Pneumatised!

Okay, I’ve already seen the movie, Blood Diamond starring Leonardo DiCaprio and I thought it was an excellent movie. The movie touches on a subject hard core and pulls no punches.

Then of course, Valentine’s Day rolls around (and I won’t even get into my rant on how Valentine’s Day is a Christian pervertion of a pagan tradition and how morbid it actually is since it’s on the day Valentine died) and there’s a bulletin on myspace.com about why you shouldn’t buy a synthetic diamond, although there is an extremely good reason why you should. Here’s my response to that bulletin:

In actuality, synthetic diamonds are marked synthetic so buyers can tell the difference. This was imposed by the major diamond corporations, so that people can get a “real” diamond. In fact, a synthetic diamond looks as good as any “real” diamond. Contrary to what people may say, it does cost to make a synthetic diamond because you still need a diamond piece to begin with. Though once you make one diamond you keep one piece out of a batch to keep making more.

Is the cost of a diamond what really matters? Is the value of a diamond worth more than life itself. See Leonardo’s new film, Blood Diamond, and then do some more research. The actor has stated in interviews that he will not buy a “blood diamond” (also known as a “conflict diamond”. (Kudos to Leonardo for standing up for something important! Note that obviously the movie would alienate many movie-goers and not pull in as much profit, yet he took the role anyway.)

The ring that my beloved gave to me does not cost as much as a diamond, but is worth much more than the dollar value attached to it (it cost around $350). My ring is an iolite stone set in silver with gold embedded in the silver (not gold-plated, but solid gold pieces). The stone itself is a beautiful indigo stone that tends to change colour according to the lighting. Sometimes it’s violet, sometimes it’s black. On top of this, the ring was completely hand-carved and shaped. They didn’t use a mold to make it. Because they didn’t use a mold, no one else will have this ring. It’s one of a kind and over time will probably be worth more, especially when the jewellery who made this isn’t around anymore.

A diamond is a diamond – you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all. I’d rather have the ring I have than any blood/conflict diamond – I value human life and my conscience more than any over-rated mass-marketed product (that is used to help a major corporation get richer while the rest of us struggle just to have a decent life) . If you really must buy a diamond, do the opposite of what De Beer’s intended and buy the synthetic one, the one labelled “conflict-free”. Your conscience will thank you.

Cassandrah
Brigid’s Flame