Newmont (NYSE:NEM), Hecla (NYSE:HL), Barrick (NYSE:ABX) All Up as Gold Prices Soar

Newmont Mining (NYSE:NEM), Hecla Mining (NYSE:HL) and Barrick Gold (NYSE:ABX) were all up at about the 5 percent mark today, as gold mining shares soared along with gold futures, which ended the day at a record $1,220.30, and after hours has surged to over $1,231.

This is good news for gold mining stocks, if they can find support, as they've widely lagged the price of gold futures, and if they start to respond as they did today, will make gold investors a lot of money going forward.

These weren't the only good gold mining performers today, as others like Eldorado Gold (NYSE:EGO), Allied Nevada Gold (AMEX:ANV), Jaguar Mining (NYSE:JAG) and Iamgold (NYSE:IAG) were almost twice as high, with all of them over 9 percent, and some up over 10 percent on the day.

Most of this is based on the implications of the bailout of countries in the European Union, which after the euphoria of yesterday was over, investors digested and realized the potential long-term consequences, especially inflation, but also tremendous unrest which will inevitably rear its ugly head as forced austerity measures are put in place for a people who feel they are entitled to their outrageous and above-market wages and perks they've been used to for so long, but the country can't afford.

As Margaret Thatcher has famously and rightly noted, the trouble with socialism is you eventually run out of other people's money. Many countries in Europe are doing just that, and now they're going to have to pay the price for their misguided practices for many years into the future.

Gold and gold mining companies should be the beneficiaries of this debacle for a long time.