In a world where you own almost nothing, you can still own gold.

We live during a time of rampant consumerism. We buy stuff, and we think we own it. But much of the time we don’t.

Your home is mortgaged and owned by the bank. It’s not yours.

Your car is leased, or purchased through a bank loan. It’s not yours.

You bought that flat screen TV with your credit card. Yes, you own that TV, which depreciates in value of every day. But your credit card company owns the debt, which earns them money every month.

How about your job? Is it yours? A generation ago it was reasonable to assume you had a job for life. Not anymore. That job isn’t yours to keep. It’s only yours for as long as your boss wants you to have it.

And your investments, are they yours? It would be nice to think so. But recent events tell us otherwise. It seems that your money isn’t yours at all. Banks and investment groups do what they want with it, and sometimes lose it altogether.

The same goes for the money you paid into that company retirement fund. It’s yours right up to the moment when the company loses it all.

You think you own all these things. But don’t. This trickles all the way down to even the smallest things. You think your Facebook page is yours? It’s not. It belongs to Facebook. They can take your page down any time they like.

So…what is yours? Look around your house. Much of what you see was bought on credit, and most of it is depreciating in value, and just a few years away from the garbage dump or a yard sale.

True, there are some people who own their homes outright, buy their cars with cash and pay their credit cards down to zero every month. But these wise or fortunate few are in the minority.

Most of us, if we are honest with ourselves, own almost nothing. Most of what we think we own belongs to a bank or some large corporation.

Unless, of course, you own gold. When you take delivery of physical gold coins or bars, you own them outright. Your bank can’t lose them. Your investment advisor can’t make them lose half their value with a bad investment strategy. They are yours.

For most of us, the only way to truly own our wealth it to take it outside of the traditional financial and investment system. To own something, you have to step outside of the system.

And the very best way to own something outside of the system is with gold bullion.

That’s I am such a strong advocate of buying and owning gold.

About the author: DH Kenrick is a student of world economics and a committed gold enthusiast. Follow me on Google+

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