9:08p ET Tuesday, September 16, 2008

Dear Friend of GATA and Gold (and Silver):

Jeff Christian, managing director of metals research firm CPM Group, has produced a video, posted today at Kitco, to dispute complaints that the silver market is manipulated. These complaints, Christian says, are all just unsubstantiated conspiracy stuff, and what appear on the commodities exchange as incredibly concentrated short positions are just hedges of long positions taken in other markets.

Maybe -- but to be sure of this one would have to be privy to the identities of the big shorts on the commodities exchange, which are confidential information, unless the exchange or the Commodities Futures Trading Commission is sharing that information with Christian and everyone should just trust him.

Indeed, amid all the market manipulation being undertaken so desperately in the open these days, to believe that the precious metals markets are not manipulated by governments and their agents, the big financial houses, one has to believe that the precious metals markets are the only markets that are not being manipulated. Maybe that's why Christian has been compelled to take note, if so disdainfully and inadequately, of precious metals investors who are getting suspicious.

Even the CFTC itself lately has been compelled to take note of suspicions about the commodities markets, acknowledging last week that those markets indeed may be manipulated by trading on the very market, the unregulated over-the-counter market, that Christian insists is really so innocent:

http://www.gata.org/node/6581 [1]

You can watch Christian's presentation at Kitco here:

http://media.kitco.com/kitco/CPM_Silver_2008-09-16.wmv [2]

Then take 30 seconds to see if you can find much difference between Christian's performance and Leslie Nielsen's here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSjK2Oqrgic [3]

CHRIS POWELL, Secretary/Treasurer
Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee Inc.

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