the_dunk_tank

Even if it were fully ethical under communism, even if I made it myself, I wouldn't get my partner a diamond because it's boring. It's a gaudy boomer gem that's as commodified as the red rose or the white wedding. If I get them flowers, I go for whatever has the best smell. If I get them a gem, it's going to be some kind of art nouveau goblin thing. Quartzite from a hike we like would be more meaningful than a diamond. Much cheaper gems look way more interesting and aren't generic shit marketed to our grandparents.

So the article quotes one “diamond expert” Paul Zimnisky poo-pooing artificial diamonds. Now according to Mr. Zimnisky’s website:

Disclosure: As of January 2024, Paul Zimnisky held a long equity position in Lucara Diamond Corp, Brilliant Earth Group, Star Diamond Corp and Newmont Corp. Paul is an independent board member of Lipari Diamond Mines, a privately-held Canadian company with an operating diamond mine in Brazil and a development-stage asset in Angola.

So yep, child slavers as qualified experts.

always a good sign when the term "sustainable" is flattened down to a childish analysis with a narrow interpretation of environmental stewardship.

is burning coal sustainable? no. it's a fossil fuel. also, mining coal is fucked. that doesn't make it less sustainable than child exploitation and slavery. but, besides that morally bankrupt calculus... the lab-grown diamond has the potential of being generated through more sustainable/renewable energy production, which is why electrification is a decarbonization strategy.

the way the author regurgitates the "earth-grown" stone rebrand reeks of the kind of greenwashing that the article's thesis is supposedly centered around. this is someone who has never laid eyes on a strip mine or seen spoilage, mine drainage, headwaters smothered in overburden or tailings pond failure. but they do have an MS in environmental science from Univ Toronto, and Canada is the worst offender on the planet for deregulated and liability-dodging exploitative mining interests... so kudos.

digging giant holes in the earth is extremely fucked across the board. if you can synthesize something without digging a big hole, you're moving in the right direction.

Sometimes I forget humans are just animals that give each other shiny rocks with extra steps

Still would rather a lab-grown diamond made on fossil fuel than a "genuine earth-born diamond" that has the blood of african children coating every facet of it. Better my money go to China than a bunch of genocidal crackers who'd spend my money murdering more brown folk.