I thought this was just common sense. Suppose you're buying necklaces. Today: Gold $10; Silver $0.10 Tomorrow: Gold $1010; Silver $1000.10 By adding a consta

I thought this was just common sense. Suppose you're buying necklaces. Today: Gold $10; Silver $0.10 Tomorrow: Gold $1010; Silver $1000.10 By adding a constant to both prices, the price ratio no longer remains aligned with the underlying value ratio. Assuming you have to get one necklace each day, there is less of a decision tomorrow than there is today, because silver is overpriced relative to gold. The correct prices for tomorrow should have been "Gold: $1010, Silver: $10.10", so you're effectively getting more scammed by going with silver.