OILLINE, trust me, the diamond industry is a controlled and manipulated market... Gem Quality diamonds are not remotely as rare as DeBeer's et al want you to believe.
Yes there are many non Gemstone applications for diamonds....
Diamonds of huge size of gem quality like the Hope diamond are rare, however 1 ct and lower gem quality stones are not remotely as rare as the Diamond companies want you to believe. They are far more common than other gemstones... that's reality.
Its damn impressive that they have been able to keep such a scam going so long and such control over the marketplace/supply to such a degree. Trust me though, gem quality diamonds are not remotely as rare as the large diamond companies have conned folks into believing.
DeBeers executives can't visit the US or own property here, for fear of being sued or charged under anti-trust and/or RICO laws.