On Diamonds

Just Rocks

Why are diamonds more valuable than water?
The answer is simple: they aren’t.
A diamond is a form of solid carbon, which is one of the primary elements found in the Earth’s crust, and inherent to its condition-- it is a rock and nothing more.

The value of a diamond is purely literary anymore, as once sung by Marilyn Monroe:

A kiss on the hand,
May be quite Continental, but
Diamonds are a girl’s Best Friend

Tell that to the teenage girls who slave in the pits of Zambia for De Beers, and they will likely spit in the dirt at your feet.

Diamonds used to have value according to the precise and intricate cuts, by which the jeweler brought forth the beauty from a rough stone, but given the laser guided technology used in contemporary markets on laboratory created industrial diamonds, it is difficult to understand why anyone would value them more than any other piece of mass-produced crap.

Pure water, on the other hand, is close becoming a scarcity on a planet with a burgeoning population of more than 6 billion people, and since human beings cannot survive more than 3 days without fresh water, small comfort indeed would one find even an entire glittering dune of "sparkling diamonds."

1 2 3 4


1 “Diamond is a form of carbon that crystallizes in the highest symmetry known as the cubic crystal system. It possesses a hardness far surpassing that of any other substance known in nature.” http://www.a-diamonds.com

2 6,457,828,806 According the the United State Census Bureau, International Programs Center

3 In elemental form, Carbon has two common forms. If the atoms are arranged symmetrically, it forms diamond. If the atoms are arranged in layers, it forms graphite. The Periodic Kingdom by P. W. Atkins

4 Douglas S. Ritter & Equipped To Survive Foundation, Inc.