Posted on 07/14/2010 5:45:31 AM PDT by C19fan
Robert Mugabe has threatened to flood the world's diamond markets - despite being slapped down by the world's diamond control body. The Zimbabwean president said his nation's massive reserves of diamonds have 'huge potential' to revive the shattered economy. He said Zimbabwe can account for one-fourth of the world's diamond supply
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
Who is going to buy these diamonds, Mugabe? You can’t eat them.
Mugabe doesn’t understand that if he floods the market, the diamonds he has won’t be worth crap? God, what an idiot...
I hope he does.
“Diamonds”......that’ll shut her up....
That would be stupid. But DeBeers has had to deal with these threats before. They hold all the cards. Not Mugabe.............
It is a hard balance. Diamonds would be more ‘affordable’, but the offset is the attraction that diamonds are ‘rare’, and ‘expense’.
With the price of gold going up it will soon take a fairly large stone to be worth more than the gold in the ring.
Hey Mugabe. Remember when your country could feed itself and half of Africa?
What happened?
Just die already.
A lot of people would buy them. Supply and demand. So long as he can survive DeBeers, he can offer them for far less than the going rate and still make a big margin.
You have to give credit to DeBeers for maitaining this fake shortage for so long. From what I understand, Russia is sitting on a huge amount of diamonds in their vaults.
So how's he supposed to get these diamonds out of the ground with no infrastructure? Is it me or does he sound like a certain kenyan Marxist we all know and loathe?
He's happy to take 10% of what DeBeers gets.
I hope he does do this, because diamonds are a cartel and they deserve to be busted. It would be the first good deed Mugabe did in his life.
Mugabe is a nightmare, but it would be sweet to see him torpedo DeBeers into extinction.
Odd...you would think kicking out all those evil landowners and giving the land to the peasants would have fixed everything. I know Allende did the same thing in Chile, paying General Tire $1 for its tire plants there and... Oh, wait a minute...five years later, the plants closed due to lack of repair parts. But he went on to greater success when he... Oh, wait a minute... That's right: He got in his Mercedes one morning, turned the key, and both he and his Mercedes were blown up, throwing the car over a 20' wall. Hmmm...wonder if history really does repeat itself.
“Who is going to buy these diamonds, Mugabe? You can’t eat them.”
Thats why he’s trying to sell them. The world diamond monopoly won’t stand for it. This will ensure his downfall.
At least political prisoners in Zimbabwe will have jobs. [/sarc]
I recall sometime, long ago, when a lab made artificial diamonds so real that no one could tell the difference. The artificials were closely monitored - each having to be signed and numbered by the lab.
During that conversation (With Jose Grant) he mentioned several major markets that also traded Diamonds - not just the vanity markets. Releasing these Faux stones would have a greater impact than imagined.
Of course, at this point - it’s already collapsed. Have fun. Nothing short of a global revolution with a complete build-up based on our own original Constitution, backed by intelligent and far-sighted men will make things better.
I have a 10 year anniversary coming up. I'd be more than happy to purchase some discounted diamonds.
LOL! DO IT!!!!
Agreed, and well said.
Anyone remember a 60 Minutes segment with Ed Bradley in the Russian diamond vaults? They have tons of diamonds them. I remember him opening a drawer, holding a handful of 10 carat rocks. I don’t think Mugabe wants to pick this fight...however, he is deranged, so anything is possible.
I remember that. Probably DeBeers will cut some back room deal with Mugabe to keep him quiet.
Or the Russians will force-feed him 8000 carats of low-value industrial diamonds.
Which would be a hell of a statement.
Impractical - The wholesalers will boycott him & anyone else who tried to do this just like they have for a century.
I would be happy to see him killed.
A lot of people are distracted by bright and shiney objects. Reminds me of the beads for land trade the pilgrims pulled on native americans way back.
I am amazed Mugabe hasn’t been long ago “dealt with” and buried deep in various parts of Zimbabwe.
Many people think that Manhattan was bought for beads worth about $24. The Dutch did buy Manhattan in 1636 for trade goods worth (at the time) about 24 gold dollars. That is a lot now, but still almost nothing for this important piece of land.
Were trade beads part of the trade goods? Most history books say so, but it is not true. There is no proof that beads were used to buy Manhattan. The story was started by Martha Lamb in her book on New York history in 1877 (250 years after the purchase) and almost everyone has copied her since then. But it is just a story. There is no evidence that beads bought Manhattan.
You also have to remember that the vast majority of diamonds are purchased by the idustrial community as cutting surfaces and other utilitarian purposes, not as jewlery.
uh oh....you can thumb your nose at the UN, Euros, USA, maybe even the ChiComs...but get the DeBeers cartel angry at you and your days are numbered, pal!
But if Mugabe is smart enough to sell them off in increments at a moderate discount, he can continue to live large (while “his people” continue to starve).
Not saying you are wrong, but when I teach this lesson, I have my students consider the humble bead. Imagine making a bead by hand using stone age tools. Under those circumstances, the smaller the bead, the more valuable—since a small bead would be so difficult to make. A handful of small beads would represent a small fortune to Indians—and the East Coast Indians did use beads as a form of currency.
Hey, Mugs, just do it! Screw your South African ‘brothers’.
He does.
He wants a bribe NOT to do this.
“Hmmm...wonder if history really does repeat itself.”
It will if he jacks with the diamond cartel. That’s not like threatening the pussy politicians, UN etc. His best bet is to make enough noise to be paid off but not enough to be taken out.
Also, how many people even understand the quality descriptors for diamonds?
It has been about 15 years since I needed to purchase diamonds at wholesale. Our supplier, who is a very honest man, told us to try to convince the client to switch to something else, as the quality was uniformly low-end. At that time, a full carat commercial gem quality was selling for around $3k.
Investment quality is another market, entirely. Except for celebrities and the very, very wealthy, they are not usually readily available.
Most other stones are heat-treated at the mine or the created varieties are available, better looking and way cheaper. I think Tanzanite may still be only available in natural form, but I have been out of the market for so long, that I am not sure of that. We also used to look for estate sources of large, old Brazilian emeralds, which we could then have re-cut (they are soft and become scratched).
The color is vastly superior to the prevalent Columbian stones.
Wonder if he's smart enough to know where that line is drawn?
Not unlike a lot of 'written' history I'm sure. One of the reasons I come to this site is for enlightenment, and I get a lot of it. Thanks for the school'n.
>>Who is going to buy these diamonds, Mugabe?<<
Cheap sparklies?
I’d buy them, and I know alot of people who would too.
Would be great to wear a nice diamond (or several), not worry about insuring or losing it, as you can run to the store and pick up more inexpensively.
Besides, hell hath no fury like a husband who discovers the wife has lost her pricey rock (speaking from experience here)
The only difference between diamonds and gold is that we haven’t found the huge supply of gold that would require direct manipulation to prop up the market like we have for diamonds.
Diamonds are like beanie babies; only valuable because the “manufacturer” has deliberately limited the supply while hyping the demand. And at any time, that “manufacturer” can decide they need more money and open up the supply chain, ruining the value of the existing holders.
+1
So....
Beware of a "Looney in disguise with diamonds."
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