Exactly. The ring is not for you and your wife will be wearing this for the rest of her life if all goes well. If you are unwilling to give her something extravagant because you value paper money so much more, then you’re not ready to go through with the sacrifices that come with a marriage. If your wife wants a diamond, but you want to control your wife and bend her to your will of not having a diamond, you can try and you might succeed, but there will be some resentment every time she sees it on her finger and this will not be an issue that just fades away. Expect to hear it echoing for a long time. Do you want your marriage proposal to be associated with an argument, disagreement, or even a compromise?
On the other hand, a loving relationship and marriage is worth much more than a diamond ring ever could be. When you have a caring wife and you both love and help each other you’ll get an immeasurable improvement in your life.
To conclude, yes it’s overpriced, yes there are problems with diamond mining, yes DeBeers artificially controls the supply, and yes you can find a rarer stone for less, or something more exotic, but your wife wants a diamond, so you buy a diamond and hopefully live a happy life.
On the other hand, a loving relationship and marriage is worth much more than a diamond ring ever could be. When you have a caring wife and you both love and help each other you’ll get an immeasurable improvement in your life.
To conclude, yes it’s overpriced, yes there are problems with diamond mining, yes DeBeers artificially controls the supply, and yes you can find a rarer stone for less, or something more exotic, but your wife wants a diamond, so you buy a diamond and hopefully live a happy life.