bob@cadovax.UUCP (Bob "Kat" Kaplan) (08/09/85)
I heard on the radio the other day that the United States is going to start producing gold coins so investors in gold won't have to feel guilty about supporting the institutionalized racism of South Africa by buying Krugeraands. Unfortunately, the radio station failed to mention where the gold for these coins is coming from. I was under the impression that something like 90% of the world's gold is mined in South Africa. With that in mind, it seems fairly likely that those who buy the coins will be supporting racism just as much as if they had bought Krugeraands. I'm quitting my job tomorrow and will be leaving the net, so I won't be around to read any ensuing discussion about this, but if anyone is thinking about buying American gold coins, you might want to find out where the gold is coming from. -- Bob Kaplan "No gift is too great for my people."
riddle@im4u.UUCP (08/12/85)
Good point that buying South African gold in any form should be avoided, but
it certainly isn't true that all the gold on the world market comes from
South Africa. Canada, Mexico and India (among other countries) have all
been producing gold collectors' coins from apartheid-free sources for some
time now, if anyone is interested.
--- Prentiss Riddle ("Aprendiz de todo, maestro de nada.")
--- {ihnp4,harvard,seismo,gatech}!ut-sally!riddle riddle@ut-sally.UUCP
--- riddle@ut-sally.ARPA, riddle%zotz@ut-sally, riddle%im4u@ut-sallytw8023@pyuxii.UUCP (T Wheeler) (08/13/85)
Geez, Kaplan, where ya been. The US has been minting gold coins for several years now. The gold comes from mines in this country and from the reserves in Kentucky. You want to buy gold coins? Send a letter to the Mint and they will send you a list of gold coins available for purchase. They can also be picked up through the larger coin dealers. Don't you remember the Olympics when gold coins were hawked through the papers and billboards? None of the gold used is from SA. When you say 90% of the worlds gold comes from SA, it is not quite so. Yes, they do produce a lot, but, we also still have operating mines and so does the Soviets. Brazil is also a large producer. You could also buy Maple Leafs from Canada featuring gold from Canada. Krugerands were popular only because they were first on the market in that form and they had a good PR department. T. C. Wheeler
csanders@ucbvax.ARPA (Craig S. Anderson) (08/15/85)
The second-largest producer of gold in the world is the Soviet Union, another nation that has a great respect for human rights. Much, if not all of the gold mining is done by political prisoners under slave labor conditions. At least the South Africans get paid and have a union. I don't see why we need an American gold coin anyway. Anyone can get a Canadian gold coin for a small premium. -Craig Anderson csanders@ucbvax.UUCP csanders@ucbvax.Berkely.EDU
gene@batman.UUCP (Gene Mutschler) (08/20/85)
> I was under the impression that something > like 90% of the world's gold is mined in South Africa. > > With that in mind, it seems fairly likely that those who buy the coins > will be supporting racism just as much as if they had bought Krugeraands. But that's not the point--the whole boycott is just an exercise in Feeling Good. When you're a liberal, that's the important thing. -- Gene Mutschler {ihnp4 seismo ctvax}!ut-sally!batman!gene Burroughs Corp. Austin Research Center cmp.barc@utexas-20.ARPA (512) 258-2495