Gold Bullion Sale Ruled Out By US Treasury

This should silence the "you can't eat gold" crowd.  Last time I checked, you can't eat a dollar bill, either. And what about that Keynesian argument declaring gold a "barbaric relic" of no value? 

http://goldnews.bullionvault.com/gold_bullion_040520112

US TREASURY SECRETARY Tim Geithner has ruled out a sale of Gold Bullion by the US government, as Washington approaches its legal debt limit of $14.29 trillion.

In a letter to Congress, in which he asks for the debt ceiling to be raised, Geithner states that selling reserves of Gold Bullion “would undercut confidence in the United States both here and abroad”.

The Treasury Department predicts the US will reach the debt limit no later than May 16.

The US government – the world’s largest single holder of physical gold – has not sold Gold Bullion, other than small amounts for coinage, since 1979.

In 1980, a year that saw Gold Prices peak, then Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker refused to rule out a sale of US Gold Bullion.

Central banks last year became net buyers of gold, according to research by GFMS, the leading precious metals consultancy.