Viewing profile — dirtdobber

Or, get this, I can buy a natural diamond that was ethically sourced.

It's pretty clear, no? Are you asking me for a non-hypocritical position on the diamond market? My position is simply that natural diamonds are a luxury item. Claiming that there's…

Well you got 2 out of 3 of those correct.

https://shop.fairphone.com/fairphone-5 Or, is some level of human suffering ok for you to have the luxury of using an iPhone?

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> Whataboutism isn't a useful or helpful way to discuss an industry with unbelievable human suffering. I think you're misunderstanding my point. My point was not that there's not h…

> "My synthetic diamond is functionally identical, if not even better than your mined one" is factually true and not a justification... Except they're not functionally identical. N…

Wrong, read again. No justification for buying natural diamonds. Just stating the facts: current market dynamics make the distinction that natural diamonds are a luxury product whi…

> "This diamond caused untold human suffering and exploitation to acquire." Dude, the copper in your phone required untold human suffering and exploitation to acquire. You want to …

Natural diamonds have value in terms of luxury. Synthetics do not, hence why they are cheap. If you want to buy a diamond because you think they're pretty, buy a synthetic one. If …

I'm genuinely curious why you bought a diamond at all then? Isn't the diamond itself a marketing gimmick, or do you and your wife honestly find them more beautiful than other stone…

I would ask your soon-to-be wife whether she'd be ok with a lab grown diamond vs a natural (and let her come to her own conclusion without mansplaining to her that only morons woul…

I use "real" and "natural" interchangeably in this context, but sure if we want to be pedantic I'll use natural instead. Regardless, I view natural diamonds as having "real" value …

Perhaps. But I see one of two things happening regardless: (1) the market maintains a distinction between real and synthetic or (2) the market doesn't, and diamonds become irreleva…

I don't see demand for natural diamonds going anywhere. There's a reason that Rolex, Cartier, and other luxury brands don't use cheap, synthetic diamonds in their products. I know …

Interesting. The name loosely translates to "Wisdom of Center Origin" then, no?

I've seen it claimed but never from a reputable site. Does anyone here speak Japanese and can translate?

Yes.

Thanks for the heads up, but I'll probably just keep throwing my dirty plastic into plastic bags and letting the recycling facility figure it out.

I'll also add, you definitely shouldn't assume a 2% inflation rate. I would bank on 3.5% or higher in the long run.

> When you borrow money in a high inflationary environment, it's highly advantageous because you are using cheaper future money to pay back older expensive money. This is only true…

> Do you expect the garbage man to do your dishes? Why would the garbage man do my dishes? Look, I throw away my trash because it's super convenient and the city provides a wonderf…

I'm expected to clean my recyclables? Exhibit A of ridiculously annoying tasks that could (should) be delegated to a recycling facility.

I'm on the east coast of the US in a large metro area. My last electric bill was $585 and I used 1800kWh for the month, so my costs are roughly $0.32 cents per kWh currently. Gas a…

I don't disagree with your premise, but I also don't fully agree with it as a comprehensive explanation. Overeating seems to be a uniquely American problem, and independent of a na…