Who uses only ETFs for their Gold?

[Roy]

For those holding the HB PP, who uses ETFs for the whole 25%?  If so, which ETFs do you hold?  Do you have any concerns about holding only ETFs vice physical Gold?

[Pkg Man]

For those holding the HB PP, who uses ETFs for the whole 25%?  If so, which ETFs do you hold?  Do you have any concerns about holding only ETFs vice physical Gold?

Yes, which is why I only hold about 10% in gold ETFs.

[MediumTex]

I would strongly recommend that all PP investors hold at least a small amount of real gold. 

The experience of owning real gold is unique and not comparable to owning an ETF.

The allure of gold is hard to grasp through an ETF.  When you hold a gold coin in your hand, it represents something real, rather than one more abstraction as part of a more or less completely abstract portfolio.

This comment doesn't speak to the issue of ETF safety, but rather to the matter of understanding the role of gold in the portfolio firsthand.

It's surprising how many people have never seen or held a gold coin in their hands.  It's an interesting experience.  The first response is sort of like "this is it--a shiny piece of metal?"  Over time, however, the historical significance and peculiar attraction of gold to humans begins to sink in, and then it becomes more like the briefcase in "Pulp Fiction."

[Jan Van]

It's pretty much split between iau and sgol currently. Don't have any real gold yet, mainly because i've been spoiled by sites like Amazon where I can buy anything I want with "1-click". Except gold coins. So sites like ajpm that do sell them oftentimes feel too difficult to me, with mailing checks and such...

Guess this doesn't count, MediumTex? http://www.amazon.com/2008-Krugerrand-O ... 738&sr=8-2  ;D

<edit>
Does something like this have extra value above the gold spot price? http://catalog.usmint.gov/webapp/wcs/st ... y_rn=10118

[smurff]

It's pretty much split between iau and sgol currently. Don't have any real gold yet, mainly because i've been spoiled by sites like Amazon where I can buy anything I want with "1-click". Except gold coins. So sites like ajpm that do sell them oftentimes feel too difficult to me, with mailing checks and such...

There are coin/gold/silver companies online which accept credit/debit cards for sales of physical gold and silver:  mintproducts.com is one of them.  They're reliable, have non-rip-off prices, a range of bullion and non-bullion coins (they even have ancient coins from Rome, which has nothing to do with the PP) and reasonable shipping/insurance charges.  They're in New Hampshire.  No, I don't work for them.

[Jan Van]

Thanks smurff. I'll check it out. At first glance their prices seem higher than for example bulliondirect.com...

[Coffee]

It's surprising how many people have never seen or held a gold coin in their hands.  It's an interesting experience.  The first response is sort of like "this is it--a shiny piece of metal?"  Over time, however, the historical significance and peculiar attraction of gold to humans begins to sink in, and then it becomes more like the briefcase in "Pulp Fiction."

Seriously-- I read somewhere that the glowing from the case wasn't gold, but rather Marcus's soul. (Some backstory that Tarantino gave).
Creepy, eh?

[MediumTex]

It's surprising how many people have never seen or held a gold coin in their hands.  It's an interesting experience.  The first response is sort of like "this is it--a shiny piece of metal?"  Over time, however, the historical significance and peculiar attraction of gold to humans begins to sink in, and then it becomes more like the briefcase in "Pulp Fiction."

Seriously-- I read somewhere that the glowing from the case wasn't gold, but rather Marcus's soul. (Some backstory that Tarantino gave).
Creepy, eh?

Something made Tim Roth want to steal it in the restaurant (in addition to Brad and his gang earlier).  I don't know if a "briefcase full of soul" would be enough to motivate such risk taking.

[Coffee]

http://www.snopes.com/movies/films/pulp.asp

[MediumTex]

http://www.snopes.com/movies/films/pulp.asp

Marcellus Wallace's soul would not be beautiful and I do not believe it would have had a yellow glow.

What was in the briefcase would have to be both instantly recognizable to a common street thief and also be a bit overwhelming to view.  Some configuration of gold would meet this criteria.

I am inclined to think that it wasn't a large amount of gold (since Samuel L. Jackson carries the briefcase without it appearing to be heavy).  This theory suggests that perhaps it was some kind of small gold statue or elaborate piece of jewelry.

Tim Roth's dumb girlfriend even recognized it.  Somehow I don't think she would have been that interested in a briefcase full of soul.

We know that something was in the briefcase.  I think that gold is the best explanation.  The fact that it had a yellow glow was just a bit of artistic license to create a more dramatic effect.

Even if Quentin Tarantino came out and said it wasn't gold, I believe he would still be constrained by the internal logic of his own story.

I would love to hear Tim Roth describe what he was mentally visualizing as he was shooting the scene in the restaurant.  It's really his facial expression that tells us more about what's in the briefcase than the yellow glow.

[Coffee]

Found this:

What's a MacGuffin? In a 1939 lecture at Columbia University, Alfred Hitchcock spoke of the MacGuffin. Crediting it to his friend Angus MacPhail, Hitchcock said it originated in the following exchange:

Two Scotsmen are riding in a train. One asks the other what is contained in a package in the overhead luggage compartment.
"It's a MacGuffin."
"What's a MacGuffin?"
"A device for hunting tigers in Scotland."
"But there are no tigers in Scotland."
"Well, then, it's not a MacGuffin, is it?"

Simply put, a MacGuffin is a plot device. It can be anything--secret spy papers, a mysterious briefcase, etc.--but its only purpose is to set the story in motion. Once that's accomplished, the MacGuffin usually become relatively unimportant. In the case of Pulp Fiction, chronologically, pretty much everything that happens with Butch and Marcellus (except for when they first make arrangements for the boxing match) occurs after the case is returned. In the book Tarantino A to Zed, Tarantino admits there is no official explanation for the briefcase contents, and that it was simply written into the screenplay as an intriguing MacGuffin. He also says he saw the similarity between his briefcase and the one from Kiss Me Deadly, but not until after all the writing was done.

In an April 1995 Playboy interview, Samuel L Jackson, who played Jules, offered his perspective:

John (Travolta) did ask Quentin exactly what was supposed to be inside and Quentin said, "Whatever you want it to be."

So I assumed it was something that, when people looked at it, seemed like the most beautiful thing they had ever seen or their greatest desire. When I looked inside, between scenes, I saw two lights and some batteries. What I would have wanted to see are the next ten films I'm going to do and hope they're all as good as Pulp Fiction.

So, unless I've missed an interview wherein Tarantino spilled the beans (entirely possible--me missing it, not him talking about it, and if I did then give me the flaming I deserve), what's in there is pretty much open to your imagination. As Humphrey Bogart's character said in Maltese Falcon (another classic MacGuffin, by the way), "It's the stuff that dreams are made of."

In the meantime, learn from Mia and don't snort heroin that isn't yours.