I would say that death threats can have very real-world consequences, and if I were to receive them the real-world consequence would be that I would be scared for my life. You tell me how that isn't the real world..
And people ask why more women don't speak at conferences or at meetup groups or contribute to open source software, or even publish blogs. It's because we are SCARED. We know what the consequences of making our voices heard can be, and it's terrifying, and we question whether it is worth the risk.
As someone experiencing grief for the first time one and a half weeks ago, I'm beginning to understand that bizarreness of grief - the ups and downs, that void..
A lot of people I've spoken to who have experienced grief tell me the same thing - that it will never be ok, but that you can become more ok with it - that you will have moments where you briefly forget and that you get more of these moments over time. I could never have understood this emotion before - I thought it was like in the movies where you're constantly crying, but it's a lot more complex and strange than that..
Just like the gold Apple iPhone, or other luxury items, those who can afford such things will create the market for it. I don't see how diamonds are any different to other luxury goods.
Let those who can afford it buy it, I'm sure it gives pleasure to many people. It's also a status symbol - just like cars, luxury watches, handbags etc.