A husband and wife in the U.S. face 20 years of prison time for tax evasion due on the many properties they hold. Before they were tripped up by the authorities, the colourful couple required that renters pay them in silver coins. The couple, who called themselves sovereign citizens while living in Alabama, also buried $350,000 worth of gold coins in their backyard.

If you thought it had slipped onto the backburner, you'd be wrong. The Keystone XL pipeline is back in the news, this time courtesy of prime time TV actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus, better known as Jerry Seinfeld's witty ex-girlfriend in the '90s blockbuster sitcom. Louis-Dreyfus is the latest Hollywood star to go public against TransCanada's $7-billion project to transport Canadian oilsands crude from nothern Alberta to Texas refineries. Her appearance this week in a Youtube video by environmental group Tar Sands Action follows similar public appearances by Daryl Hannah, Robert Redford, Mark Ruffalo and other celebrity activists.

A temporary production stoppage by China's largest rare earth exporter makes the creation of an American rare earth stockpile more likely, according to a report by dealReporter that appeared in yesterday's FT. The stoppage was a "wake-up call" for the US Department of Defense because the rare earth elements are needed for a variety of defense applications, writes dealReporter, citing a congressional source. The article quotes congressional sources and three rare earth companies saying that "the creation of a US rare earth strategic reserve is more likely to get the go-ahead after (Inner Mongolia Baotou Steel Rare-Earth (SHA:600111)) halted production. Such a move would create another source of demand for the metals, likely aiding a rebirth of the US rare earths industry."

The Guardian reports the U.S.-based Carter Center has launched a website to shine a light on the corrupt mining industry in the Democratic Republic of the Congo:

Minmetals is not finished acquiring companies to add to its stable of base metal mines, according to Bloomberg. The state-run Chinese miner, with operations in Australia and Laos, a month ago snapped up Anvil Mining for $1.3 billion, thus expanding its reach into Africa. Anvil’s key asset is the Kinsevere mine, located in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Bloomberg reports the firm is planning more takeovers because it needs to extend the life of its mines and boost valuations. Minmetals' stock is undervalued compared to other comparable raw materials producers and consummating more deals would help raise its valuation, says the story, quoting a manager at First Asset Investment Management Inc.:

A proposed uranium mine in Virginia is attracting its share of proponents and detractors. The state has upheld a ban on uranium mining since 1982, but the ban is being reconsidered in light of a proposal by Virginia Uranium Mining to extract 119 million pounds of the nuclear fuel from what would be the world's seventh-largest uranium deposit. On Thursday a day-long forum was held to weigh arguments on either side of whether the private company should be allowed to (mostly underground) mine the Coles Hills deposit.

Junior zinc producer Canadian Zinc (TSE:CZN) reported a $5.3 million loss in the third quarter, which it attributed to higher exploration expenses and losses in the value of its shares in a Fijian mine.

Mid-tier gold producer IAMGOLD (TSE:IMG) has purchased a 14% stake in Colombia Crest Gold Corp. (CVE:CLB) for $3.4 million. Stock in Colombia Crest Gold shot up 9.43% on the news. The private placement follows IAMGOLD's earlier investments in Tolima Gold Corp., a junior miner, and Bellhaven Copper & Gold (CVE:BHV).

The cash at the world's top six mining companies is estimated to top out at $144 billion by end 2013 and M&A activity this year is already up 67% over 2010. The gold sector has been leading the frenzy and the stock market is where they will be looking to find additional ounces.