Shooting from the Hip, Sinclair Hits Bullseyes

Readers of these commentaries will already know that I don’t like to go too terribly far out on a limb when forecasting bullion’s next leap. I’ve always preferred to forecast long-term trends one predictable step at a time – a cautious but reliable way of seeing things that has attracted many like-minded subscribers over the years. There have been times when this approach contrasted sharply with my dire outlook for the economy. In the late 1990s, for instance, the column that I freelanced to the Sunday San Francisco Examiner was probably the most bearish rant published regularly in a big-circulation newspaper.  Examiner readers would not likely have imagined that, on the guru side of my life, I was getting things consistently right in a stock-and-commodities letter that went out each day to professional option traders. I got it right because, rather than follow my instincts — which, to put it charitably, stink —  I used coldly mechanical indicators.

Sinclair admist the patter of little feet

Contrast that with the shoot-from-the-hip showmanship of Mr. Bet-a-Million, my colleague Jim Sinclair.  Although his style and methods differ radically from my own, I have only respect for the man and for the way he has stuck to his guns on gold no matter what was happening in the markets. When an ounce was trading for around $1200 back in 2008, so certain was Sinclair that the price would rise to at least $1650 by this January that he baited doubters with a $1 million bet. Did he perhaps know something?  Of course not. No one could possibly know for certain where gold would be trading three years from a given date. But he did know – and never tired of telling us — that the U.S. Government had embarked on the most reckless credit expansion in human history – a blowout so far beyond anything that had ever occurred that it all but guaranteed the continuation of gold’s steep upward trajectory.

Crazy-Bullish on Gold

Fortunately for anyone who has followed Sinclair’s advice, he has stuck to his guns. And although it’s possible that gold’s spectacular run-up will fall shy of the $1650 target, few would bet against it if the time limit were extended by just another month or two. In the meantime, Sinclair’s bold forecast will have served as a reality check against all of the lies, stupidity and nonsense that our political leaders feed us each day.  Out-shouting all the other gurus, he has repeatedly warned that the Emperor and everyone in his court are wearing no clothes.

Personally, I am grateful that Sinclair’s crazy-bullish forecasts keep turning up in the Rick’s Picks forum, especially when bullion quotes get knocked for a loop as they did last week. And although I’ve never been entirely comfortable embracing the oftentimes nasty vicissitudes of the commodities world with Sinclair’s kind of zeal – nay, certitude — I have little doubt that he’s going to be right about the big picture. Which is to say, gold and silver investments can’t miss. Considering that the global money system is headed toward certain ruin, gold must be viewed as a bargain even at $1400 an ounce. Sometimes it takes a jolt to the imagination to see how obvious this is.  Few have been more persistent at providing that jolt than Jim Sinclair.

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  • nevket240 January 15, 2011, 6:39 am

    As a shareholder in several Oz stocks I’m very aware of the potential for Gold to take a hit over the next few weeks.
    However for Gold to really rocket upwards I’m waiting for the Chinese Naval vessel to show up in NY harbour to take possession of the Feds bullion in exchange for the trillion or so of toilet paper the Yanks have unloaded onto China. ala DeGaulle it will make for an interesting passage in time.
    regards

  • VegasBob November 20, 2010, 7:32 am

    One of the things I’ve learned is that money always attracts liars, cheats and thieves. Therefore, where money is concerned I never trust and I always verify.

    The reason that gold and silver are trusted as money is that precious metals are relatively scarce and cannot be printed, easily counterfeited or otherwise conjured up out of thin air.

    Since money attracts liars, cheats and thieves, those in charge of any monetary system are always tempted to take shortcuts. The first step is always to replace sound money with fiat money. In the US, this started with the removal of silver from the coinage in 1965, and concluded with Nixon closing the gold window in 1971.

    The predictable result is rampant money-printing (de facto counterfeiting) in order to try to paper over an orgy of theft, embezzlement and outright fraud. If anyone doubts this, just look at Mr. Bernokio’s trillion$ of money-printing over the past 2 years.

    In any other time in world history, charlatans like Ben Bernokio and Alan Greedscam would be hanging from lampposts for their economic crimes against the US.

    • VegasBob November 20, 2010, 7:37 am

      Actually, a case can be made that US monetary debasement began in the 1930s when US citizens were ordered to turn in gold coins for paper money, gold was revalued from around $20.67 an ounce to $35 an ounce, and US citizens were then prohibited from owning gold bullion for many years. However, US gold coins were never widely circulated compared to US silver coins.

  • Terry S November 19, 2010, 10:01 pm

    Excellent post; first, kudos from GATA now from Ricks Picks . Mr. Gold deserves it all. I have gone to his well and drank long and freely in times of doubt. If you still think Gold has nothing to do with the modern democracy you are right. Please read the privateer issue number 666.

    • Rick November 21, 2010, 8:06 pm

      Bill Buckler’s ‘The Privateer’ is one of my very favorite reads, Terry. Here’s a link to back issues from 1995 forward:

      http://www.the-privateer.com/backiss/2010.html

      Issue #666 should be available in this listing within a week.

  • Jeff November 19, 2010, 9:49 pm

    I read Sinclair daily and he is a class act. I might venture to say he’s made more money collectively than all of us together. Having traded miners for the last decade, I can say I have appreciated his positive encouragement…Benjamin, your description of gold as a ” junk rocket ship” is a little too contrarian. Considering it has been the world currency for 5000 yrs, I would surmise it will be flying well after you have disintegrated.

    • Benjamin November 19, 2010, 10:11 pm

      Not gold, Jeff. The system as a whole is what I see as too ramshackle to make the trip.

  • Rick Ackerman November 19, 2010, 7:59 pm

    Posted by Rick for Roger Lafky:

    Hi Rick, nice presentation on Mr. Sinclair. He is quite the gentleman. His efforts to educate the public for free are just amazing. The man has been a rock in the gold and silver markets for these last volitile years.

    You did a fine job in your kind remarks.

    — Roger

  • Steve November 19, 2010, 7:39 pm

    Jim made that prediction long before 2008, and I don’t believe he was shooting from the hip. Whether he wins his bet or not at this point is almost irrelevant. He’s been a beacon during the worst times during this wild ride the past 6 plus years.

  • C.C. November 19, 2010, 6:59 pm

    When my old man told me in the mid-late 198o’s – 1990’s that an economy couldn’t last on ‘service’ and how he despised the word: Consumer, I thought he was just recollecting his time of the 40’s & 50’s, for he couldn’t possibly understand the ‘new economy’…

    And he was buying Eagles all through that period.

    All of which to say is, that although time & technology change, virtues and vices (of all social interaction – economics included), do not. And that what has been held as transactional virtue for a Long Time, still is and likely always will be.

  • david November 19, 2010, 6:51 pm

    Rick, nice job and great tribute.Sometimes were so conditioned to negativity in this tricky ,complicated world that we have to acknowledge passion ,conviction and fundamental backing of ones views.You might want to mention that his dad Bert Sellingman and his partner Jesse Livermore were some of the sharpest investors of all time.Do you think Jim learned a little from them?

  • rockin jack November 19, 2010, 6:37 pm

    http://tinyurl.com/2fjxfbv
    James Sinclair has a guru (Sai Baba) who I believe has influenced his gold predictions. I have nothing but respect for the man and remember him being on Wall Street Week quite often from the intensive gold years of 1979-1983 and beyond.

    Anyone own and want to comment on his Tanzanian gold mining company? Symbol TRE.

    My own prediction is gold/silver/copper are headed into some downward months of deflationary malaise due to China, SKorea and others raising interest rates. This is China’s response (plus perhaps also that West Coast missile launch) to Bernanke’s QE2 policy. China’s comment was “don’t disrespect our investment” in your Dollars but the Federal Reserve is not paying heed.

  • R Kuester November 19, 2010, 6:33 pm

    I am average Joe, trying, with no financial bkg to learn (by osmosis of reading current commentary)how to protect my life’s savings. I do remember the needle spike in gold/silv in 1980. Will we be forced the attempt catch such a “falling knife” in the not too distant future? Some say this won’t happen again.. why not? when Sinclair & many others predict $2 to$5000 prices, What then?… how will it be coverted to a useable medium of exchange? Surley Govamint boys will confiscate and introduce new currency…( screwed by the elite again)?

  • Edward November 19, 2010, 5:05 pm

    “General Jim” Sinclair knows what he knows because he is intimately acquainted with the methods and madness of central bankers and the monetary authorities en masse. And while that awful collective are not the be all and end all of global finance, they are, in our deeply corrupt oligarchy, at least for the time being, something akin to the straw that stirs the drink.

    I don’t know how he conjured his standing target of $1650 gold by January 2011, but it’s clear that while it isn’t going to be hit, it is still directionally a bullseye.
    So let me join you in doffing my head gear to General Jim Sinclair, and raise a toast to $2500 dollar gold by June 2012.

  • BruceA November 19, 2010, 5:05 pm

    Nice tribute – I have not read enough of Jim Sinclair to know what his thoughts are on the probability of an outright government default and its effects on gold. An article by the Casey Report posted on Zero Hedge yesterday mentioned “overt debt default” as the most likely scenario for torpedoing gold. I’d be interested in hearing people’s thoughts on the likelihood of that happening.

  • fallingman November 19, 2010, 5:03 pm

    Thanks for this tip of the hat to Jim Sinclair. He deserves it. That’s a great picture too.

  • Kevin B. November 19, 2010, 3:32 pm

    In a world where left means right and up means down, Mr. Sinclair has proven his ability to traverse the minefield of misinformation and distill it into meaningful advise, never swerving from the goal of helping those investors who want insurance to protect themselves from a crumbling economic system. We could argue about the methods and products to protect wealth, but no one can argue with truth and the time tested form of money that is gold.

    Mr. Sinclair has remained steadfast in his beliefs and put his money where his mouth is. In addition, his depth of knowledge and commitment to teaching anyone who wants to learn creates a powerful tool for all who choose to use it……and it’s free.

    We are fortunate to have Mr. Sinclair share his wisdom and you should too.

  • Benjamin November 19, 2010, 3:28 pm

    I haven’t read Jim Sinclair in what seems like ages, mostly because I didn’t figure I would miss anything 🙂

    Of course, that’s nothing against the man, and rather confirms what was written here today. That said, I have to wonder, with things being as bad as they are today, if we can even make it to that oft-mentioned 5,000 mark. All I can say in defense of my contrarianism is that this peice of junk rocket ship doesn’t look to me to be so able.
    I expect it to disintegrate well short of the moon.

    But that doesn’t mean that gold isn’t gold. It is and always will be, and has virtually nothing in common with the world of today.

  • redwilldanaher November 19, 2010, 3:27 pm

    Rick, you’ve been charting and writing longer than I have, although I’ve been a student of the charts for almost 20 years at this point! BUT, speaking of GOLD, these 2 lines are equivalent to gold if you’re just getting started: “I’ve always preferred to forecast long-term trends one predictable step at a time – a cautious but reliable way of seeing things that has attracted many like-minded subscribers over the years.” AND “Examiner readers would not likely have imagined that, on the guru side of my life, I was getting things consistently right in a stock-and-commodities letter that went out each day to professional option traders. I got it right because, rather than follow my instincts — which, to put it charitably, stink — I used coldly mechanical indicators.” – That’s the game to me in a nutshell. Get comfortable with a methodology and follow it despite what Bubblevision / MSM are spewing or what your own fundamental/economic research turns up. Ignoring reality and going along for manic rides with yahoos doesn’t come naturally to most. It’s much harder to pull off than most would think. Aside from all of the other qualities (discipline etc.), I also think that you need to remain open-minded to other ways of viewing or interpreting things. That’s why, after trading, charting, reading, researching, developing, debating and analyzing for over 16 years at that point, I signed up for your course. As you know, many pro traders (especially options guys) are so competitive that they can’t bring themselves to admit that they can learn anything from a colleague or peer. They also have traditionally sneered at courses and books (“…if it was worth anything they wouldn’t be selling it” – mentality), fortunately, as you and I both know, it pays to be a contrarian at key times and on key issues. Stay hedged my friends.

    • BDTR November 19, 2010, 4:26 pm

      “I used coldly mechanical indicators.” – That’s the game to me in a nutshell. Get comfortable with a methodology and follow it despite what Bubblevision / MSM are spewing or what your own fundamental/economic research turns up. Ignoring reality and going along for manic rides with yahoos doesn’t come naturally to most.”

      Well qualified and interpreted “mechanical indicators”, perhaps. But I instantly referenced a few of Precter’s EWI forecasts from 2000 that made me smile in glee that they had been discounted as economic alchemy, and rightfully, gratefully ignored.

      There may be madness in interpreting “mechanical” methodologies however sophisticated and well intentioned the prognosticator. Success is always based in a large dose of humility, …and caution.

      Rick seems to have found the balance.

  • Sigmund Fraud November 19, 2010, 2:37 pm

    Well spoken, Rick; and thanks to you for your guidance.

  • Michael November 19, 2010, 2:30 pm

    Perhaps one of the best CEO’s in the world. Consistently has the best interests of his shareholders at the top of his agenda. A true gentleman and leader.