Finally got around to seeing Blood Diamond last night. It was actually quite good. Rather haunting, of course, as was intended, but also moving and even a bit inspirational.
It is a solid reminder that there are many horrible things happening in this world, many of which we contribute to directly or indirectly. In this case, I am re-inspired to commit to never buying or owning a piece of diamond jewelry.
There are three reasons to do this. The first has to do directly with the case made by Blood Diamond. Most diamonds now are certified as conflict-free. But, this certification is only as honest as the least honest broker in the chain of dealers between the mine and your ring finger, and suffice to say there are lots of reasons that someone might be tempted to cheat the system just a wee little bit.
The second is that, even if your diamond is conflict-free, it still causes demands for diamonds to rise, which raises the price, making it that much more likely that somewhere, someone is motivated to try and sneak a blood diamond into the supply chain.
Lastly, every time you buy a diamond engagement ring, you are perpetuating the single most incredible marketing campaign ever foisted on the American public; the myth that a diamond is the traditional, and only acceptable, way to indicate an engagement. For more on this, all I can do is encourage you to read Edward Epstein's classic article in The Atlantic. You will never look at a diamond ring the same way again, I promise you that.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
I have two comments for this.
First, I totally agree with you. It also perpetuates the myth that a diamond is a precious gem, which it is not. It is not rare and is not in a limited supply. There will always be more diamonds.
Second, wait until you have to buy an engagement ring and see how long this arguement lasts. The girl may even agree with you, but she will still probably want a diamond engagement ring.
Also to keep in mind is that you can get diamonds from Canada. That certainly was what a friend of mine with your very concerns did for his engagement ring (although his bride wouldn't have put up the fight for a diamond knowing his stance on the issue). And while yes, they are not a precious gem, and not all that rare, they are still incredibly cool pieces of chemistry - I love the fact that for a long time chemists didn't realize that graphite and diamonds were chemically the same thing.
Post a Comment