in Asia is slowing down.

Lelde Smits: And what about Chinese property prices. The latest government data from 70 Chinese cities shows the average price of Chinese property has fallen for the second straight month. Do you believe Chinese property is in a bubble and are we witnessing the bust?

Jim Rogers: Some parts of the Chinese real estate market have been in a bubble. Certainly urban coastal real estate in China was in a bubble – that bubble has popped. How far down it has to go, I don’t have a clue. Probably a lot further because usually when bubbles pop, a lot of people get hurt. But it’s not like in the US where in the US, people are buying four or five houses with no job, no down-payment. You know, and then the banks were taking the mortgages and jigging them up even more. China didn’t have that kind of problem. You’re going to see real estate developers go bankrupt in China – no question about that. But it’s not going to be the end of the Chinese economy as it was in the US, the UK, Spain and a few other places.

Lelde Smits: OK Jim, so we’ve spoken about US and European debt, and a potential Chinese slowdown. How do you see global markets reacting in 2012?

Jim Rogers: Well I’m not optimistic for the most part about stock markets. I don’t own many stocks anywhere in the world. The only offset of the caveat for me is the fact that there is an election in the US, in Spain – sorry in France, a few other places. So whenever there are elections coming governments spend, spend, spend they throw money out the window to buy votes. So some people are going to be much better off in 2012. Is it enough to offset the world’s problems? I don’t think so, except in some sectors which will benefit.

So for myself, I’m short stocks around the world, I’m short American technology stocks, I’m short emerging market stocks and I’m short European stocks.

Lelde Smits: And what else are you buying Jim and why?

Jim Rogers: Well I own commodities, because if the world economy gets better Lelde, then commodities will do well because of the shortages. The lucky countries will continue to be lucky for a while. I own some currencies, which I mentioned, I’m worried about currency markets. I’m short stocks. I mentioned the things I’m short. So I anticipate problems in stock markets. If the world economy doesn’t get better, you’re not going to make money in stocks. But then central banks will print more money and when they print money Lelde, the thing to do is to own real assets.

Lelde Smits: Jim Rogers thanks so much for your insights. We’ll leave it there for now, and next take a closer look at your investments for 2012.

The general gist of the interview with Jim Rogers is that the economic future has some major challenges to overcome.  please take these into consideration when making your own financial plans.

Wishing you the best 2012!

photo credit: Wagner Machado Carlos Lemes

As we approach 2012 it’s good to consider what’s ahead.  Here at junksilveronline.com we like to take the period between Christmas and the New Year holiday to reflect on the past year and to plan for the year ahead.  this is a time for reflection, but it’s also a time for looking forward and planning for what lies ahead.  Of course, we can never know the future for sure, it’s more a matter of probabilities than certainties, but a key component of forecasting and planning for the future is the insight and opinion of others who study the markets and society.

Some educated insight can prove very valuable to your goal setting and planning for 2012.  For the next couple days we are going to highlight some forecasts for 2012 from some studied and respected experts.

Below, with commentary, are the primary trends as predicted by noted “trend tracker” and specialist Gerald Celente.  You can read the original article here…Top 12 trends for 2012 – Gerald Celente

Hold onto your hat, your wallet, and your wits.

After a tumultuous 2011 in which many of the trends we had forecast became headline news around the world, we are now forewarning of an even more tumultuous year to come.

While it would give us great pleasure to forecast a 2012 of joy and prosperity – all brought about by the wisdom and benevolence of our fearless leaders – since we are not running for office or looking to profit by gulling the people, we tell it as we see it in our 12 Top Trends 2012.

One megatrend looms on the near horizon. And we forecast that when it strikes, it will be a shock felt around the world. Hyperbole it’s not! Our research has revealed that at the very highest levels of government this megatrend has been seriously discussed. Read on:

1. Economic Martial Law: Given the current economic and geopolitical conditions, the central banks and world governments already have plans in place to declare economic martial law … with the possibility of military martial law to follow.

What does this mean?  Capital controls, limited access to your money and government takeover/confiscation of your retirement accounts?  All this and more may be in the future.  When you do the math on the massive debt loads in the United States, Europe and Japan it’s obvious we can’t kick the can down the road forever.

2. Battlefield America: With a stroke of the Presidential pen, language was removed from an earlier version of the National Defense Authorization Act, granting the President authority to act as judge, jury and executioner. Citizens, welcome to “Battlefield America.”

With the passage of the NDAA and the soon to be passed SOPA (both of which signify the effective end of the US Constitution) the politicians have paved the way for more loss of freedom and violence in the streets.

3. Invasion of the Occtupy: 15 years ago, Gerald Celente predicted in his book Trends 2000 that prolonged protests would hit Wall Street in the early years of the new millennium and would spread nationwide. The “Occtupy” is now upon us, and it is like nothing history has ever witnessed.

4. Climax Time: The financial house of cards is collapsing, and in 2012 many of the long-simmering socioeconomic and geopolitical trends that Celente has accurately forecast will come to a climax. Some will arrive with a big bang and others less dramatically … but no less consequentially. Are you prepared? And what’s next for the world?

There are economic forces at work that may make 2012 the year of the climax, and the collapse, but more likely it will be 2013 and beyond.  What does this mean?  We still have some time to prepare for the tough times ahead.

5. Technocrat Takeover: “Democracy is Dead; Long Live the Technocrat!” A pair of lightning-quick financial coup d’états in Greece and Italy have installed two unelected figures as head of state. No one yet in the mainstream media is calling this merger of state and corporate powers by its proper name: Fascism, nor are they calling these “technocrats” by their proper name: Bankers! Can a rudderless ship be saved because technocrat is at the helm?

6. Repatriate! Repatriate!: It took a small, but financially and politically powerful group to sell the world on globalization, and it will take a large, committed and coordinated citizens’ movement to “un-sell” it. “Repatriate! Repatriate!” will pit the creative instincts of a multitude of individuals against the repressive monopoly of the multinationals.

7. Secession Obsession: Winds of political change are blowing from Tunisia to Russia and everywhere in between, opening a window of opportunity through which previously unimaginable political options may now be considered: radical decentralization, Internet-based direct democracy, secession, and even the peaceful dissolution of nations, offering the possibility for a new world “disorder.”

How long will the United States exist in its present format/  Another 25-30 years or less than a decade.  If the events of this past year have taught us anything it’s that radical change can happen very fast.

8. Safe Havens: As the signs of imminent economic and social collapse become more pronounced, legions of New Millennium survivalists are, or will be, thinking about looking for methods and ways to escape the resulting turmoil. Those “on-trend” have already taken measure to implement Gerald Celente’s 3 G’s: Gold, Guns and a Getaway plan. Where to go? What to do? Top Trends 2012 will guide the way.

9. Big Brother Internet: The coming year will be the beginning of the end of Internet Freedom: A battle between the governments and the people. Governments will propose legislation for a new “authentication technology,” requiring Internet users to present the equivalent of a driver’s license and/or bill of health to navigate cyberspace. For the general population it will represent yet another curtailing of freedom and level of governmental control.

This is a sad although predictable development.  After all, to impose tyranny one can’t have an outlet for opposing ideas or for the truth to get out.  It will be interesting to see how this plays out.

10. Direct vs. Faux Democracy: In every corner of the world, a restive populace has made it clear that it’s disgusted with “politics as usual” and is looking for change. Government, in all its forms – democracy, autocracy, monarchy, socialism, communism – just isn’’t working. The only viable solution is to take the vote out of the hands of party politicians and institute Direct Democracy. If the Swiss can do it, why can’t anyone else?

11. Alternative Energy 2012: Even under the cloud of Fukushima, the harnessing of nuclear power is being reinvigorated by a fuel that is significantly safer than uranium and by the introduction of small, modular, portable reactors that reduce costs and construction time. In addition, there are dozens of projects underway that explore the possibility of creating cleaner, competitively priced liquid fuels distilled from natural sources. Plan to start saying goodbye to conventional liquid fuels!

12. Going Out in Style: In the bleak terrain of 2012 and beyond, “Affordable sophistication” will direct and inspire products, fashion, music, the fine arts and entertainment at all levels. US businesses would be wise to wake up and tap into the dormant desire for old time quality and the America that was.

Plan and prepare accordingly. Buy Silver! Buy Gold!

photo credit: kevin dooley

One of the more frequent silver coins purchased for investment and collecting purposes is the silver dime.  Because dimes (1/10th of a dollar for those who don’t know what a dime is) are the smallest and thinnest US coin they tend to be the least expensive way to dip your toe into the silver market.

And silver dimes make great gifts not only for Christmas, but year round.  Heck rolls of silver dimes are a great gift you can give yourself…Own Silver dimes here.

Silver dimes are cheap, relative to other silver coins, so if you’re unsure about investing in silver this might be the right coin for you.

There have been six major dime designs since the dime was first authorized in 1792.  Up until US coinage was debased in 1965 dimes have always been composed of roughly 90% silver, 10% copper, just as are all junk silver coins.  For investment purposes which dime you choose to buy doesn’t really make a difference, your buying for the silver and not for the coin.  If your intending to pick up some dimes for a gift however, it’s pretty cool to choose something beautiful and historic as well as valuable.

Here are the six dimes that have been issued by the United States:

Disme – This coin was authorized in 1792 but never circulated.  The first dime produced for public circulation was the Draped Bust dime first minted in 1796.

Draped Bust Dime- Produced between 1796 and 1807  these are rare and expensive dimes more suited to collectors than as an investment in physical silver.  Because they are rare they can be a great investment, not for their silver value but for their value as a numismatic item.

Seated Liberty Dime – minted between 1837 and 1891 the Seated Liberty dime makes a great gift, especially because it is older and rarer than many of the more commonly found dimes.

Barber Dime – Named for its designer, Charles Barber, and not for the occupation.  These dimes were minted between 1879 and 1917.  They were replaced by the Mercury dime.

Mercury Dime – The official name for this dime is the “Winged Liberty” dime because the face of the coin depicts  the goddess Liberty, not the Roman god Mercury as is commonly assumed.  Minted between 1916 and 1945 this is a 90% silver, 10% copper coin that is considered by many to be the most beautiful US coin ever issued. This was replaced in 1945 by the Roosevelt dime.

Roosevelt Dime – Issued in 1945 to commemorate FDR this dime has been in circulation up to the present day.  The only major change to this coin was the change in the coins composition from 90% silver, 10% copper to 91.67% copper and 8.33% Nickel…basically from a coin that had value to a worthless coin.

Silver dimes, because of their small size and value, are best bought by the roll if you intend to use them as a store of value.

Invest in these beautiful coins, invest in silver.

Silver and Gold, these are two things that come immediately to mind when people think about Christmas.  It’s also a great song by the late, great Burl Ives…

Silver Coin Christmas Ideas

Thinking about giving silver coins for Christmas?  Here are some great Christmas gift ideas:

Morgan Silver Dollars – My personal favorite, this is a beautiful silver dollar coin minted between 1878 and 1904, with a final minting in 1921.  Like all US silver coinage these are composed of 90% silver and 10% copper, which makes them a great way to invest in silver and preserve wealth in addition to being a thoughtful gift. Buy Morgan Silver Dollars Here.

Peace Dollars – The Peace Silver Dollar coins were minted between 1921 and 1928 and in 1934 and 1935.  They are called peace dollars because they were meant to memorialize the peace that followed the end of World War One.  the peace may not have lasted but the coins still hold their beauty and value. Buy Peace Silver Dollars Here.

Franklin Half Dollar Coin – Minted from 1948 to 1963 the Franklin Half Dollar is a 90% silver coin depicting Benjamin Franklin on one side and the Liberty Bell on the other.  This is a beautiful silver coin that is relatively little known today. Buy Franklin Half Dollars Here.

Silver Eagle Coin – Silver Eagles are not junk silver coins, they are the official silver bullion coins of the United States.  Unlike junk silver coins, which are 90% silver, silver eagle coins are 99.9% silver.  Despite having a nominal value of $1 the coin is significantly more valuable..worth the price of an ounce of silver and significantly larger than the older dollar coins.  Silver eagles were never intended to circulate in normal everyday use.  No history here, but a good introduction to silver investing and holding.  Buy Silver Eagles Here..

The last circulated silver dollar coin minted by the United States was the Peace Silver dollar, which was minted between 1921 and 1928, with additional minting in 1934 and 1935.

Like all US silver dollar coins, Peace Silver Dollars are 90% silver, 10% copper

Peace Silver dollars were produced in response to the Pittman Act, which required the US Mint to produce millions of silver coins to replace older Morgan Silver dollars that were being melted down into bullion to support Great Britain during the First World War.

Peace dollars are so named because the design of the coin was meant to memorialize the peace after World War One.

Peace silver dollars make a great gift, imparting a sense of history while teaching the value of real hard money.  You can own peace silver dollars here…Silver Dollar Coins.

Silver coins are a great gifts for Christmas because they represent honest money and preserve wealth in an age of valueless paper currency and politicaland financial duplicity.  That the practical reason.  The impractical reason to give silver coins as gifts is that they impart a sense of history, beauty and they possess the power to take us back to happier, more peaceful times.

The Morgan Silver Dollar is for me the most beautiful and historically significant silver coin ever produced by the United States.  Yes, it is a 90% silver coin and technically qualifies as junk silver, but because they were produced from 1878 through 1904, with a one off minting in 1921, they also qualify as an historical coin.

You can find Morgan Silver Dollar Coins here.

Morgan Silver Dollars are plentiful and easy to find.  As for costs, they run the gamut from junk prices (the value of the silver + a small commission) up through $1000′s per coin for rare and numisatic Morgan’s.

This Christmas give a gift that will hold it’s value long after the holidays are over.  Having some silver coinage in your possession is always a good idea, in both prosperus and tough times.

Morgan Silver Dollars can be purchased at any decent coin store, at Amazon.com or Ebay.