It's pretty simple: physical gold and silver are the only assets I can think of where I no longer have to trust anyone. Our history is replete with examples of how the government, their banking pals, industry and others having control over money can't be trusted. For fun, read the "gold cases" from the US Supreme Court in the 1930's, where they turn themselves into a pretzel to renege on the plain promise stamped on every Gold Certificate, that it can be redeemed for gold coin. They completely reneged on that promise.
Gold as an Inflation Hedge [View article]