The "Die"Mond Debate

My first experience as a child with diamonds probably took place at a JC Penny's type store in the mall while shopping with my mom. Becoming bored with walking through aisle after aisle of women's clothing, I most likely ventured off to the middle of the store where they kept all the shiny stuff in the large display cases. The visual stimulation of the sparkling diamonds is what sparked my curiosity and drew me closer. At this point in my life, I'd say I only knew the basics:
1. Diamonds were very expensive
2. Only grown-ups could buy and wear diamonds
3. Husbands gave diamond rings to their wives when they got married
As far as I was concerned, Diamonds were just something fun to look at.
Fast forward to today...
Since I am only 18 years old, the idea of confessing my love to my significant other and showering her with diamonds hasn't exactly crossed my mind.
I must confess, my knowledge of conflict diamonds before this school year began was very limited. I had heard of the concept of "blood diamonds" before, but that was about it. The past two weeks of class have figuratively opened my eyes to a very serious problem. However, even after learning of the terrible tragedies occuring in numerous African countries, my views on diamonds have not changed much.
In order to cover myself, let me say this first...The idea of consumers purchasing "conflict-free" diamonds only is excellent, and I say bravo to all the groups who advocate for this change. I know that if I were to buy a diamond, I would sleep better at night knowing the ring on my finger was clean, and not tarnished by being the product of the bloodshed of others.
However, we must remember diamond companies are out to make a profit. If it costs a company half as much to pruchase conflict diamonds when compared to conflict-free diamonds, the company will choose the cheapest means of production every single time. At the end of the day, what do they care? They made money. As horrible as this sounds, that is just the way things are...
In regard to the song lyrics
While Shirley Bassey's "Diamonds are Forever" does leave out the important details of diamond mining and marketing, how can we fault her? It is not her responsibility to educated us on conflict diamonds or the goings on in Sierra Leone.
Although Kanye West's "Diamonds from Sierra Leone remix" seems to tell the true story of diamond mining, I have my reservations. While his information may be correct, Kanye has a tarnished image in my mind. I don't think I will ever be able to look past his "George Bush don't care about black people" statement he made earlier this year. As far as I know, the song was written for entertainment purposes (i.e. the James Bond films)
Furthermore, how effective are his lyrics anyway? I'd be willing to bet that more than half of the people who have listened to or own his cd, have not even realized the message of the song. They just like it because it sounds good. Think about it... How often do we actually listen to the words in the music we download.
I do believe that counter-story telling can be effective, if done correctly. However, in the case of Shirley Bassey and Kanye West, the connection is not there.
((Alan))