Could be with open interest declining, buying is drying up giving the shorts an open field. Looks like the buyers are cooling their heels. Might also be the foreign central banks kicking up their heels.

Though I haven't seen much about it lately, Paulson's plan to include the bailout of foreign banks caused quite a stir. And, according to some, made the legislation almost impossible to pass.

According to The New York Times, "Foreign banks, which were initially excluded from the plan, lobbied successfully over the weekend to be able to sell the toxic American mortgage debt owned by their American units to the Treasury, getting the same treatment as United States banks."

If these foreign banks "lobbied successfully," I'll bet part of the lobbying included "Hey, you want us to help contain the gold and silver price? Then give us this deal or we'll let the PMs loose." Seems as if some deep pockets are leaning on the prices again, and it could be them showing off their clout.

At this stage, I can imagine almost anything.