Precious Metals@ 18 December

Gold was down this week closing at $1112.00, compared to $1119.60 last week.
Silver closed at $17.32, up from $17.09 a week ago.
Considering this week's news, I'm quite surprised both aren't considerably higher.
But then, I think I'm probably digging deeper into the news than your average citizen/consumer.

What I'm seeing:
China caught on to the problem long ago, but China has a problem if they squeal...
Their economy is so dependent on ours, and they have so much of our currency they don't want anyone else catching on until they can unload a bunch of our dollars. When they start that process... hang on, 'cause it'll be like that first steep downhill on the roller coaster!

The media is still in the tank for democrats, trying to convince us that unemployment figures are improving. Unemployment is actually MUCH WORSE than reported, and the good news they're bringing is that the rising unemployment figures are not RISING SO QUICKLY as they were. (Isn't that GREAT?!).
Supposedly, the housing market is also improving. Do you see indications of that in your neighborhood? Houses on both sides of us are vacant, with no buyers anywhere in sight.

I keep trying to update my "Misery Index" posts, but for some odd reason that site is no longer providing the regular monthly updates it posted like clockwork until recently. (Why?)
The situation has reached a point where even left-leaners have to report
the box Bernanke/Paulson now find themselves in.
(Peekaboo! Inflation... I SEE YOU OUT THERE!)

And the one other thing I've noticed that is under-reported...
Bank failures continue, and the FDIC has apparently increased its budget dramatically and has hired a bunch of personnel to help out next year.
Now why would they do that, hmmmmm?
"The spike in failures has raised concerns about the FDIC's deposit insurance fund, which has slipped into the red for the first time since 1991."
(Remember, the economy in 1991 was considerably different than the economy today.)

A bunch of the TV commercials these days are trying to get you to bring in and sell your gold jewelry, or convince you to buy the gold resulting from all that jewelry being melted into ingots.
Are you buying, selling, (or denying)?
You know where I stand on that question.

UPDATED, 0715 LOCAL:
I complain that "The Misery Index" site isn't updating, and they update it between the time I complain and the time the post publishes... Check it out! (I'll update the blog later.)