I've always viewed gold and silver as a hedge for a downturn. Not just with the overall economy, but my own personal economy. There was a period in my life that I was out of a job for 8 months, thanks to oil and gas getting cheap! During that time, the sale of gold and silver coins kept a roof over my head, gas in my car, and food in my belly. Luckily, I had just enough to do that for an entire year if needed!