Friday, October 23, 2009

Leather or not?

Posted by Mickey Z on 10/23 at 10:05 AM
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  1. Thanks for posting this.  Nothing drives me more insane than this culture’s obsession with leather and it doesn’t get nearly enough press.  We can debate all day as to whether animal products are necessary for your diet, but there is absolutely no justification for leather.  We don’t need it.  It’s completely unnecessary and your article details how awful it is for the environment.

    Now it’s autumn and everyone’s wearing their leather jackets and women are wearing those tall, stylish leather boots.  I think it’s revolting, seriously.  And I’ve never understood why fur is attacked so vehemently by animal activists but leather gets a free pass. 

    My hippie friends like to tell me all the time that a shift in consciousness is happening.  I’ll believe it when I see people no longer choosing leather. 

    By the way, did anyone watch the documentary Earthlings?  In one scene it shows how India, a culture known for considering cows to be sacred, supplies plenty of its own cows to the leather industry.

    Posted by Charles from Jersey City  on  10/23  at  05:15 PM

  2. Thanks, Charles…

    It’s interesting to read your response because I was just saying literally the same thing about fur and was planning to make a fur-related post ("what’s happening as you read this, part III) but it’ll happen next week.

    I can understand someone debating meat. I disagree but I can understand the discussion. When it comes to fur and leather, there is no debate.

    Thanks again…

    Posted by Mickey Z. from Astoria  on  10/23  at  05:21 PM

  3. What irks me is how this is something that’s so easy to do as a form of green activism: simply don’t buy any leather.  It’s really that easy.

    Plastic water bottles can be tough because we all get thirsty and even I’m forced to buy the occasional bottle of Poland Spring when I’m out somewhere.  It’s difficult to avoid our insane car culture; driving can be necessary many times.  I can certainly understand people not wanting to change their diets, as that’s extremely tough and it took me years.  But leather?  Do anyone of us wake up and find ourselves in dire need of a leather handbag?  It’s never a necessity. 

    I really wish it were a bigger issue.

    Posted by Charles from Jersey City  on  10/23  at  05:54 PM

  4. It’s a telling indictment that folks can walk down the street in fur and leather without provoking shock and outrage.

    Posted by Mickey Z. from Astoria  on  10/23  at  06:21 PM

  5. How dare you assholes insult my fur coat and leather handbag collection!  Just kidding.

    “Earthlings” is indeed a good film for waking people up to the insanity of industrial meat culture.  We watched “Food, Inc” the other night and I was pretty stunned to hear Eric Schlosser call the All-American burger and fries his favourite meal.  I’m pretty sure the diner he was eating at in the film wasn’t serving grass-fed organic beef either. 

    Charles, I think perhaps your hippie friends might be correct (in some ways) about a change in consciousness, but I don’t see any corresponding change in consumption or action.  My big problem with much of the buddhist-pacifict community is that they seem content to live in their minds while the world goes further down the shit-hole.

    Posted by Mike from Cariboo, BC  on  10/23  at  06:40 PM

  6. Consciousness and awareness are vastly overrated.

    Posted by Mickey Z. from Astoria  on  10/23  at  08:57 PM

  7. Yeah, why do people like PETA need to waste resources on no-brainers like the fur industry? It’s just cruelty.

    But I’m going to hijack the thread, sorry.

    So, for the first time I did an online carbon footprint calculator thing. Now ... keep in mind these are the targets set by the political mainstream, and we all know they are super conservative. But I thought, what the hell.

    Now .. I did a quite comprehensive test. I even had to check bill to see exact electric use etc.

    There were three points of comparison once you were done. The USA/UK averages, the averages for your country (China for me) and then the 2050 target for the world.

    Now keep in mind - everyone ..everyone, has to make the 2050 target ...EVERYONE ...

    and ..I just made it in, literally a single point below the 2050 target ... and I use a bicycle daily with public transport 3 times a week, no car at all, vegetarian, small apartment with only basic appliances, haven’t flown at all in 5 years, live near my job and mainly read and do sports for hobbies. I go out once a week to hear music.

    ... that what I do, to just make the target that we ALL have to make ..

    I sat back, laughed and said out loud .. “we’re f*cked”

    Posted by Andy from shanghai  on  10/24  at  08:44 AM

  8. The hell with the apostrophe, Andy, we are fucked.

    Posted by Mickey Z. from Astoria  on  10/24  at  09:08 AM

  9. Yup

    And here’s the thing ... if they know that to avert disaster we have to go back to a more localized culture of work and life, with almost no private car use and vegetarian lifestyles.

    Then why aren’t they starting to organize that.

    Also, let put two and two together. If this is truly the case then sci-fi movies like Star Trek (saw the new one this week and liked it in a general sense) are the most dangerous propaganda.

    The only reason I can think of why they might not be getting their shit together is that they hope there’ll suddenly be a sci-fi style miracle alt-power source like the crystals in Star Trek.

    But really, WTF!

    We are all governed by lunatics.

    Posted by Andy from shanghai  on  10/24  at  09:23 AM

  10. It’s pretty alarming really.

    Governments seem hell-bent on subsidizing total destruction: huge GMO corn and soy monocultures to feed the CAFOs to feed super-sized North Americans who somehow pass their physicals to go and feed the miltary and corporations that plunder the Earth.

    I think the “Go Local” movement has a long ways to go.

    Fill in the blank quiz kids: WE’RE SO F_C_IN_ FUC_E_!

    Posted by Mike from Cariboo, BC  on  10/24  at  10:02 AM

  11. I think we just invented a new game show: Wheel of Misfortune.

    Posted by Mickey Z. from Astoria  on  10/24  at  11:05 AM

  12. On that note, I just put up a new post.

    I’ll see you there…

    Posted by Mickey Z. from Astoria  on  10/24  at  02:37 PM

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