Poll: Diamonds! Are Worthless Little Chunks Of Worthless Rock...

[Veylon]

You can not actually be certain some of those diamonds in stores are not in fact conflict diamonds, they can not 100% guarantee such.

You can never be 100% sure of anything. Your cell phone may contain conflict-cobaltine from the Congo, the oil made into gas for your car may have funded Islamic terrorists, the particle board in your furniture may come from Siberian larch hewed by North Korean slave laborers. You never know.

Conflict-free diamonds are supposed to have documentation tracing back to their mine. Make sure to ask for it. Diamonds are far better kept track of than the above resources. Or just get one of those made-in-the-USA manufactured diamonds that've never been anywhere near a conflict zone.

I guess every law enforcement agency in the world is working with faulty information, perhaps you should contact them telling them all diamonds ever sold have legitimate documentation.

Key words are "supposed to have". And the Kimberly Certification system has only been around since 2000. But if you want to minimize the chance of picking up a Blood Diamond, this is the way to go.

 

[The White Hunter]

*mild facepalm*

Value and worth are collectively determined things. If enough people believe something has great worth then it does. Period. Everything else is irrelevant. It will even have worth to someone who regards it as worthless because it gives them leverage over the people who believe it has worth.

I bet if someone gifted you a whole suitcase full of completely legal, high grade diamonds you wouldn't say, "Oh, diamonds, these are so worthless, lol, I'm gonna chuck 'em in the bin." You'd say, "Fuck yeah, diamonds! These things are worth a packet!".

Also, status symbols are useful. You can ***** about how shallow it is until the cows come home, but if something raises you in the eyes of your peers then it is useful.

As for whether or not I'd use diamonds to propose... eh, never really given it any thought.

Actually, it just occurred to me, I'd probably prefer to use an opal. I just think they're prettier:

Those opals are indeed very pretty, It hink I'd prefer them too.

OT: My gf doesn't want diamonds, they cost to much and I'd rather they were used for industrial purposes. Dunno if you're aware, but those things are fucking useful for cutting everything.

 

[Rumpsteak]

Will I use a diamond? who knows, I sure don't.

I much prefer a plain metal ring of either silver or gold but it'll most likely come down to the type my partner prefers. It's just decoration to me after all.

 

[Xaryn Mar]

But a diamond-and-gold ring remains as it was when it was first bought forever.

Nope, not forever.
Diamond actually degrades into graphite over time if kept at atmospheric pressure (granted it takes quite a long time on human timescales). They are only truly stable at high pressure.
Diamond are also quite fragile to crushing so hit it with a hammer (or hard enough into a wall) and it will shatter.

But the gold will remain as it was when bought (if nothing happens to it).

 

[2HF]

Just a quick thing, I see this come up a lot. Don't use this thread to whine about how you are forever alone. If you truly believe that then clearly the poll question wasn't meant for you. Stop being whiny and go ask someone out. The worst they can do is say no.

And since YOU brought it up, if it were that bloody easy don't you think I would've done that???

Setting aside our differing opinions on diamonds, it really is though. I'm not gonna lie, your knees will turn to jelly and you won't be able to move but that affects gets less and less severe every time you do it. And it's exhilarating. Another quick tip, he/she is not going to humiliate you if they say no. They will let you down easy. Give it a shot! Good luck!

 

[Canadamus Prime]

Just a quick thing, I see this come up a lot. Don't use this thread to whine about how you are forever alone. If you truly believe that then clearly the poll question wasn't meant for you. Stop being whiny and go ask someone out. The worst they can do is say no.

And since YOU brought it up, if it were that bloody easy don't you think I would've done that???

Setting aside our differing opinions on diamonds, it really is though. I'm not gonna lie, your knees will turn to jelly and you won't be able to move but that affects gets less and less severe every time you do it. And it's exhilarating. Another quick tip, he/she is not going to humiliate you if they say no. They will let you down easy. Give it a shot! Good luck!

I have other issues that plague me on top of the usual ones guys face when trying to ask out girls/women. Although it has gotten better, I still somewhat fear social situations.
Besides that when exactly am I supposed to do this? A work? Because that's really the only time I see women I might want to ask out and they might find it kind of creepy for the cashier at Home Hardware to be asking them out. And don't you DARE tell me I need to get out more (sorry, don't mean to be rude or anything). I'm an atheist, I hate going to bars and clubs and whatever, and I'm not into sports, so what else am I supposed to do?

 

[Ahiru77]

I guess the poll results show that majority of users on this forum prefer other gemstones. They're not like me, someone who calls every transparent shiny rock a diamond.

 

[AngloDoom]

This is one of those threads I just don't understand.

Do you need to justify a tie or a piercing by their resale value? Do you wear only the most comfortable and functional clothes because you literally do not care about your appearance?

Honestly, I don't understand.

 

[Daverson]

IMHO, Diamonds are a bit... well, tacky. If I were to propose to someone, it'd have to be special, right? So why something that's only value is that someone has decided it's expensive? Pretty sure the best thing would be something that actually shows devotion. Haven't decided exactly what, yet. A rare flower hand-picked and preserved in some way seems like a good choice.

 

[2HF]

-snip-

Asking coworkers out has resulted in my enjoyment of 2 of the most glorious sets of breasts I've ever laid eyes on. Work is a perfectly viable area for this. You also have access to customers. You don't like bars, that's fine. I'd never recommend bars anyway. Dating sites are always an option. Swallow your pride if that's what has kept you from it. There are always options.

 

[sonofliber]

i like the whole, its a show of love and commitment, i dont know but every time someone mentions that, i cant avoid thinking of the girl looking at the ring while the husband is banging his secretary/coworker/maid/random whore at a motel.

yeah a material thing really shows undeniable love and commitment <.<

its the same with clothing why woman pay obsene amounts of money for cloth that most of the time looks like crap and doesnt fit them?, because they were told since little that expensive stuff = better person, and better person = superior to the rest and that they are admired because of their wealth (this also applies to men)

in short: because people do what they are told, to show they are more succesfull than their fellow people

 

[Canadamus Prime]

-snip-

Asking coworkers out has resulted in my enjoyment of 2 of the most glorious sets of breasts I've ever laid eyes on. Work is a perfectly viable area for this. You also have access to customers. You don't like bars, that's fine. I'd never recommend bars anyway. Dating sites are always an option. Swallow your pride if that's what has kept you from it. There are always options.

I'm just going to ignore your comment about breasts, and say that pretty much all my female coworkers are either too young, spoken for, or old enough to be my mother. And yeah, I already mentioned the problem with customers. Although there has been many an attractive woman that's come through the store.

 

[Marcus Kehoe]

Well by the time I find someone and want to get married I don't think i'll give to shit's to what I propose with, in all honesty I like the ideas of proposing with an empty box and having her pick the ring.

 

[Baldry]

What?! And spoil the chance to propose with this badboy http://www.wetanz.com/the-one-ring/

I think not.

 

[Kennetic]

SNIP

 

[EeveeElectro]

Spoiler: I'm more or less like this around diamonds and jewels

They're definitely not worthless. Not just them being expensive, but the fact that your spouse would spend that much money as a token of their love.

I'd love a diamond, even if it was a glass diamond. Not that anyone wants to particularly marry me but I'd appreciate any ring to be honest, as long as his heart is in it.

Maybe not an onion ring though.

 

[Rblade]

value is something humans assign to objects or materials. So if the market says it's valuable, for whatever reason, boom. It's valuable. It is related to rarity and usefullness, but at the end of the day it's what people are willing to pay for it.

and at the end of the day, diamonds are pretty to look at due to all the twinkly lights (I gave that Homo sapian some twinkly lights, homo sapains love twinkly lights) and hard to obtain.

 

[2HF]

-snip-

Asking coworkers out has resulted in my enjoyment of 2 of the most glorious sets of breasts I've ever laid eyes on. Work is a perfectly viable area for this. You also have access to customers. You don't like bars, that's fine. I'd never recommend bars anyway. Dating sites are always an option. Swallow your pride if that's what has kept you from it. There are always options.

I'm just going to ignore your comment about breasts, and say that pretty much all my female coworkers are either too young, spoken for, or old enough to be my mother. And yeah, I already mentioned the problem with customers. Although there has been many an attractive woman that's come through the store.

It's real easy to just keep making excuses for the rest of your life and never make any progress. I can't push because you'll dig in your heels and this will go nowhere.

When you're ready it will happen. You'll see the girl and maybe you'll fight it for awhile but the day will come when those words will spill out with no input on your part. On that day I hope you're sitting down because I wasn't kidding about the knees going to jelly. Standing is still possible but walking won't be easy.

 

[Sable Gear]

I don't know shit about love, but I know a little about economics.

It's called a Veblen good. A good people want BECAUSE of how expensive it is. With most Veblen goods like rare art and expensive luxury cars are bought to show off how rich you are, to flaunt wealth. You buy a diamond because it proves you're willing to give up a lot to make the other person happy. If diamonds were common and therefore cheap nobody would bother with them.

Also known by Bio majors as "conspicuous consumption," it's a mark of evolutionary fitness to be able to put a lot of resources into something useless (eg. a Peacock's tail) for the sake of impressing a mate. It says "Hey, look how much I can afford to use up because my access to resources is stable! Choose me!"

In that sense, I have no qualms because it's just nature doing it's thing. Personally, I don't much care for the idea of the diamond ring (don't care for the look of diamonds, don't wear much jewelry, don't even really like the idea of marriage because I find it archaic- but that's an argument for another thread). There has to be a more practical, less objectionable (I've seen some people mention blood diamonds here) way to conspicuously consume to attract a mate.

(On the other hand getting a lab-grown diamond would be an acceptable gesture from someone who understands my love of science. I still wouldn't wear it, though, I think they're tacky.)