Futility of gold

http://www.mineweb.com/mineweb/view/mineweb/en/page33?oid=145263&sn=Detail&pid=92730

I have stopped following Warren Buffett's principles a long time ago. Why? I don't have his patience, his brilliance and his resources. He does not just invest; he buys up management. Other mortals can only invest and hope for good management.

It is true that gold is pretty useless technologically and scientifically. Yet, because there is so little of it, Warren has forgotten that for thousands of years, it has been used to represent value. If someone can manufacture it cheaply or materialize it in huge quantity from somewhere, then its value will plunge and no woman will want to wear a cheap metal on her body. But until that happens, gold will be used to represent value.