Fur Your Consideration

On my last trip to New York I made my first fur purchase ever. I don’t even know if it’s real. I found it at a flea market. Classy, I KNOW. But it’s in beautiful shape, it was only $60, and it doesn’t have an odor (always a plus), so I went for it.

Besides, I have always wanted a fur muff.

INSERT JOKE HERE.

Problem is, this didn’t happen without a few pangs of guilt. I’ve never purchased real fur (to my knowledge), and would never go to a retail store to buy a new fur item. Too much for my conscience and my pocketbook.

That’s odd… who the f*ck still says pocketbook?

So I have to ask myself: how is this different from buying leather products? Or eating meat? Aren’t the reasons for banning those things pretty much the same as for boycotting fur? This b*tch loves her a hamburger, and if you’ve been to my house you’ve seen the shrine of leather pumps piled from floor to ceiling. So where does this guilt about fur come from?

PETA tits. It comes from PETA tits.

One could argue that you need shoes and food to live, but you don’t need frivolous items like fur. But by the same logic, you don’t need meat and leather in your diet or wardrobe. There are alternatives.

I have a number of friends who are vegan or vegetarian, and they all have their own unique reasons. Animal cruelty, health, just plain picky eating… and those are just the ones I know about. I guess what I’m saying is everyone has their causes and my list just doesn’t happen to include a ban on fur.

There’s simply no room for it, what with my campaign to outlaw slow walking on city sidewalks.

So that, my friends, is how I rationalized buying a vintage fur muff from an old Asian man with very few teeth at a New York City flea market.

17 thoughts on “Fur Your Consideration

  1. Girl, you know I can about a whole mess of bleeding heart causes, but fur is just not one of them. You can probably tell by my extensive collection of fur collars, stoles, and capes. I buy primarily vintage, thought I do own one department store-bought coat.

    It’s hard to find unbiased information about the quality of life of fur animals. I basically distrust anything that comes out of PETA’s mouth, but the fur injustry is also skewed. Generally though, fur animals almost certainly lead better lives than most food animals, unless you’re buying your meat from a local farmer (which is awesome, but not always practical.)

    Also, please, can we go out for fancy cocktails/Shirley Temples wearing our muffs? Please?

  2. yr my friend. i’m staying out of this one.

    p.s. – yes, i get how saying “i’m staying out of it” is not actually staying out of it. (staying out of it would be posting nothing).

  3. I guess one argument against wearing even vintage fur is that you are tacitly advertising the wearing of fur? I don’t know.

    Anyway I always forget that leather is a meat product. I don’t feel the same way about seeing people in fur coats as I do about seeing people in leather coats.

    byeeee

          • The reason leather doesn’t get as much attention is becuase it is from a fat disgusting cow and not a cute little forest creature that if domesticated would surely replace the current family pet due to its luxurious FUR!!!!!

          • I do think there is some truth to your comment, Ben, but which came first: not eating the animals because we think they’re cute, or thinking the animals are cute because we don’t eat them?

  4. I was devastated when I read that the many items made with “faux” fur is actually dog fur. The Chinese fur trade is huge and canine fur is apparently a huge part of it. I love dogs so much and it broke my heart.
    But yes, I, like many others, own leather shoes and handbags. I just like to tell myself that they raise the cow in an open pasture, peacefully put him to sleep, take the meat, and then use the rest for leather goods. That’s how it happens, right?
    And fyi – southern girls call their purses their pocketbooks. I never quite understood it, but when they say “i bought a new pocketbook”, they’re talking about a new purse/handbag. 🙂

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