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

Diamonds Suck (2006)

diamondssuck.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

71–80 of 618 posts

Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)

#71

Post by emodendroket »

brandur wrote: post #59
emodendroket wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a bit of a stretch to say that only diamond rings are acceptable, but also to say that they're unknown outside the United States.

> It's a bit of a stretch to say that only diamond rings are acceptable "only" is a pretty exclusive word, but I don't think it's a stretch saying that only diamond rings are acceptable in the general case. Especially amongst the reasonably affluent class that you'll find a lot of on HN, not getting a diamond for a spouse would be unusual enough that friends would whisper behind your backs about it. (And to be clear,…

Nobody has ever been the least bit bothered by my non-diamond choice of an engagement ring for my wife.

Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)

#72

Post by digitaltrees »

klodolph wrote: post #12
mk89 wrote: post #4

Great advice. Possibly coming from someone who doesn't have a girlfriend. :) try to give such a stone to a girl and see how amused she is gonna be. You are just gonna sound "cheap". Diamonds are a status, not a beautiful stone. edit: I see many downvotes. Guys, seriously, was it for me, I would buy nothing. It's just how this world works. You can express your anger by downvoting me, I'll be fine, but please don't fal…

Yes, this discussion reappears every time diamonds are mentioned on HN. Pretty brilliant marketing campaign by De Beers, though, that somebody will think you're "cheap" if you don't buy a big enough diamond that somebody dug out of the ground. In the end it's just a conversation between people who say, "You can't just ignore these social conventions" and people who say "these social conventions are stupid, find someo…

Here is the article that talks about the De Beers marketing plan that created the concept of a diamond engagement ring.

http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2015/02/how...

Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)

#74

Post by ajkjk »

Moshe_Silnorin wrote: post #34

So people do this to signal (both to their spouse and their friends) they are both financially capable and care enough about their spouse to burn a large amount of money on a pyre. It's also a very useful signal that you are serious about the commitment and unlikely to back off of the marriage. I would prefer to replace it with a certificate that proves you have spent X thousand dollars on said certificate from Moche…

It's definitely not just that, because placing huge import on diamonds, and gushing over their (much agreed upon) beauty, and having preferences for stones and cuts etc., and showing them off at the office, and talking about their size and how much they must have cost, and equating some of those things with the size of someone's affection and worth as a person, are still ubiquitous in (at least) American society.

As far as I can tell they're only on the way out with bleeding-edge progressives.

Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)

#75

Post by Moshe_Silnorin »

ajkjk wrote: post #74
Moshe_Silnorin wrote: post #34

So people do this to signal (both to their spouse and their friends) they are both financially capable and care enough about their spouse to burn a large amount of money on a pyre. It's also a very useful signal that you are serious about the commitment and unlikely to back off of the marriage. I would prefer to replace it with a certificate that proves you have spent X thousand dollars on said certificate from Moche…

It's definitely not just that, because placing huge import on diamonds, and gushing over their (much agreed upon) beauty, and having preferences for stones and cuts etc., and showing them off at the office, and talking about their size and how much they must have cost, and equating some of those things with the size of someone's affection and worth as a person, are still ubiquitous in (at least) American society. As…

>As far as I can tell they're only on the way out with bleeding-edge progressives.

A demographic known for their immunity to costly signalling behaviors.

Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)

#76

Post by shitgoose »

beaner wrote: post #9

A diamond purchase is a type of proof-of-burn. It's a way to display how much you value the person by being willing to sacrifice a large part of your savings for them. It's not really about the stone itself, it's about the cost.

In old times they were throwing virgins down the cliff to please some god. Now we burn cash to please some virgin. Humanity clearly progressed.

Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)

#78

Post by semi-extrinsic »

omribahumi wrote: post #21
thebiglebrewski wrote: post #14

Can anyone give me advice on how to convince my girlfriend of this though without her thinking I love her any less :)?

From reading this, just show it to her. It says people can't spot the difference.

> people can't spot the difference

OK, story time:

Way back, a friend of mine in High School wanted to give his girlfriend a ring just randomly (for no occasion), so he bought a cheap one, like $10. So he's going to wrap it as a gift at home, and he needs a box. Asks his big sister, and he gets an unused proper ring box from a local jewellery store. Wraps gift, puts in girlfriend's mailbox as cute surprise, and when she opens it of course it's too small. So girlfriend takes box and ring to the jewellery store named on the box, and asks to swap it for one that fits. And the shop assistant doesn't spot it's a $10 ring, so girlfriend gets a nice silver/zirconium ring that fits, costing like $150. The day after she tells boyfriend she had to go to the store and swap it. After a few minutes he realises what's happened, but of course keeps very quiet to her about the true story, and enjoys his status as the super romantic/affectionate guy.

Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)

#79

Post by [deleted] »

joshkaufman wrote: post #66

I'm the OP - surprised to see this at the top of HN today, but happy to post a quick update: My wife and I have been happily married for ten years now. She loves her ring, and it has held up extremely well. (She just had the band resized, absolutely no issues with the stones.) No one has ever thought it was anything other than a diamond ring, which includes several years of daily scrutiny from crazy New York City bri…

[deleted]

Re: Diamonds Suck (2006)

#80

Post by dudul »

thebiglebrewski wrote: post #14

Can anyone give me advice on how to convince my girlfriend of this though without her thinking I love her any less :)?

I hope the ending :) indicates that you are joking. If this is a legitimate fear, I would strongly reconsider this relationship.
Post reply on HN