Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

The Koh-i-Noor diamond, and why the British won’t give it back (2017)

smithsonianmag.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

321–327 of 327 posts

Re: The Koh-i-Noor diamond, and why the British won’t give it back (2017)

#321

Post by anigbrowl »

NotYourLawyer wrote: post #308
ceejayoz wrote: post #286

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We weren’t at war with the Japanese on December 7, 1941. Still wasn’t a terrorist attack. We can, and should, make a significant distinction between attacks on civilians and attacks on military targets.

I think the main distinction is who’s doing the attacking. If it’s a state-level attack, then it’s an act of war. If it’s just a random group of dudes, it’s terrorism. It doesn’t become not terrorism just because the target is military in nature.

So all rebels are terrorists, and therefore invalid. Very convenient for dictators.

Re: The Koh-i-Noor diamond, and why the British won’t give it back (2017)

#322

Post by DuskStar »

kamaal wrote: post #192
DuskStar wrote: post #144

Earlier quoted context omitted.

IIRC that is an absolutely bullshit number based on taking what the Brits actually did steal, giving it the most favorable conversion to USD, and then applying a few hundred years of compounding interest. 7% APR for 300 years is a 650,000,000x return.

>>and then applying a few hundred years of compounding interest. Yeah that is unfortunately how money works. Why do you think countries like USA are so rich, they've been making investments for a few centuries now. Robbers and looter should pay for opportunity costs, this is how it should work.

The problem with this logic is it means that the largest ever theft was some hunter-gatherer stealing a spear 100,000 years ago. That's worth almost 10^3000 dollars now, you know!

At some distance in time, returns on capital are no longer adequately approximated by "x%APR". I think this distance in time is at most around 150 years, and even then only in the USA. In most of the world, it's far less than that.

Re: The Koh-i-Noor diamond, and why the British won’t give it back (2017)

#323

Post by DuskStar »

bergenty wrote: post #202
DuskStar wrote: post #144

Earlier quoted context omitted.

IIRC that is an absolutely bullshit number based on taking what the Brits actually did steal, giving it the most favorable conversion to USD, and then applying a few hundred years of compounding interest. 7% APR for 300 years is a 650,000,000x return.

What do you think inflation is?

Depends on the basket, the location, and the time period!

Seeing what it would cost to replace the things directly extracted from India today would be extremely interesting, actually. Price of cotton * quantity, etc.

Re: The Koh-i-Noor diamond, and why the British won’t give it back (2017)

#324

Post by atonse »

ashwagary wrote: post #296
rajeshp1986 wrote: post #159

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is an approach to decide the ownership. When India got independence and the Republic of Indian union was formed, the Indian central government got ownership of all the assets of the princely states. There are instruments of ascession signed by each Maharaja stating the transfer of rights for properties and assets. I doubt if anyone has even seen these documents in a while but it could technically be traced and…

It's all an act. Time to return stolen goods and the Brits all of a sudden have a learning disability surrounding the topic of who custodies assets on behalf of independent states like India. Hilarious.

I used to think it was stolen but then it seems like it was gifted to the British.

Is that not accurate?

Re: The Koh-i-Noor diamond, and why the British won’t give it back (2017)

#325

Post by markdown »

betwixthewires wrote: post #265
markdown wrote: post #255

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a nation of over a billion people. The "they" you speak of doesn't speak for everyone.

Which "they" asked for it back? Do they speak for everyone in doing so?

Yes, they all want it back.

Re: The Koh-i-Noor diamond, and why the British won’t give it back (2017)

#326

Post by betwixthewires »

markdown wrote: post #325
betwixthewires wrote: post #265

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Which "they" asked for it back? Do they speak for everyone in doing so?

Yes, they all want it back.

So they speak for everyone only when they agree with you?

Re: The Koh-i-Noor diamond, and why the British won’t give it back (2017)

#327

Post by DocTomoe »

stu432 wrote: post #304
osrec wrote: post #198

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Quite true, not sure why you're down-voted. Colonial empires managed to get away extremely lightly, with respect to putting right their wrongs. Compare that to Nazi Germany, where reparations were paid in significant quantities, and kids in schools are still taught to be embarrassed by that section of their country's history. Whereas you get the sense that Britain is still, in some ways, proud of its rather ruthless…

You mean West Germany paid a fraction of what they received under the Marshall plan to Israel, and Israel alone. Doesn't really seem to put right the slaughtering they did all across Europe including the slaughtering they did to their own who weren't considered good enough.

There were more reparations paid by West Germany, mostly by losing territory and by dismantling of surviving industry, taking industrial products, intellectual property and rail lines.

There also were payments to Poland, Greece and Yugoslavia.

Post reply on HN