By way of NFTRH subscriber MetalAugmentor, a reputable and hard working mining stock fundamental research service to which I also subscribe, comes this thread talking about an entity called Turd Ferguson.

Turd is an offshoot of Zero Hedge, is apparently a really popular blogger among gold bugs and is cooking up plans to do battle with the 'cartel'. 'Silverax' also highlights Jim Sinclair and his own Golden Idea on how to break the cartel. When I read something like "what we need is Maximus, the financial gladiator" I just cringe.

Gold is going where it is going, and it is anchoring value in a time of devaluation. There is no need for war mentality. There is only a need to keep perspective through ongoing events and the dynamic cycles in which they play out (I sound like an old fart, I know).

Why do people need to join clubs, be part of armies and do battle? There will be no such talk of financial gladiators during gold's next up cycle. There will be talk of gold going to $5,000 an oz. and beyond. Get on board the golden express elevator while you can still save yourself! There will be talk of the death of the dollar, euro and various other debt paper. There will be fear and greed in the air all at once.

In short, there will be triumphant crowing from the gold 'community' right up until the next top and into an impending cycle of whining, crying and writhing in pain at which point what, the financial gladiator saves them all again? Or maybe Turd and his hedge fund adviser buddy slay the cartel for good?

Why not save the emotional ups and downs, put that energy into day to day life and understand that we are going to get where we are going despite pathetic attempts at manipulation of the macro by the 'cartel'?

Gold is a tool that Central Banks, big financial institutions and various authorities use to temporarily manipulate the macro. Most recently, the actual manipulation was performed on Treasury yield relationships, which in turn hurt gold, which in turn helped alter the macro ("And contrary-wise; what it is it wouldn't be, and what it wouldn't be it would. You see?" --Alice). It's just business, perverted and way out on a limb though it is.

Don't personalize it, or you risk becoming angry and biased. Anger and bias promote wrong decisions. The gold 'community', with its various leaders and caricatures is more like a cult than anything, and this hurts the 'community's' supposed effort to bring the monetary metal into the mainstream.