Bad times are good times for gold

The San Jose Mercury reports:

Part inflation hedge, part emotional touchstone, this most mesmerizing of metals continues its gravity-defying climb, jumping nearly 400 percent since 1999. Last week, it hit an all-time high of $1,254. It then dropped a bit but still has outperformed stocks, bonds and other commodities this year. As financial markets around the world creak beneath mountains of debt, everyone from central banks to individual investors have jumped into gold.