Beef would probably be considerably more expensive if leather weren’t it’s by-product. Think of how much a leather coat is? Activists don’t get up in arms about sheepskin either, for some reason. People in North America don’t generally eat mutton or lamb, so what happens to the rest of the sheep? Again, I think it’s partially a class thing. Sheepskin is associated with hippies and rugged outdoorsy types so it must be OK.

People don’t like plastic shoes -why?- because they aren’t durable, they’re uncomfortable because they don’t adjust themselves to the wearer’s foot, and they don’t usually look that good either. People love leather. It’s waterproof, windproof, affordable, attractive, and durable.

We live in a society where some people are paranoid about wearing a vintage coat with a fur collar collar out and a about (seriously, I have a 1920s coat with a fox collar and I’ve had questions, though people were more surprised than offended that it was real, real people being rare where I come from). I mean, people are afraid to wear fur where I live in Ottawa where winter temperatures get down to -30C. I know people who own a vintage store near Toronto and they say the vintage furs fly off the racks when the temperatures fall below -15C. Fur coats are criminally silly in Miami but in cold climates, it makes sense to wear a vintage mink. I have one and I’m sweating in it at -20C. No wool coat would do that for you and those artificial coats usually only go down to your hips.

Whether you wear it or eat it.. its still breading an animal to be killed

Leather is a by product of the meat industry. The skins left over from the huge quantities of beef the western world consumes. A farming industry that also causes massive levels of gas pollution from the livestock.

Fur is not a by product of anything. People don’t eat mink!

I would much rather people stop trying to argue that fur is acceptable and just be honest and say you don’t care instead of trying to argue a case for it that doesn’t exist. You talk like fur farms do the animals a favour.

Your rationale that the use of leather and fur are even CLOSE is ridiculous!

People need to gain some perspective here: The forests and jungles of the earth are not Walt Disney World. There are horrible things that go on in them every day (and night)–365 days a year. Also, we do wear leather (most of us anyway), and it is absurd to make such an issue over fur, when so much animal skin is being procured for shoes, purses, jackets, car interiors, etc. I’ve seen people walking around in long leather coats mocking fur wearers. I’ve lost count of the Hollywood starlets I’ve seen sporting Christian Louboutin python or lizard or alligator skin shoes who are also openly “anti-fur”. It’s okay to kill a reptile for fashion but not a rodent? The hypocrisy is rampant. I can make a case that a fur coat has more practical value than a pair of lizard shoes–at least the fur keeps one warm and protected against the elements. Lizard or snakeskin shoes are pure indulgence.

And, while I’m on the subject of rodents, let’s not forget people that most fur comes from just that–RODENTS (i.e. mink, sable, etc.). These are animals that multiply exponentially–in the wild or in captivity. We have lost so much perspective on this that all fur is lumped together now as being “evil”.

Finally, animals raised on fur ranches in the U.S. and most of the western world are not abused. In fact, the average life expectancy of a ranch-raised animal is longer than if it was born in the wild. Further, there is no benefit to the rancher to abuse the animals. In fact, they have every reason to treat them as well as possible–it results in higher quality fur. All licensed fur ranches in the U.S. comply with standards established by the veterinarians. Don’t believe me, look it up.

Virtually all textile products can be remodelled, passed on to younger brothers and sisters, or donated to charities and thus are “recyclable” or “reusable”. It is meaningless to claim that fur is recyclable or reusable because virtually all fabrics are. How is fur any more recyclable than any other fabric?

There are many ecological problems and risks inherent in raising and killing animals on large scales for consumer purposes. For example, a recently released report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, warns that the worldwide livestock industry has become a significant contributor of land degradation as well as air and water pollution, and the largest sectoral source of animal wastes, antibiotics, hormones, chemicals from tanneries, and fertilizers and pesticides used for feed crops.

Consider the chemicals and harsh treatment that must be necessary to turn an animal (fur) skin, unnaturally and cruelly peeled off the tissue of a live creature, into a consumer product to be worn against human skin and stored in our closets, without decaying and collecting bugs.

The Encyclopaedia of International Labour Organization states that the chemicals commonly used to process fur include acids, hydrogen peroxide, chromates, formaldehyde, bleaching agents, and various types of dyes. Many of these are potential skin irritants. Formaldehyde is classified as a human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, and a probable human carcinogen by the US Environmental Protection Agency. Chromates, depending on the type of compounds, can cause breathing problems and other health issues.

Personally? I don’t wear fur or leather and I believe that ANY action that someone can take to reduce suffering of animals, the planet or other people (ie. workers) is worthwhile.

Whether you just don’t wear fur, or you eat vegetarian once a week or you support a charity – random acts of kindness add up.

We are all on a spectrum of evolution and change and we need to keep challenging ourselves to do less harm.

To answer your question, I do a little of column A, and a little of column B depending on what my needs are.