Thinking of buying diamonds for your Valentine?

[Sunni Daez]

I don't wear Jewelry...I hate roses (they smell like a funeral home) Wildflowers, hand picked mean so much more...
Attention is the greatest gift! It costs nothing but time....

[HoH]

You know what would make my Valentine's Day (and possibly make me stop cursing all the guys?)?

I actually just want to get asked to the dance. No way in hell am I going to a Valentine's day dance alone. Nope.


But, considering my past dating record, its a 100% chance of staying home and watching South Park instead.

[west]

but i did just buy myself a sexy lil number "for valentine's"

I don't understand the appeal of 'sexy underwear' / lingerie. As far as I'm concerned, whatever it is, I just want to take it off...

Consider it classy wrapping paper on the best present ever.

[Stan]

That's not a bad analogy.

I love unwrapping gifts.

[Agar]

Did somebody die for that diamond?

Nobody I knew personally, therefore, I don't care.

Was slave labour used?

I wasn't made a slave for it, so again, I don't care.

Was child labour used?

Snot nosed little squatters have been putting hard working adults out of jobs long enough anyway. I hope some responible 18 year old opium addict was mining diamonds, rather than a 6 year old that just wanted a bowl of watered down rice.

Have the profits gone to war lords?

As a card carrying member of the Helzberg Diamons Milita, I hope so. Those profits are my pay.

Seriously. WTF. "That search engine is evil, don't use it." What part of you is dysfunctional enough to take everything you hear as propganda and scour the information superhighway to find the misguided voice of dissent that you tout as truth?

http://members.iimetro.com.au/~hubbca/environment.htm

Look, even the enviromentalists are lying to you. Everyone is out to get you, they all want you to believe thier lie. Everything is an illusion, the truth is forever shrouded in mystery. There is NO spoon.

Take your soapbox back to your website. I've clicked on your signature several times, keep your sermons limited to that, because that works, where this "discussion" here just irritates me and makes me want to activly dismember your arguments, but since you've bought into thier propganda, you'll never listen either.

There. I feel better. Now I'm gonna wrangle up a mess of baby seals with my Caterpillar and club them with Coke bottles. Everyone's invited to my sweat shop for BBQ afterwards. Wouldn't want to waste anything.

[edit] Oh, and STFU. [/edit]

[colonel]

I can't even afford a card. But a kiss from me should be fine right?

[Coramon]

With those fish lips don't count on it.

O wait... this isn't the flame game? Damn!

[colonel]

Do I have to remind you coromoo about our conversation before?

*Slaps him in the back of the head again.*


Now shh, non post whores are talking here.

--------------------------------------------------

My wife doesn't like diamonds, or that is what she told me.

[formerly known as hf]

Seriously. WTF. "That search engine is evil, don't use it." What part of you is dysfunctional enough to take everything you hear as propganda and scour the information superhighway to find the misguided voice of dissent that you tout as truth?

http://members.iimetro.com.au/~hubbca/environment.htm

Er? Are you trying to criticise my belief of the 'misguided voice of dissent' by linking to something that is so misguided and so steeped in unprobable conspiracy? I might not hold conventional beliefs, but they are at least somewhat mainstream, the link above sounds more rabid than anything else.

they all want you to believe thier lie. Everything is an illusion, the truth is forever shrouded in mystery.

Something I agree with, at least ontologically. Truth is indeed something which does not exist in a single form, everyone is lying and telling the truth, at the same time. It depends on personal definitions of truth.
Our understanding is indeed only an illusion, one created and upheld by ourselves and those of the society we are situated within. 'Dissident' views are indeed an illusion, of another form, but one which I think can help to foster an illusion that does not hide the deep inequalities of existence.

this "discussion" here just irritates me

I hardly forced you to read this against your own will? I'm not even sure I care if it irritates anyone anyway, it's probably a good thing.

Is the meat on your BBQ free range?

[Coramon]

Yeah.. anyways Instead of buying diamonds, I'm getting her the cd with the song, "Diamonds from Sierra Leone."

[AoM]

The decision to not buy a diamond is not going to bring about an end to brutality in the world.

-truth

[Phalynx]

The decision to not buy a diamond is not going to bring about an end to brutality in the world.

-truth

The decision to not buy a gun does not bring about an end to brutality in the world, but it cant do any damage and it might help a little bit!

Every Little Helps!

[Stan]

Ok...I have to call BS on this thread.

Remember the boycotting Denmark thread when you said NOT to boycott Denmark because of the actions of a few people. But now you're saying to boycott an entire industry because of the actions of a few people. Not everyone in the diamond business are crooks or slave masters.

I believe in boycotting whoever you want for whatever reason you want...free market. But, I think you are being hypocritical here.

[formerly known as hf]

I never said to boycott the whole industry, that certainly wasn't what I intended. And I wouldn't agree with that.

There has been a move to introduce a 'conflict free' diamond label (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3834677.stm) and I would suggest that people buying diamonds buy diamonds with that label

[Phalynx]

Ok...I have to call BS on this thread.

Thats fair enough but, being the empiricist rather than an aesthetic, why should anyone risk life and limb so that something subjectively beautiful can hang of a man or womans finger or ear, or even nipple....

Even more so when there is definate exploitation and the profits are used to fund an army that systematically terrorises and rapes a population... (as an example).

I think its a fair question to ask, whether is diamonds, trainers or chocolate, who is getting stiffed for you to look spohisticated/cool or save a few pennies on soemthing you dont need anyway!