If you liked it then you should have put a ring on it,
Don’t be mad once you see that he want it,
If you liked it then you should have put a ring on it."
- Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)
I've been hearing this song on the radio lately, and it cracks me up. Beyonce knows what she's talking about. Although the feminist in me is more than a little offended by being called "it", like a cow that needs to be branded with her owner's initials, the song's underlying point is valid: Make a commitment to the girl, or sooner or later, the girl will walk away. (Sounds much more empowering that way, doesn't it?)
Honestly, I could care less about the ring for its own sake. After all, it's just a pretty little thing that was dug up out of the ground, given some authentic value as an object of beauty and some arbitrary value as an object of monetary worth, then slipped onto a finger to be admired. But I adore what it stands for. No one should really need an object to hold in their hand that expresses love, honor, and commitment, but it is wonderful to know that someone cares enough to give you one.
Andy and I had talked some about what exactly I wanted in a ring. It sounds a little silly, but I have to admit that Leonardo DiCaprio is the one who instilled my desire to wear a conflict-free diamond. I did not want to celebrate our love with an expensive object that may have financed gross human rights violations. After doing some research, I came to the conclusion that I wanted either 1) a Canadian diamond, 2) a man-made diamond, or 3) no diamond at all.
There are pros and cons to each. Andy had his heart set on a diamond, and he wanted it to be 
something he could be proud of, too, so options 2 and 3 were out. That left Canadian diamonds, which unlike those in most parts of the world, have a few brands that track their diamonds from the mine to the store. They even etch a microscopic maple leaf into the stone along with the serial number.
I will grant that option 1 is not fool-proof. Other than driving to a diamond mine, digging the thing out, cutting it, polishing it, and setting it into a ring all by yourself, you can never be 100% sure that what you are wearing is what the people who sold it to you told you you were wearing. Stones can get mixed up in the middleman shuffle. I am choosing to trust the Canadians to do the right thing.
Not to mention, many people have concerns about the environmental damage that is done by mining of any type, including the gold that goes into the band. Furthermore, I haven't looked too closely into how my Adidas tennis shoes (or almost anything else that I buy) are being manufactured and sold, so maybe I'm being more than a little hypocritical. I will try to justify myself by pointing out that I do not have the resources to sustain myself completely independently of all other humans, and I don't want to try. It isn't reasonable to ask me to investigate every single thing that I consume. I'm just doing the little bit that I can.
On the other side of the discussion, some might say that the existence of conflict diamonds has been way overblown. DiamondFacts.org says, "Conflict diamonds have been reduced from approximately 4% to considerably less than 1% since the implementation of the Kimberley Process in 2003." However, I could not find any recent numbers to back up either side of the argument. It may indeed be a very small number, but I don't exactly see the World Federation of Diamond Bourses and the International Diamond Manufacturers Association as disinterested parties. Pardon me for retaining a little bit of doubt about the statistics that DeBeers provides.
I will absolutely agree with another point that they make, though, which is that the diamond industry does bring jobs and money to some parts of the world that have precious little else to support their economy. I don't want to take away someone's livelihood, but I don't want to support corrupt corporations and governments, either. Nothing is ever as black and white as we'd like it to be.
On the bright side, my ring is beautiful, I love it, and I'll wear it forever!
