I agree completely, and I say that as a gold bug (for the moment). It seems to me that the term 'buy and hold' has come to mean, in popular parlance, investing in something and then forgetting about it. Any investment requires periodic monitoring, even if you hold it for the long term. Gold has been a terrible investment for 20 years, which is one reason I like it. I think it will do well as a safe haven investment over the next few years as we navigate through some very rough waters.