Slashdot Mirror
Diamonds - Are They Really Worth the Cost?
hardDiamond asks: "I'm going to get engaged. I know my 4 C's. I know I'm going to get screwed by the jeweller, but that's okay: after all, a diamond engagement ring is a time-honoured tradition... NOT. Having checked out the goods, looked for the flaws, I found the biggest one of all. Diamond engagement rings are the creation of a well orchestrated advertising campaign for most of the last century - according to this article.
Would you buy one for the love of your life? I know my girlfriend would love a diamond, but ethically I have my doubts. Diseased-miners, child slave labour, cartel inflated prices... and as if that wasn't enough, diamonds have no resale value. Naddah. Zilch. They'll sell you the shit, but damn it, they're not taking it back at any price. So what have my fellow slashdotters done with regards to engagement rings? What's a good substitute for diamonds? My girlfriend understands my thoughts regarding diamonds, but deep down, I'm sure she would like a diamond. Even a small one." I've never even thought about questioning such a time honored tradition, but now I'm curious. Have any of you looked at the issues surrounding diamonds and found them wanting? What alternatives have you found and were they acceptable?
After researching this a bit, one of the key facts to surface is that 2-4.5% of diamond sales will go to finance terrorism or forms of violence. Such diamonds, for want of a better term, have been named "conflict diamonds". For those of you interested in following up on this subject, here are a few more links:
Fatal TransactionsFor those of you who have a subscription to Science News, the cover story, this month, deals with this issue as well.
Conflict Diamonds: Sanctions and War
The Campaign to Eliminate Conflict Diamonds
The Kimberly Process, which will attempt to track diamonds to their origin. This is to begin in November.
Is she going to have the 3 weeks in Hawaii on her finger 70 years from now?
Shutting down free speech with violence isn't fighting fascism. It IS fascism!
Save someone's life? Let's face it: The whole social responsibility aspect of diamonds with men is largely a red herring justification trying to look for a way to cheapen out. I'm sure that people will put on their sweatshop made shoes and boot up their computer made in who knows where, dumping who knows what toxic chemicals in the environment (computer making is incredibly toxic), but the moment they have to buy something for the gf/wife is the moment they suddenly become bleeding heart social activists, ready to search high and low to look for a reason to avoid the purchase. This whole discussion about the "conflict" diamonds is grossly simplified as well (is it not possible that diamond money and jobs in some remote African mining areas having sustained and endured thousands or tens of thousands of people?)
Way to stand up for your beliefs.
Seriously, I think Jell-o has a stronger backbone.
P.S. I have a girlfriend AND she and I agree about the poor diamond situation and that it's a bad idea. In fact she was the first to bring it to my attention, well before reading this article.
>deep down she wanted a big stone
;-)
OK, now I had never ever actually had issues with the diamond industry until I read this article. It's just too icky to mention it. But I had (and I collected raw minerals and stones for a long time) always found diamonds one of the ugliest jewels around. Much more so than ruby, emerald, amethyst and other VERY nice gems.
Diamonds being ugly to me means that I don't buy them. Hell, I wouldn't wear them if you offered them for free. They're fugly, remember?
Either which way, I don't get people. They are just too bloody gullable. They deserve being stupid consumers at the mercy of BigCorp Inc. As I write this, I realise I'm one of the sheep in many ways. But not diamonds, at least.
My girlfriend and I bought (plain silver)engagement rings. Not because we're engaged to be married, but because we wanted a token to remind us and others of our bond. We like silver. We took something we like.
As an aside, we WILL NOT get married. This is mainly because I'm against marriage. It's not MY culture, religion or even desire to do so. Does that invalidate my bond with her? I think not. And after careful deliberation, she thinks not either.
The point here being that more people should quit doing what they're doing just because the rest does it too... Start listening to Cake, folks... And if your partner doesn't respect serious issues you have with "moral" or "culture" or whatever, and he/she doesn't give you an inch, maybe it's time to get another partner.
"How do you afford your rock'n'roll life-style"
"Well I have passed the test
just like all the rest
but never really understood
the reasons why I took it
in the first place"
"Sheep go to heaven,
goats go to hell"
Or Rage Against the Machine:
"No escape from the mass mind rape
Play it again jack and then rewind the tape
And then play it again and again and again
Until ya mind is locked in
Believin' all the lies that they're tellin' ya
Buyin' all the products that they're sellin' ya
They say jump and ya say how high
Ya brain-dead
Ya gotta fuckin' bullet in ya head"
In which ethics is something worn according to convenience.
IANAL but write like a drunk one.