Silver has been on fire for the last three years – substantially outperforming its spotlight-grabbing cousin, gold.

Because we believe this bull run is far from over, we advise investors to always maintain exposure to the precious metals markets. But the question every investor faces in a bull market is: Do I buy now, anticipating prices will continue higher – and chance getting clobbered if a correction arrives? Or do I wait for a pullback and possibly miss out on big gains?

There’s risk either way.

But we suggest using temporary price declines to steadily accumulate the best silver stocks and your preferred form of bullion. Looking back, after this bull market has finally run its course, we think gold and silver will have amply rewarded those who bought smart, had meaningful exposure, and stayed the course.

There are numerous factors that influence the direction of silver prices, but there are two key trends regarding supply and demand that are critical to understand.

The first is industrial use. Demand from a number of industries that use silver has been flat or falling. Household demand for silver like cutlery, flatware, and candlesticks hasn’t risen in ten years. Jewelry fabrication is up but a blip. With the shift to digital photography and image storing, use in photographic film processing continues to fall. And yet, total demand from industrial users keeps climbing.

So what’s driving industrial demand?

Since 1999, consumption in electronics has increased 120%. Silver use in solar panels began in 2000, and usage is up 640% since. Silver was first used in biocides (antibacterial agents) in 2002 and, while still a small percentage of total silver use, it has grown six-fold. Taken together, these three industrial uses of silver are consuming about half of all the silver mined each year!

Furthermore, the Silver Institute forecasts that total industrial use of silver will rise by 36% over the next five years, to 666 million troy ounces/year. That’s a lot of silver, meaning this portion of demand isn’t letting up anytime soon.

To put it another way, ten years ago, jewelry and silverware consumed twice as much silver as electronics applications. Today, electronics applications consume much more silver than jewelry and silverware. The point is not only that the number of industrial uses for silver is growing, but also that the demand within each of those usage categories is rising as well. These increasing sources of demand are now more likely to keep a floor under the silver price in the future.

The second issue is mine supply. Silver mine production has been increasing over the past decade, largely due to rising prices, allowing companies to ramp up production and bring more metal to the market. In fact, global mine production is up 33% since 1999.

But despite miners digging up more and more silver, production alone can’t meet global demand, and the gap has to be filled by scrap silver coming to market.

But there’s a catch with scrap. Traditional sources of old silver scrap are depleting. Meanwhile, the new industrial sources of future silver scrap do not lend themselves to recycling as easily as, say, silverware. While scrap metal comprises about 20% of silver’s total supply, many of these new applications are difficult to reclaim. Some applications contain such small amounts that they’re uneconomic to recapture, such as many biocidal and nanotechnology applications. With others it’ll be a long wait. Solar panels, for example, have a 20- to 30-year life. Still others are waiting for more effective recovery programs; more than half of all silver in cell phones, TVs, computers and other electronics, for instance, still ends up in landfills.

In other words, a growing portion of the silver that’s consumed today won’t be returning to the market anytime soon. And that may be one very good reason why the bull market in silver won’t be ending anytime soon.

Wayne Madsen was recently in Tripoli so he is reporting on what he saw in Tripoli .Life is normal in Tripoli he says ….. Obama will send 10,000 Troops home from Afghanistan then send 50,000 to Libya! He promises to get all the troops home by 2012… the day after he’s re-elected, right!?!If Obama sends troops to Libya and the American people do not up rise he will be considered a dictator. Congress has already voted against the war in Libya 295 to 123. They have only agreed to funding NATO. If that happens the Patriot Act could go into full effect. police state! Although it is almost already a police country. 1 out of 35 American adults are in prison on parole or on probation, that is 1 out of 35 that have lost their constitutional right to bare arms against a tyrannical govt

Last week’s dramatic decision by the US administration to strongarm the IEA into releasing strategic petroleum reserves (of which the US would account for 30 million barrels, or half of the total), is nothing but yet another example of the hobbled and incredibly short-sighted thinking that permeates every corner of the Obama administration. Because as the WSJ reports, “the move by the U.S. and its allies to release strategic reserves of oil could provide a much-needed shot in the arm for the U.S. economy, but risks inflicting lasting damage on the already tense relationship between oil producers and consumers.” The move comes on the heels of the dramatic collapse in OPEC talks in Vienna two weeks ago when Saudi Arabia was effectively kicked out of the cartel, further confirmed by reports that the IEA consulted with Saudi (and China and India) in advance of its decision (more later). Additionally, “OPEC and the European Union are due to hold an energy summit in Vienna Monday that will be the first official meeting of producers and consumers since the IEA’s move, and will provide a platform for OPEC members to express their disquiet over the stocks’ release. However, OPEC’s biggest player, Saudi Arabia, won’t be present.” Make that former player, in an organization now headed by the previously #2 producer, Iran (which just happens is not all that pro-US). The biggest threat, however, is that in direct retaliation against the IEA’s cartel-like decision, which comes at the expense of the remaining OPEC countries, is that as Zero Hedge suspected, the next step will be a more than proportionate cut in crude production by OPEC: “Some analysts speculated that OPEC could respond to the IEA release by cutting output to offset the increased supply.” What happens next is complete Nash equilibrium collapse, with a high possibility of a 1973-type OPEC oil embargoannouncement in the immediate future.

“Going ahead with an increase would cut into revenue, said Christof Ruehl, chief economist of BP PLC. But cutting production to offset the release, he said, “would be seen as hostile by IEA members” and “could lead to a war of attrition, at least as expensive,” in which OPEC cuts production and the IEA keeps releasing stocks to make up for the shortage.” The winner of all this, is of course, China, which will gladly benefit from ongoing blue light specials courtesy of the US Strtategic Petroleum Reserve to build up its own reserve holdings, as the rest of the world squabbles over a US-dominated status quo whose time has now officially passed. And just as therare earth metal price spike in recent weeks demonstrates what happens when China is the marginal anything in any supply chain, one can be certain that the price of Crude will be far, far higher several years from now.

And speaking of Iran, its oil ministry SHANA wasted no time in firing the retaliating round against the IEA’s decision, accusing the US of acting unilaterally and purely for the benefit of Obama’s reelection campaign, warning that the drop in oil prices won’t persist:

Iranian governor for OPEC Mohammad Ali Khtatibi says International Energy Agency (IEA) decision to draw oil from its emergency reserves implies intervention in the ordinary function of the oil market.

Speaking to Shana, Mr. Khatibi said that the trend of falling oil prices would not be sustainable.

‘Following the failure to bring down the prices at 159th ministerial meeting of OPEC in June 8, the United States of America and Europe are using all the means to push oil prices lower, Iranian governor for OPEC said.

Khatibi noted that IEA’s initiative to release oil from strategic petroleum reserves would followed by artificial falling of oil prices but those countries believing in open markets showed they are not genuine in their believes.

According to Khatibi recent days’ developments in oil market is not the result of issues relating to supply and demand or market needs but political pressures by the United States drives the initiative.

‘The United States government plans to influence the results of the upcoming presidential elections of the country by putting pressure on oil prices’ top Iranian oil official said.

Khatibi pointed out that developed countries initiative to draw oil from strategic petroleum reserves is risky because they cannot continue the move in the long term.

He added: these reserves are being held for emergency situations so the consuming countries of the International Energy Agency will have no other choice except to replenish the reserves for further use.

Indeed, if Obama’s reelection campaign is such an emergency that it requires tapping the SPR, what will happen when there is a real emergency: such as a repeat of the 1973 OPEC embargo, which set the stage for Volcker’s last minute and very painful intervention to prevent the US economy from tailspinning into an inflationary supernova?

And just to make sure things get even more polarized, Dow Jones reports that the “International Energy Agency consulted Saudi Arabia, China and India before it authorized the release of some of its emergency reserves, the agency’s executive director said Sunday.”

“They understand, and they appreciate the action,” Nobuo Tanaka said on the sidelines of the second Global Think Tank Summit in Beijing.

The release of some of IEA’s strategic stockpiles is meant only to fill the gap in supply until higher crude volumes from Saudi Arabia reach the global market, he added.

Oddly enough, the leadership at the IEA is just as clueless as that of the US:

Separately, Tanaka said he asked China once again to join the IEA on Saturday. Although there hasn’t been any official response, Tanaka said he was encouraged by China’s recent statement publicly welcoming the IEA’s strategic stockpiles release.

Of course they welcome it you idiot, because they will be buying everything your member countries have to sell, and thanks to your stupidity, at a welcome discount. And why the hell would China want to join the IEA when it gets all the benefits of participation, without any of the obligations of being a member (i.e., adhering to your retarded politically-motivated agenda).

Good luck buying it back at the same price when OPEC fires its own warning shot and announces it is reducing crude output for all remaining OPEC countries (ex. Saudi) by 10-15%. And yes, Goldman will promptly move it Brent sell recommendation to a buy, within hours of said announcement.

Are you familiar with Robert Kiyosaki? He is best known for the “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” series of books. Over 26 million books authored by Kiyosaki have been sold and he is recognized as a financial expert by millions of people across the globe. Well, guess what? Even Robert Kiyosaki is warning that an economic collapse is coming. In fact, Kiyosaki and his team of financial experts are encouraging Americans to stock up on food, guns and precious metals. This is yet another sign of just how close we are to the total collapse of the U.S. Economy. Kiyosaki, who once co-authored a book with Donald Trump entitled “Why We Want You To Be Rich” is now a full-fledged prepper. As even more prominent Americans start warning that an “economic collapse” is coming do you think that the American people will finally wake up and start paying attention?

The statements that Robert Kiyosaki makes in the video posted below are absolutely jaw-dropping. Once upon a time he was all about teaching people how they could get rich, but now he is talking about storing food, buying guns, investing in precious metals and preparing for the coming crash.

The following are 11 of the best Kiyosaki “sound bites” from the video below….

#1 “when the economy crashes as we predict”

#2 “the crowds come rushing in to buy gold and silver”

#3 “we could either go into a depression or we go to hyperinflation”

#4 “or we could also go to war”

#5 “buy a gun”

#6 “I’m preparing”

#7 “I’m prepared for the worst”

#8 “so come to my house and I’m armed and dangerous and I’ll welcome you”

#9 “we have food, we have water, we have guns, gold and silver, and cash”

#10 “the credit card system shuts down, the world shuts down”

#11 “the supermarkets have less than 3 days supply”

If you have not seen this video yet, it is definitely worth the 8 minutes that it takes to watch it. Robert Kiyosaki seems to be extremely alarmed about the future of the U.S. economy….

It certainly seems as though the entire financial culture in America is changing.

Once upon a time everyone wanted to know how to get rich.

Now everyone wants to know how to survive the collapse that is coming.

As I have written about previously, even people like Tony Robbins and Donald Trump are warning that an economic collapse is coming.

Economic pessimism is seemingly everywhere and almost every recent survey indicates that the American people are losing faith in the U.S. economy.

For example, in a recent article I noted that 48 percent of Americans believe that it is likely thatanother great Depression will begin within the next 12 months.

According to Gallup, the percentage of Americans that lack confidence in U.S. banks is now at an all-time high of 36%. Back in 2007, just 14% of Americans lacked confidence in U.S. banks.

In order for society to function correctly, people need to be able to trust each other and they need to be able to trust the major institutions that hold society together.

Once confidence in our major societal institutions is gone, it is going to be incredibly difficult to get it back.

Sadly, the reality is that many of our major financial institutions have been untrustworthy for a very long time. It is just that the American people are only just now starting to wake up to that fact.

For example, the Federal Reserve has been at the heart of our economic problems for decades but most Americans have not realized it.

But now that is starting to change. According to one recent poll, only 30% of Americans currently view Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke favorably.

The American people are becoming increasingly dissatisfied with an economic system where the vast majority of the rewards flow to Wall Street, the big banks, the biggest corporations and the ultra-wealthy.

According to the Washington Post, the top 0.1% of all income earners in the United States took home 2.6% of the nation’s earnings in 1975. By 2008, the top 0.1% were taking home 10.4% of the nation’s earnings.

The Washington Post also says that after adjusting for inflation, the average income of the top 0.1% of all Americans jumped by 385 percent between 1970 and 2008 while the average income for the bottom 90 percent of all Americans actually fell by one percent.

The sad truth is that income inequality in the United States has become a major problem. A very small sliver of the population is reaping almost all of the rewards and the middle class is being ripped to shreds. Conservatives, liberals, Democrats, Republicans and libertarians should all be alarmed by this.

Meanwhile, the national debt continues to explode. Right now, U.S. government debt is expanding at a rate of $ 40,000 per second.

Every single minute we steal another 2 million dollars away from our children and our grandchildren.

But if we stop this theft it would throw the U.S. economy into a horrible economic crisis that would be far worse than what we are experiencing right now.

That is why the vast majority of our politicians do not have the guts to do it.

We truly are caught between a rock and a hard place.

But people like Robert Kiyosaki can see what is coming, and they are getting prepared.

Are you prepared?

Many of our young people have come up with their own versions of an “economic stimulus plan”. In past articles I have documented many of the signs that society is collapsing, including the disturbing rise of the “mob robbery” phenomenon.

Well, just the other day there was another very shocking mob robbery in the city of Philadelphia.

On Thursday, a mob of 40 teens and young adults invaded a Sears department store on 69th Street, grabbed all of the merchandise that they could carry, and stormed right back out again.

We are starting to see these kinds of large scale crimes happen from coast to coast.

So what is going to happen to America if the economy experiences the kind of full out collapse that Robert Kiyosaki is talking about?

We live in very interesting times.

I hope that you are getting prepared.

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