Doug Casey recently talked about silver's many uses and what it means for the future with International Man.

The first question posted to Casey was what makes silver useful and valuable?

Casey said in the first place, silver has historically been money.

"Throughout history, three metals have been used as money: gold, silver, and copper. All share the five qualities of good money—durability, divisibility, portability, consistency, and intrinsic value—but in different proportions. All three metals can be bought for the same reasons as well—each is a long-term store of value, a medium of exchange, and an interesting speculation, at least periodically. Gold has always been, and probably always will be used primarily as money. Copper will probably remain an industrial metal. Silver falls neatly in between them both in price, the way it's used, and where it fits into your investment portfolio. It can be viewed both as a way to save—like gold—and a way to speculate—like copper."

Silver possesses qualities that make it ideal for use in electronics, medicine, along with other technological applications. It is an extremely important element in the green energy revolution. As Casey pointed out, of the 92 naturally occurring elements, silver is the best conductor of both heat and energy. About 60% of silver is used in industrial applications.