Yup I would say the rise of crypto is a negative catalyst for PMs.

Everyone has their price. Go play with Comex, with or without friends taking large positions, promise yourselves you'll insist on physical delivery. The price will go up to match, and they'll end up throwing money at you to go away. At some point you will.

Edit: personal specifics removed

It's about wealth and power. Ain't it always?

Hehe, who would accept fiat in exchange for delivery of silver. If they don't have BTC or silver, they better have gold. Lots of it  

Well of course but I'm pretty sure rpietila knows this

If someone would take the effort to call the worldwide silver bluff, he will not take fiat.

And who is this "someone"? You?

Can't you see it's close to "buy all the bitcoins". It ain't gonna happen. Forty years ago the multi-billionaire Hunts had a go (back when a billion really was a billion). They had their butts handed back. For the last decades every anarchy-conspiracist who's read Ted Butler thinks they've found "the squeeze". You seem to have made a good living buying and selling the stuff - don't do your own gear.

excuse me, the system saw the threat of the Hunts unmasking their charade and changed the rules mid battle