The effect on businesses

It helps only them (which is a good thing, of course) and then only if the hand sanitiser remains effective on their hands afterwards as it is usual to use it to remove virus already present. If they hand sanitise before they take it from a customer then it makes no difference to the currency risk factor if the currency already has virus on it (very good chance if cases are high in a locality) as they are placing 'infected' currency in their cash box and handing that out to future customers. If they are hand sanitising before they give currency to a customer as change then they currency may already be infected and so their hands get infected, as do the hands of the customers (and everyone else who subsequently comes into contact with that currency). They should be hand sanitising AFTER they handled the currency - otherwise it is like washing your hands BEFORE you poo.

 

Because it is TOO SPECIFIC - people should be hand sanitising when they touch ANYTHING. I went around a store on Wednesday and after every item I touched I sprayed my hands with alcohol - this was because if the item was 'infected' then it gets the virus off my hands and stops me passing it to the next object I handled.

I was wearing a face mask and eye glasses - so many poo-poo the idea of facial protection but interestingly most in official positions are wearing them. And that is not only to protect us.

 

After WW II, in Germany for your gold you got just some potatoes, a litte bit coffee, sugar or salt - it had no the best value. what was really
expensive and valuable was only cigarettes and nails. so be prepared :-)

 

Best Buy Electronic Stores business model in the US. SMART IDEA
Keep "stay at home" stuff available.
Keep employees on the payroll.
Keep revenue coming in, not much but beats nothing
Maintains extreme "social distancing"

<<Beginning Sunday, March 22, we will offer contactless curbside service at all locations across the country where state or local laws allow. Rather than ask you to come into our stores, any items you order on BestBuy.com or the Best Buy app will be delivered to your car curbside. If, for any reason, you didn't order the product in advance and the product is in stock in the store, one of our employees will be more than happy to go get it in the store and sell it to you while you remain in your car. This service also extends to returns and exchanges, the period for which has been extended on most products so that you have more time. Only employees will be allowed in the store, but we are determined to serve you as fully as we can. Unfortunately, we are temporarily unable to continue our product trade-in and recycling services. >>

 

gold has existed and worked longer than anything else as a store of value. I definitely trust it more than the paper money that everybody is printing now like crazy.

Salt and canned goods - well now I know where to find them in case of need

 

For me gold is an insurance policy - I bought mine in 2011, near the top of the price range but not at the very top (ordinary people tend to buy after the insiders have long stockpiled) - mine is now 25% above what I paid. But I will sell it only if the price were to double (I sell half) or triple (I sell one third) - so I have back my original stake and a half or two thirds my original gold. If the price remains high then it is fine but if it falls and I have only half, or less, of my gold then it is a good time to buy more.

On a more global scale, as you know the major world currency is the USD and it is backed by oil (petrodollars) - China wants to have the renminbi as the major world currency and have been buying up gold to back it. Whether or not they will now have to sell gold in this time of crisis only time will tell.

You quote loss of value due to inflation if your money is not being productively used - but putting it in a bank is earning about 1% in most countries (apparently in some German banks it is a negative interest rate, the banks charge the customers!) and the rule is that to gain most you have to take the highest risks - so stocks and shares (falling), property (certain to fall soon if not already).

I would say that cryptocurrency is the useless insurance - see how it tanked in this crisis (to regain a little since but still below pre-crisis levels) whereas gold has risen sharply since January.

Even if we don't think it makes sense, gold has proven itself in most crises. My own currency (GBP) has declined about 10% in the last two weeks - so much for the stability of currencies in a crisis.

And, yes, I have the food and toilet rolls I need - insurance is more than one thing.

 

Someone who knows what he is talking about.