Not only for fossil fuels, palladium's ability to hold oxygen, and as a catalyst can also become an important factor in "green" vehicles (hydrogen, electrolysis such as fuel cells and catalytic chemistry...).
Silver always had uses in medicine, today were finding many more uses or advancements medically for it and the other precious metals every day.
Gold is falsely priced, too much paper gold out there, stocks in it as well as other stocks are normally the first to go out the window, normally just before the paper money flies out the window.
It is not that we will not have troubled times where we need these metals and their values become more important, it is just a mater of when.
Not to mention most metals become more valuable in war times for a country to survive.
Holding most any metal in your hands, as scrap or bullion, in my opinion, is a smart move, holding several different ones, can mean holding a balance whichever way the scales start tipping, in either direction, in stormy weather, or even the good times.
Silver having less value by weight or volume also make it a great candidate in troubled times, you may not wish to break a large bill or or give a flake of gold to buy a loaf of bread, so having silver (like having a coin instead of a million dollar bill, can be a wise choice) to trade your neighbor for bread when bread and money are scarce, and with your neighbors "gold fever" and lack of money or bread, filing off a flake of gold from your large gold bar in front of him may not be a good idea for your own safety...