1. Why Engagement Rings Are a Scam — Adam Ruins Everything

Adam Conover walks through the 1938 campaign and why a used diamond is a rotten asset. Funny on purpose. The shortest version of this site.

2. If Girls Proposed to Guys — fatawesome

A woman is expected to buy an $8,000 lunchbox that just sits there. Swap “lunchbox” for “diamond.” That is the entire jewelry counter.

3. The Truth About Diamonds

Longer history: cartel, slogan, why resale would wreck the model. If someone says “but they’re rare,” send this.

4. The Real Reason We Buy Diamonds

N.W. Ayer, Frances Gerety, “A Diamond Is Forever,” product placement. The mechanics of the ad, not the geology.

5. The 1938 Marketing Scheme That Made Diamonds Valuable

Covers Epstein, Soviet stockpiles, price anchoring to salary. Denser than Adam. Good second watch.

6. Why Diamond Prices Are Crashing

The 2020s half of the story: lab-grown supply, demand falling, De Beers sitting on inventory.

7. Why De Beers Closed Lightbox

Lab-grown as a category De Beers tried to belittle, then fled when the price fell out of the floor. They are cheaper carbon. The crash is the point.