>The prrice for an ounce of gold has been going up quickly bit in the past two or three weeks.
>
>http://www.goldprice.org/ (Note the chart)
>
>Are the movers and shakers moving into gold for a reason or is the price just going up?

I see the primary reason for the big move into gold is the devaluation of the dollar as they are inversely related. Similar to oil. However, the current lackluster state of the global economy is having a push down effect on the price of oil through increased inventories and fewer contract orders, thus those hedging against the dollar are seeking other safe avenues for their money. Enter gold.

My personal opinion is that the gold trade is not done for a couple reasons.
1. China is making some substantial purchases
2. The dollar's short term devaluation is not complete
3. The dollar's long term devaluation is still up in the air as investors are moving to safety in light of Congress' desire to destroy the FED's independence.

and then there's the big one
4. The impending 2nd phase of the economic collapse.

Regarding the next down leg, I'm moving up my timetable to February 2010 for the beginning of the next down wave. Judging by the early sales numbers and some anecdotal evidence gathered from friends in retail, this holiday season is shaping up to be worse than even I expected and the shuttering and firing will begin before Dec 31.

In addition, commercial property here in northern California is beginning the decline due to dramatically lower restaurant traffic. Some big chains are pulling the plug on previously profitable locations.

New business is being prevented because the banks are not lending nor modifying except in sure-thing scenarios. This is also having an affect on small business' due to the inability to obtain operating loans.

The fake "green shoots" are all shot out. Cash for clunkers, $timulus and the home buyers credit have been propping up a false recovery and it's all running out of steam. Meanwhile the president, Congress dither away with health care "reform" that the public does not want. Here in California our legislators and Governator have announced yet another $20+ billion shortfall, yet they're spending their time banning light bulbs and telling us what tv we can buy in the name of saving us all from a fake catastrophe based on fake "science". Our elected leaders are actively making it tougher and more expensive to do business in the US in general and California in particular. How on earth do they expect us to recover? Oh that right, they'll tax us out of recession in 2011.

Update : Whew! That's was quite a rant! I guess I let things build up a bit. ;)