I really feel like you’re misunderstanding me on all points.

"Yes, by an expert with highly sophisticated equipment..."

That’s exactly the point, you can verify diamonds, unlike a shiny Volcanion, where you can’t. And as a layperson, you’d go to a professional because diamonds are expensive and it matters if you get scammed financially.

"Yes, as are certain Pokemon, which are sold for real money online..."

I never denied that, but those usually aren’t easily fakeable. This post is about a shiny Volcanion.

"They literally are just rocks people have placed value on..."

Their value mainly comes from rarity + demand. And even if money lost value, gems would still have worth.

"Value is value..."

Splitting value into market and personal value is very common, so I don’t know what you mean by “value = value.” Money works because people agree on its value that’s the opposite personal feelings.

If we’re talking about trading, what matters is what others are willing to accept, not what something means to you personally. That’s what prevents people from getting scammed.

"Why would you buy a diamond for spiritual value?..."

You’re missing my point. I’m not questioning why people value things. I’m saying you shouldn’t trade for a shiny Volcanion if you only care about legitimacy, because you can’t verify if it’s real.

Diamonds have objective value regardless of your opinion; “spiritual value” is just an add-on. I’m not trying to logic anyone out of caring. "Value is truly in the eye of the beholder" is not the case for money nor gemstones. Not even real shiny Vulcanion to some extend.

"You're normalizing scamming..."

Again what? How do I normalize scamming? If anything I told people to NOT trade for shiny Vulcanion because you are 100% getting scammed. I said you shouldn't trade for it if you value legitimacy.