Caterpillar builds machines for digging up the earth. When countries grow, they need more machines. When they stop growing, they need fewer. That's one reason why a company like Caterpillar, while perhaps not as sexy as Apple or Goldman Sachs, actually paints a better picture of the world economy than almost any other big corporation.

At least you can say this about Ron Paul: he puts this money where his gold-loving mouth is.