Single page version: http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/print/1982/02/have-you-e...
Have you ever tried to sell a diamond?
21–30 of 89 posts
Re: Have you ever tried to sell a diamond?
#22Unfortunately, realizing this is not enough. You need your partner to realize it too, or you're out of luck. Good luck presenting a ring of ruby or sapphire; even though they are far prettier stones IMHO, every girl I've met has diamonds stamped into her heart.
Re: Have you ever tried to sell a diamond?
#23Relevant article on the synthetic diamond trade from Wired last year: http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11.09/diamond.html edit: oops I mean 2003; 11.09 was the issue number
From 2003, not last year. Here's a 2007 update: http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/15.02/start.html
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Re: Have you ever tried to sell a diamond?
#24Earlier quoted context omitted.
They aren't a US company.
They operate in the US; they are subject to US law.
Their US operations are subject to US law.
They can stay off-shore, sell diamonds to US companies, and ship them in. Unless the US govt is willing to stop US companies from buying or confiscates the shipments or tha payments, there's not much that the US govt can do.
Re: Have you ever tried to sell a diamond?
#25Re: Have you ever tried to sell a diamond?
#26Unfortunately, realizing this is not enough. You need your partner to realize it too, or you're out of luck. Good luck presenting a ring of ruby or sapphire; even though they are far prettier stones IMHO, every girl I've met has diamonds stamped into her heart.
I don't agree that _every_ girl does, but if she doesn't, her friends probably do. :)
Re: Have you ever tried to sell a diamond?
#27note that this article is from the 1980s, not recent (though still accurate)
Most of the article talks about stuff dating way-prior to 1982. And the economics described still apply today.
Re: Have you ever tried to sell a diamond?
#28Unfortunately, realizing this is not enough. You need your partner to realize it too, or you're out of luck. Good luck presenting a ring of ruby or sapphire; even though they are far prettier stones IMHO, every girl I've met has diamonds stamped into her heart.
Sapphires perhaps but I think you're stretching it with rubies. Still, diamonds _are_ beautiful, even if they are more common than people think. And there's the other part of the discussion that these threads often miss—the relative rarity of diamonds doesn't matter a bit when the supply is controlled. If at some point in the future the floodgates open, then yes diamonds will be less valuable but their worth is based on what people are willing to pay and right now they are worth quite a bit.
That said, a nice 4ct cushion cut sapphire with pavé diamonds around the stone would knock the socks off of nearly any girl out there so I wouldn't sweat it one way or another.
Re: Have you ever tried to sell a diamond?
#29Relevant article on the synthetic diamond trade from Wired last year: http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11.09/diamond.html edit: oops I mean 2003; 11.09 was the issue number
Does anybody know where I could buy a synthetic clear diamond?
Don't bother they're about as expensive as natural clear diamonds.
Re: Have you ever tried to sell a diamond?
#30Unfortunately, realizing this is not enough. You need your partner to realize it too, or you're out of luck. Good luck presenting a ring of ruby or sapphire; even though they are far prettier stones IMHO, every girl I've met has diamonds stamped into her heart.
This was an eye opening experience for me as a younger nerd, something that taught me how truly irrational many humans are. Diamonds are clearly pretty, but buying them props up a cartel and indirectly leads to warfare, enslavement, and death. Clearly a young woman would happily understand why I would have ethical objections to this...
...and to this day, I don't understand how some people's minds even work. (It was a hypothetical discussion and my life wasn't appreciably derailed by this conversation, it's just memorable to me because of the utter incomprehension I felt.)