SA,
I, just as you do, believe all this to be one big fractional reserve scam. Unlike the fiat scam, silver cannot be printed, however promises to deliver can, as well as vault receipts with serial numbers. The problem with this is that those serial numbers have been promised to more than one person or entity. When the price starts to get crazy again, and it will as a result of the faltering/failing EU, that is when the glue comes loose and the wheels fall off. I do not expect it to be a one-off rapid fire event, rather I expect the PTB to try and buy their way out with massive fiat premiums. This could work for a long time if faith in fiat remains relatively high. However, if the EU breaks apart, and i view that as an extremely likely event, then all bets are off. Folks will want to hold their wealth. Just look at Greece. Tax revenues are down. Banks are recording record outflows of cash. Banks across Europe are limiting how much cash people can withdraw in a single day to try and stop the bleeding. It is too late for Greece and the little mentioned Italy, and Spain, Portugal and Ireland are not far behind. There is a groundswell movement all over Europe to take back sovereignty from the EU and their draconian requirements that put tens of millions of people under the regulatory thumb of an unelected elite.
It will not end well, and it will not be televised, but the columns of smoke will be visible all over Europe when it comes down.