Gold gets the headlines

Years ago, there used to be a sign in the production department at Krause Publications.

It said something to the effect that behind every overnight success is 15 years of hard work.

Of course it’s true, but what grabs the headlines and fires the imagination are the lottery winners and lottery-like happenstances that make people wealthy beyond their wildest dreams, not the legions of people who go to work everyday and systematically build financial success for themselves and their families.

My point?

In today’s email I found examples of both.

For the headline followers, a group in which I have to place myself, a reader sent me this email:

“Interesting article in Bloomberg today. Feds move tanks precious metals! If true maybe the silver coins I need for my collection will come down in prices that I can afford!?”

We’re in trouble if all collecting decisions related to gold and silver coinage are rooted in what the Federal Reserve will do, but when many of us go online to check bullion prices every day, isn't this the logical outcome?

Then there is the 15-years-of-hard work side of numismatic life.

Tony Swicer, president of the Palm Beach Coin Club in Florida, sent me news that the club’s membership at the end of 2012 beat the 2011 total.

There are 358 current members compared to 329 at the end of 2011.

That’s something to brag about. It’s terribly important for the future of numismatics that collector numbers increase, but news of this kind simply does not appear at the top of a web page or on Page 1 of Numismatic News. It will go into the Club section.

Congratulations to the club and to Swicer.

Now back to the headlines:

Even though in 15 years’ time, today’s gold price will be long forgotten, I see from the Kitco site that gold is $1,651, down over $20 from yesterday’s close.

Buzz blogger Dave Harper is editor of the weekly newspaper "Numismatic News."