[simon says what]

You really can't count the price of gold when it wasn't legally available. It was $35/oz because it was a fixed mandated price under Bretton Woods. Market forces (from other countries) brought it up quickly to $175.

But Gold was legal for non-US citizens and businesses. They DID see price appreciation of 2000% (20x) from 1971 to 1980. Saying Gold wasn't legal for US citizens and therefore didn't appreciate is like saying guns are illegal in DC, therefore nobody gets shot there.

Again, analysing to 1971 isn't appropriate. Pick any date post 1975, compare it to today, and gold is losing every time.

Gold has appreciated more than the DOW going back the past 1,2,3,4,5,6,7, and 8 years.

[Barney Gumble]

Saying Gold wasn't legal for US citizens and therefore didn't appreciate is like saying guns are illegal in DC, therefore nobody gets shot there

That analogy is way off. The price of gold was kept fixed and was artifically low. So market forces quickly brought it up to a trading level, but that trading level has increased relatively little since.

Gold has appreciated more than the DOW going back the past 1,2,3,4,5,6,7, and 8 years.

touché

Gold is a good bet if you can smell a recession coming or see inflation rising high, but for a long term retirement prospect, I'd shy away from it. Obviously we're going to have to agree to disagree. As with any investment, it's best to diversify.