I should not have used the word SCAM, I don't believe it's a scam per se. I just don't see other investments losing 25-30% off the top when you invest in them. PMs are for some and not others and I'm glad we all have choices.
There are some investments which are 'losing' at first: ever buy into an oil well? Or a new mine? Or how about some funds with high up-front fees?
But as already stated, some of us don't look at PMs as 'investments'...
“Make men large and strong and tyranny will bankrupt itself in making shackles for them.” – Rev. Henry Ward Beecher (1813-1887) US Abolitionist Preacher