Am I the only one who fantasizes that the retail jewelry industry could play tough love with consumers – just tell them diamond retail prices have suddenly gone up 50% across the board? Of course, this assumes consumers or the government would buy such nonsense. Well, it was a nice dream while it lasted. Second fantasy. What if De Beers came to the conclusion diamond prices are just too high, as consumers have so often stated? It then plays tough love with its producing mines, saying that to keep the market alive, De Beers’ Central Selling Organisation must cut rough prices, forcing the closure of newly unprofitable mines. Nah, I don’t think that dream is going anywhere either. Who’s the demon in the industry’s tale of dwindling diamond profits? Finger-pointing abounds, most recently by the World Federation of Diamond Bourses and the International Diamond Manufacturers Asso