Snappy Comebacks

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Stand your ground on the leather issue!

If you tell cynics that you’re an animal rights activist and their eyes rest on your shoes, you know what’s coming—a “skinquisition.” No problem—use PETA’s handy pointers and you’ll soon persuede them to make like a snake and shed their dead skin.

ìYouíre a hypocriteóyour shoes are leather.î

“Fooled ya! Fakes like mine are easy to find at malls, boutiques, on your computer—wherever you like to shop. Many designers are making belts, bags, wallets—even pants and jackets—with synthetics and natural fibers, so itís a cinch to give leather the boot. In the U.S., visit CowsAreCool.com to order PETAís free ëShopping Guide to Nonleather Products.íî

If your shoes are leather, perhaps say, “I bought these before I learned how cows, bulls, pigs and other animals suffer from overcrowding, deprivation, unanesthetized castration, branding and tail–docking before they are stunned, skinned and bled to death. Since then, I haven’t bought any new leather—and I never will again. I’m replacing these as soon as I can with something nonleather. I hope you’ll do the same.”

 

“They kill cows for their meat, not for leather. What’s wrong with wearing leather if the cow’s already dead?”

“Leather is not simply a byproduct of the meat industry —it’s a booming business. Skin accounts for 55 percent of the byproduct value of cattle. Buy leather and you’re directly contributing to animal cruelty in factory farms and slaughterhouses.”

“Isn’t vinyl worse for the environment?”


“No way! Tanneries use toxic substances to tan leather, and tannery effluent contains large amounts of other pollutants, like protein, hair, salt, lime sludge, sulfides and acids. Claims that leather is ‘biodegradable’ and ‘eco–friendly’ are bogus because tanning actually prevents the skin from biodegrading—otherwise it would rot on the wearer’s feet. “Plus, the leather industry uses massive amounts of energy, rivaling the aluminum, paper, steel, cement and petroleum–manufacturing industries. Huge amounts of fossil fuels are consumed in livestock production, but plastic wearables account for only a fraction of 1 percent of the petroleum used in the U.S. On top of all this, farms that raise the animals for their flesh clear trees to create pastureland, use enormous amounts of water and pollute the air, land and water.”

“Fine for you, but my leather shoes ‘breathe.’ Synthetics don’t.”

“Au contraire! Thanks to today’s technology, hiking and athletic shoes made with modern synthetics (called Hydolite by Avia and Durabuck by Nike) are durable, comfortable and machine–washable, and they ‘breathe’ like leather. If you buy skin–free shoes, animals can breathe—a sigh of relief!”