Don’t make the same mistake I made, which was to simply stare at Reese Witherspoon’s gorgeous handbag and whisper, “I want to go there.” It’s a really great purse, right? Well, too bad. It’s a $4000 Chloe, and if you live in California, it’s against the law for you to buy this bag. For why? Because it’s made of python, and there are laws against that, and now PETA is super-pissed at Reese for owning such a beautiful and horrible bag:
As Elle Woods in Legally Blonde she was obsessed with her collection of handbags. But Reese Witherspoon’s most recent personal acquirement has landed her in hot water with animal rights groups, as she was spotted with a $4,000 python skin purse illegal in California.
While the Oscar-winning actress, 35, will not be in trouble with the law, she has been criticised for carrying the exclusive Chloe Paraty python and leather bag. The Walk The Line star could not have purchased the item in California, as it has been illegal to sell the material there since 1970.
A spokeswoman for animal rights charity PETA told the Mail: ‘No matter how much Reese paid for that bag, the animals paid a much higher price.
‘Every year, millions of snakes are impaled on hooks or nailed to trees by their heads and skinned alive. Hoses are inserted into the mouths of large snakes—like pythons—and their bodies are pumped full of water to loosen their skin so that it will cut away more easily. The animals’ peeled, writhing bodies are then discarded, and it often takes days for the animals to die from the effects of shock and dehydration.’
The spokeswoman also said the charity hopes it is a case of ignorance rather than malice on Reese’s part.
She said: ‘We can’t imagine that she’d wish to contribute to this hidden suffering, especially for something as frivolous as a fashion accessory that can be replicated with no bloodshed. These days, it’s easy to have a look that kills without killing, with fake snake, mock croc, python pleather, and other designer items that pay tribute to the beauty of these animals without massacring them.’
Ironically Reese has previously been voted the world’s sexiest vegetarian by animal rights group PETA.
The group has promised to send her an undercover video expose hosted by her Walk The Line co-star Joaquin Phoenix about the cruelty behind the exotic skins industry.
According to RadarOnline, under the California Penal Code Section 653o it is unlawful to import python into California for commercial purposes. This includes possession with intent to sell, or sell within the state. However, it is not illegal if someone purchases python elsewhere and brings it in.
The python Chloe bag is on sale online in black for an eye-watering $3,820, not including sales tax. Other celebrities criticised for having python skin bags include Kylie Minogue and Eva Longoria. The ethical hot potato has seen fashion houses such as Victoria’s Secret, H&M, Overstock.com, Cole Haan, and Nike sign PETA’s pledge promising never to sell exotic skins due to the cruelty.
[From The Mail]
I mean, sure. Poor snakes. Poor pythons. That’s rough. But g-ddamn, that’s a really beautiful bag. The problem with synthetic leathers and fake skins is that no one ever uses the synthetic stuff to make a bag this pretty. Show me a fake leather bag this pretty, and I’ll totally buy it. For now, though, I’m looking to see if I can get my hands on this one. Go ahead and yell at me! It’s gorgeous.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
I just don’t think that bag is all that. It would look much better on a snake, actually.
Ha. I’m with @Audrey.
I have to agree with Audrey here. I don’t think the bag is pretty either.
Damn. That’s gorgeous. Her husband is sexy, for a wee man.
If those dingalings at PETA hated me for something, I’d take it as a compliment.
I’m with you. It’s a gorgeous bag. I’m absolutely terrified of snakes so much so that I donated some free bags that came with purchase at Saks because they had a python print.
The leather version is just as beautiful. :)It’s very simple but unique and you can tell it’s well made.
And I think it’s legal to HAVE it in California. She probably didn’t buy it there. Hell, she probably didn’t buy it at all…she has a stylist.
No it’s not. It’s nice, yes, and I wouldn’t have thrown it away if someone gave it to me…I probably would have LOVED it. But after reading what those poor animals have to endure to provide the skin for the bag, really? And I HATE snakes….like am terrified of them. But no creature deserves to be treated like that.
To say nothing of the price….$4000 for a bag? Really? There are wonderful, hardworking people who won’t have dinner tonight. Kinda makes $4000 for a handbag seem a bit overboard, doesn’t it?
(Someone I’m very close to is struggling. I’m a bit sensitive to $4000 bags right now….)
Regardless of its material I don’t think the bag is pretty (at all). Sorry, Kaiser.
As for Witherspoon…she’s looking more and more like a heartless bitch who hangs around with heartless bitches (see Handler), so to hell with her. I’m just waiting for the fall…when her next movies bomb so badly she won’t be considered A-list anymore.
Love animals, but don’t like snakes. However, I am not into snakeskin bags.
OK, please. I simply canNOT believe that you can skin a python alive. Those things are stronger than you can believe. Anyone watch Animal Planet??
That being said: Yuk Reese. Between this and her nasty public slam to Blake Lively over the cell phone photo leaks, I am no longer much of a fan.
I think I’m a little more into the hot piece on her other arm. Bald man in shades — NICE. He always looked a little geeky to me, but he’s looking at least as good as that python bag here……
Disgusting. On every level.
Agree with @Audrey.
Watching how these snakes get bludgoned to death for a thing of ‘beauty’
is really cruel, even for something as un-cute as a snake.
Dead snakes are good snakes.
Gorgeous bag. I used to work selling fur coats here in Vancouver, it was interesting to see beyond the PETA propaganda. Animals cannot be skinned alive, as PETA claim they are, because the blood would destroy the pelt! Fur or snake skin would be useless to a manufacturer if it was covered in blood, how would you get blood stains out of a mink? Thats just one of the reasons PETA are full of c**p!
My general philosophy: if you’re going to kill a cow, respect it enough to make a really fantastic steak out of it – don’t compound the tragedy by making it into a mediocre meal. I think the same goes for python – if you’re going to kill the snake to turn it into a bag, at least have the decency to make it into a really kick-ass bag! That thing is just kind of sad looking.
I’m incensed. I don’t understand how anyone can justify abhorrent cruelty with, “But it’s pretty!”
Humanity disgusts me sometimes. This is one of those times.
I think the bag is pretty horrible myself – and 4 grand??? ha ha ha ha
I think it’s a hideous looking bag. Then again most of the handbags that people call fashion are hideous looking.
I’m with Audrey. Save the snake.
It’s ironic that a lot of so-called vegetarians don’t blink an eye at wearing animal products so it’s pretty hypocritical of her to ponce around with a bag like that. And yes, snakes and lizards are killed in very inhumane ways, either bopped on the head and skinned while still alive or throats slit and blood drained while being skinned. All in all you can’t get away from the fact that a living creature suffered for your vanity. I’m not a vegetarian and do wear leather products but am thinking more and more of trying to step away from eating and wearing animals – it’s like quitting smoking, you have to be in the right head space to do it. Anyway, not a good purse choice Reese.
It’s just suprising that in todays day and age synthetics aren’t better. And that there aren’t more humane ways to kill animals. Also, snake and alligator leather turns me off.
I still hate PETA though.
When it comes to killing animals for fashion, my theory is this:
At lease let it be an animal you can eat, so that there is a practical use for it eg:cows and ostriches are used a lot for meat as well as for their skin for leather products.
Don’t think people eat snake meat, also don’t leave an animal half alive while removing its SKIN…how sick and cruel is that.
Enny, I am upset by your logic for killing animals “if you’re going to kill the snake to turn it into a bag, at least have the decency to make it into a really kick-ass bag!”
Whoever killed the snake is not a decent person, but an awful one, and whoever buys the bag is also. These are all intelligent animals, unfortunately many people don’t understand that.
Also, do you perhaps have a pet? A cat, maybe? Is it ok if I kill your cat if at least I turn it into a fantastic fashionable bag even you would wear?
Just because some animals are “cuter” doesn’t justify us killing snakes either.
@ 16:
Animals can and are skinned alive. There’s a video around the internet showing how a raccoon dog breathes for at least ten minutes before dying. It’s so much alive that it still manages to raise its (bloody, skinned) head.
I usually dislike PETA and find their antics/stunts counterproductive, but the ignorant, full of crap one here is you.
I live in the land of many snakes and I have to agree – the only good snake is a dead snake. Dead is dead no matter how you kill it.
I’m not one of those fanatic PETA supporters (actually they do more harm than good) but after starting to read that process and having to stop because it made me sick, I can’t see the beauty in that bag. And I don’t even think its that great of a bag to begin with.
I cannot believe somebody wouldn’t care about such cruelty just because a bag looks “pretty”. not to mention is not even pretty, it is just tacky. what a bad taste and what a horrible statement.
$4000 and brutality to animals all in the name of fashion, how very sad!
I personally think the bag is ugly, but damn PETA makes me want to go out and buy one!
@ Eve (#26) – Yes. Totally on board with your comment.
@Eve
ITA. it indeed happens. it annoys the he’ll out of me when people pretend to believe this kind of cruelty does not exist, just so they can keep supporting it without feeling bad.
That’s awful.
I dont really care for the bag, but if i wanna carry a python bag, the G-damn it i will peta can suck it, they cant police the whole damn world …
I’m an absolute heartless bitch when it comes to animal rights and I like the general design of the bag, but snakes scare me.
I’m totally fine with wearing dead adorable animals, but dead snake… *shudder*
I’m also with @Eve. 🙂
Hideous bag. I agree with the other posters who think the skin would look infinitely better on its original owner.
i’m waiting for a alien to come turn humans into handbags. see how we like it. that would be inhumane. really?
PETA is annoying!!
I am not a vegetarian or anything, but just based on fashion I wouldnt wear that bag either…
because first of all the front decoration thingie gives the impression of a thin snake trying to crawl up your armss….urrghhh
Its her choice. PETA needs to stop expecting everyone to think and act the way they do!
This is one ugly bag!!! You know why it’s ugly? Beacause it’s made of cruelty and pain!!!!
I just HATE people who aren’t able to see beyond looks! Come on guys… it’s not everything about fashion.
People who think like that are all shallow bitches and should be ashamed of themselves!!!
I’m with Peta on this one. Shame on Reese.
@ whome
@ Jermsmom
Clearly you both have no idea how nature works. Without snakes, we would be completely overrun by nuisance rodents. Also, snakes serve as a food source for larger predators such as hawks, owls, herons, large fish and carnivorous mammals such wildcats, the mongoose, etc. Any link in the food chain that is removed wreaks havoc on the environment. Furthermore, a component of snake venom has been found to inhibit cancer cell migration and can bock some cancers from spreading. Only good snake is a dead snake? I don’t think so.
@hung like a mouse: fckin exactly!
It’s a hideously ugly bag, and it came from a hideously ugly practice. Usually I am not all about PETA but in this case, I am. That bag is like fur coats and alligator shoes. The animals need their skin a whole lot more than we do, and people who spend thousands of dollars for something that came from torturing an animal are not nice people.
Snake or not, that bag is ugly.
Totally with @Audrey. It would look much better on a snake and if we were actually decent humans it would be on a snake. A nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way it’s animals are treated. Cruelly skinning pythons just so this dumb Hollywood biatch can have a $4000 purse? Shameful.
@ Jaded (# 45):
Perfect statement. Agree with every word you said.
All of you who are preaching for synthetic materials – you know how long it takes for a synthetic leather item to decay in nature, or how much making one pollutes environment,then add up the decay time? It really grinds my gears when self-righteous pro-animal people promote synthetic fibers. Great job you guys, lets save an animal so it could choke on discarded faux leather instead or have its home polluted by the manufacturers of this poisonous synthetic fiber. You know what most synthetic fibers are made out of, right?
For informed, educated and intelligent individuals, some of you really excel at stupid and ignorant. Listen to your head, not your heart, and put your damn of cute animal sentiments aside and perhaps try to come up with the best alternative. Faux leather’s in my opinion even a worse crime against nature as a whole than killing animals for their hides.
I’d rather have it this way: I can have a cowhide jacket or a nice leather bag, but I’d have the animal killed in a quick, relatively painless way and if it’s possible to get a meal out of, I’d have that too. Can’t waste a whole animal for a trinket.
KaitX:
I would like to see how you would feel after being clubbed in the head then being skinned ALIVE. You are spewing propaganda right there. That is absolutely disgusting that you worked for a company that sold fur coats. Killing the innocent for the sake of “beauty” when we do not need fur anymore to keep us warm is bullsh*t.
And whoever wrote this article you are disgusting too.
What goes around comes around girl…
People… Animals are not humans. They are the subservient race. There are people getting murdered all across the African continent, cartel wars spanning the length of Central America, jihadists pillaging the Middle East, and I’m supposed to feel bad because some disgusting snake got skinned alive? I don’t think so. Priorities, priorities, priorities.
I ABSOLUTELY LOVE SNAKES, and I am VERY SAD to see that, of all persons, Reese, whom I have liked so far as a seemingly nice and down-to-earth girl, carries a handbag made of snakeskin, which is UGLY.
SNAKES ARE TOTALLY FASCINATING AND VERY USEFUL ANIMALS: Mice-eating snakes help save our harvest, and snake venoms are used in making medicine. WE HAVE TO PROTECT SNAKES NOT ONLY FOR THEIR SAKE, BUT ALSO FOR OUR OWN SAKE.
Other cultures see snakes as symbol of wisdom, beauty and elegace, eternal youth and rebirth (because of shedding). Only in the Western culture do snakes have such a bad reputation, mainly because of the bad influence of the Christan religion, and so Westeners have a double-standard: When a snake eats a rabbit, it is said to be cruel. But when a dog eats food made of a rabbit, it is OK and nobody protests. You can walk with a large Rottweiler on public streets and in parks without any problems, but when you keep a SMALL, NON-VENOMOUS snake in a terrarium, people are scared when they learn that, even without having seen the snake.
@Douche. Compassion is not limited to humans. You can care about both. Indeed, as the “superior” species we have a responsibility to the animals. Finally, I don’t think it takes a lot of effort to refrain from spending $4k on a handbag, irrespective of its perceived beauty. Perhaps that is money that could be donated to organizations doing good work in Africa or elsewhere.
I think it is helpful to discuss and opine on any incident of cruelty, whether the victim is animal, vegetable or human. To tolerate cruelty on any level contributes to its acceptance. What is acceptable to you regarding the treatment of snakes becomes acceptable to a dictator toward the treatment of rebels.
There are absolutes, and cruelty is absolutely indefensible.
@ Douche (appropriate avatar BTW)
Animals are not a “subservient race”, they are a unique and beautiful part of earth’s ecosystem. People consciously murder each other. Animals eat to survive. People develop horrific weapons of mass destruction. Animals eat to survive. People cause wars, commit the worst atrocities against each other such as rape, child slavery, genocide and subjugation of other races. Animals….well, you know the phrase by now. Your argument is invalid.
@ Danziger:
It really grinds my gears when self-righteous pro-animal people promote synthetic fibers. Great job you guys, lets save an animal so it could choke on discarded faux leather instead or have its home polluted by the manufacturers of this poisonous synthetic fiber. You know what most synthetic fibers are made out of, right?
It grinds my gears when people bring the “synthetic fibers pollute the environment” argument for that matter. Because it’s a limited point of view: the problem is not about the practice itself (synthetic fibers being used as substitutes for fur/leather). The problem is that uneducated people won’t either recycle of throw them away properly. Or that the policies regarding the manufacturers have been failing (and that should apply to all companies in the world — there are laws regarding polluting and they should be respected).
Plastic bags and bottles, for instance, are 100% recyclable. Recently I’ve started using an aluminium bottle but all the bottled water I ever bought, I discarded its plastic recipient properly. It’s not my fault (nor the bottle’s) that a random a**hole decided to throw it in the sewer.
If you’re against synthetic fibers used in fashion because they pollute the environment, then you should be against every single plastic made thing on the planet.
P.S.: real leather and fur, if not discarded properly, will pollute the environment too.
so let me get this straight: killing animals for fashion and food is wrong even though it’s a personal choice and nobody’s business but aborting babies, innocent humans is a woman’s choice and is fine for controlling population. lmao
I don’t like that bag all that much, I mean $4000! Target sold a fake one just like it. I had a deep pink one and I got more compliments on it.
my main trouble is that i don’t like the bag in python but i saw the version in normal leather,it’s more beautiful in my opinion
@ Eve: right on!
Don’t care for the bag, it’s just kind of meh. Wearing or carrying around the skins of dead things is gross.
@Marta, I think you completely misunderstood what I said. Read it again. Then again if you have to. Reading comprehension – it’s a really good thing.
Obviously, I would prefer that the animals were not killed in the first place, but it’s an added insult to kill the animal and then not respect the animal enough to put it to good use. Put another way, the animal should not be mutilated at all, but certainly nothing is gained by mutilating it twice and making its death completely in vain. It only makes the act more egregious, more tragic, a bigger waste. If nothing good comes of it, then it’s that much more cruel and wasteful.
@ Jaded (# 61):
And I even forgot to mention that the processing of leather (especially pre-tanning and tanning) pollutes too.
*yells at Kaiser*
PETA is stupid. If you want to be taken seriously, go to ASPCA or WWF or something. Don’t go with the whiny angsty people whose emotional growth was stunted at 14.
Seriously, does PETA actually get anything done? I mean besides whine about every stupid thing that involves animals (only the cute ones of course) without getting anything accomplished?
@ Victoria: Who even said that? Who are you talking to?
First of all, I think most if not all animal prints and exotic leathers look tacky as hell. But that’s just my personal taste. This bag is not cute.
Second, PETA really needs to get someone to help them with their PR because while I’m an animal lover and try (!!!) to eat as little meat and wear as little leather as possible (I’m not completely against animal products as long as the animal doesn’t suffer), they are getting on my last nerve. Yelling at people and hitting them over the head with horrifying videos of animal abuse will only alienate the die-hard meat lovers. I mean, I’m basically on their side but they still p*ss me off.
That being said, if Reese wants to carry this bag, whatever. Makes her look like a massive hypocrite and sadly, plays right into the rather offensive notion of the woman who will throw out her values for a pretty (debatable) bag. As if she simply couldn’t say no because it was so cute. As a woman, that really offends me.
My feelings for Witherspoon changed when she got on her high horse at that awards show and slammed Blake Lively over the leaked naked cell photos. Blake was there that night as well as her parents, who were sitting in the audience. That was so rude on Reese’s part. I’m not the big fan I once was. Her movies haven’t been all that great recently either. Her last movie, Water For Elephants was a success because it was based on a best selling novel and RPattz was in it. I thought she was the weak link in the film. Even the elephant overshadowed her.
She’s very rich and can spend her money any way she pleases. The fact that she bought a $4,000 snakeskin purse doesn’t surprise me. These days, she is known more for her papped shopping trips than she is for her quality acting roles.
Hate to say it, Kaiser, but as long as women keep buying these bags, the top designers never WILL create bags this beautiful with faux skins.
I agree with “Douche”.
It’s easy enough for us sheltered rich girls to fuss over the adorable fluffy bunnies and woodland creatures, but I definitely care more about the child who was forced to make the leather handbag than I do about the friggin cow.
Also: in lots of the videos of animals being “skinned alive”, the animal is actually dead. It’s just that the brainwaves are still moving through the animal’s body. Sort of like how a chicken still runs around even after the head has been chopped off.
When it comes to a subject like this, the majority of us live in glass houses. We all pick our poison as it were when it comes to animal slaughter/cruelty, pollution of the environment and living a life we can be proud of when it comes to being a positive force in the world. We all try our best, in the ways that make most sense to us as individuals, but let’s be honest, where you excel, I may falter. Collectively however, how we each choose to make a difference should help to make the world better. Everyone here is right to call out the cruelty against Pythons, but some of the judgment passed is a bit strong. He without sin… (I’m not even religious and I’ve paraphrased the Bible twice already!).
Of course, I leave out of the above anyone posting on this sight who is all of these things: 100% organic vegan (no diary), only wears clothes, shoes, bags, hats made out of organically growth, handpicked, hand sewn natural fibers, whose food and clothes are distributed to the store/market by someone via walking and which you pick up regularly by walking, you don’t use electricity – but if you do it is only generated by the sun or wind, you don’t send your garbage to any municipal dumps, you recycle everything including cell phones & computers and you only bathe in water drawn naturally from a hand pumped well with naturally disintegrating soap.
My feelings vary on this:
1) PETA was always known to throw a sh*tfest over trivial stuff
2) What kind of snake was used? If it was non-poisonous, I’d feel bad. If it was poisonous…*shudders with my hate for poisonous snakes at THE highest caliber*
@Eve and @ mia girl SO well said!
I also think the bag is gorgeous.
I agree with the person up there from Vancouver that you cannot skin an animal alive because the blood would ruin the pelt.
However, I love animals and while I’m not a veghead, I have a hard time thinking of what animals can and are raised for.
I don’t think I would ever be able to buy the bag in question but do think that Reese should just be left alone.
That’s an ugly ass purse and that $4000 was wasted in my opinion.
Apparently, I am the owner of some seriously awesome illegal boots. And I’m IN Cali.
As far as PETA is concerned, I think they are definitely more off-putting than support-gathering. PETA is way more offensive than that bag.
When it comes to matters of practicality, sometimes a compromise is in order. I don’t EAT the cows (hubs does) but I WEAR the cows (on my feet). It’s our version of balance.
The bag is downright ugly and I would imagine that at 4000$, you would be able to buy something nicer-looking.
With that being said, PETA and their moronic antics (celebrity posing naked, paint throwing on fur-wearing people, caging Brooke Hogan, etc) can suck it. I’ll join in their movement when they hire people with brains who can come up with an intelligent way of getting people to (seriously) listen.
Don’t believe PETA’s account of what happens to snakes, because they have a long, proven history of lying. And animal rights groups have been shown many times to have created their own animal snuff films to raise funding and “awareness”.
See this link: http://www.furcommission.com/news/newsC7.htm. It’s from the Fur Commission, but the information is correct.
Here’s what they say about that famous video with the racoon-dogs skinned alive. “The jury is still out on this one, but the evidence is highly suspect. Video purporting to show fur production in China is distributed early in 2005 by an animal rights group, Swiss Animal Protection. Reportedly, filming was conducted by Swiss Animal Protection/EAST International in 2004-05 in Heibei Province.(6)
By spring 2005, the footage is being distributed by North American animal rights groups with new scenes added.
Highly edited, the video shown in the U.S. includes footage of a fox farm where a dog is heard barking excitedly, a shot of a highly agitated fox (perhaps offered food) surrounded by calm foxes, plus mink on a farm illustrating distressed behavior, perhaps due to unusual activity on the farm out of camera range.
The video includes clips of foxes and raccoon dogs (tanuki), both animals which are also taken from the wild, in a marketplace setting. One man appears wearing a butcher’s apron as he quickly kills a raccoon dog. However, another man, wearing street clothes (black leather jacket and pleated black pants) brutally skins alive a raccoon dog that he has hung on the back of a truck (license plate removed). The animal tries to bite the man and struggles aggressively, making the process extremely difficult.
The audio during this process is unclear, but certain words – translated here from the local dialect – are discernible. What do they mean? You decide.
As the man prepares to skin the raccoon dog alive, another man appears to be instructing him with such expressions as “You should do this.” Meanwhile, a clearly surprised on-looker asks, “You will skin the animal alive?” After the animal has been skinned, another on-looker calls to the cameraman, “Take a picture here quickly. The animal is still alive.”
The camera then comes in close on a skinned, but still moving animal on a pile of animal carcasses. While the moving animal is covered in blood, showing its heart was pumping during the process, the animals beneath it are clean, as they would be if skinned while dead, which, of course, is the normal procedure and the ONLY acceptable one by humane standards.
Another scene shows a man wearing tattered shoes, hitting a fox on the head with a knife, temporarily stunning but not killing it. He then struggles to skin the obviously alive, moving animal, alternating with beating it with the knife. The animal struggles so much as to make the job impossible, and a shot is seen of the man’s shoes on the animal’s head.
It is nonsensical to suggest that skinning an animal alive is normal practice since even this film of inhumane behavior proves this process to be difficult and dangerous, and furthermore the pulse of the living animal would cause extensive bleeding and damage to the fur. It is therefore highly likely that these scenes were staged.
The fur industry in Europe requested the original unedited footage from the Swiss animal rights group and was refused.”
Anyone who thinks its ok to skinn animals should try it themselfs. Get a razor blade and start peeling of your own skin.
Then imagine being skinned alive and not being able to do anthing about it.
Animals cant show emotions like humans, but that doesnt mean they dont feel pain.
And skinning is torture, i dont care if its a human or animal. Its wrong.
Heres the racoon dog video:
http://features.peta.org/ChineseFurFarms/
If you think this is ok.
Your sick.
Edit: SC I hope your right, that its not “normal”
but i think youre wrong on this one.
Just like the chicken farm videos is real.
They could have refused giving up the video for many reasons, one being not showing peoples faces(the ones who are working for the Swiss AP, since it could be illegal to film on location etc)
I kind of like the bag. I wouldn’t buy it but I would carry it if someone gave it to me.
Unless PETA are all vegans, they’re hypocrites. If you can eat ’em, you can wear ’em.
#39 – too late, it already happened – might have heard about it, it was called the Holocaust. Jews, Catholics and homosexuals were skinned to adorn lamp shades in Nazi homes.
#45 – get bitten, then we will talk. Once bitten, everything changes…
That bag cost 4 thousand dollars ? That can cover my rent and misc. bills/food for 4 months. Geez ! – btw love the molding of the hands holding. Just right. Good sign.
Enny, given your explanation, I think I did, in fact, misunderstand you. Thanks for the clarification.
But I still have an extra comment:
If a python is, let’s say, somehow killed by a person, putting it into “good use” is a better idea than completely trashing it I suppose. However, making a purse out of it is still not “good use” to me. “Good use” would probably be giving it to another carnivore animal to eat it. I at least find something natural about this option. Making purses will just make more people want purses.
@ Danziger: I like the way you think. Also, just to add to your rant, unless you raise, grow and make every product you own and eat yourself, guess what? YOU ARE CONTRIBUTING TO KILLING ANIMALS!!!!
Eating fruits and veggies? Guess what so do animals! And a farmer isn’t going to just tell an animal to stop eating his crop… he’s going to kill them.
Play an instrument? HOW COULD YOU YOU HEARTLESS ANIMAL KILLER!!!
Chew gum? Oh yes, there is animal fat in gum.
I could go on and on, but I won’t… instead I’ll link you to a picture that explains this further http://knowthankyou.wordpress.com/2010/10/23/there-is-no-such-thing-as-a-vegan/
In short, people being all “poor defenseless animals blah blah blah” can shove it (unless they really do only use things they raise/make… in that case disregard this message).
@jaded- Love the way you think!!
Its a fuc*in snake!!!!!! Get over it…….
@Victoria…how did you get from a $4000 snakeskin bag to abortion? That’s all kinds of wrong there and no where near what is being discussed here! If you are trying to agitate people here you have succeeded. Wrong forum wrong fight!
I find it hard to believe that people are skinning animals alive especially when it’s for fur, how do they get the blood out? I thin the same goes for lizards and snakes. And if you can eat animals then I don’t think you can complain all that much. Probably a very unpopular opinion butt that’s how I see it.
Wait, let me get this straight: it is NOT okay to kill a snake (and use it all – yeah, I’ve eaten snake) but it IS okay to cut off 1000 sharks’ fins and leave them to die in the FRAGGLE-ROCKIN’ NATURE PRESERVE (WHICH IS SUPPOSED TO BE PROTECTED!) where they preside.
PETA, get your priorities straight. Otherwise, you’re just a joke.
Mi – I don’t know…but I have seen video of minks being skinned alive, and it is positively ATROCIOUS. Their poor little bodies are still writhing and moving, and that really cemented my unwillingness to EVER wear real fur.
@ 87:
Funny that you posted that link to prove your point…but doesn’t seem to have read the post that follows it (especially its second paragraph). Oh well…
That’s disgusting, I can’t believe that people are so cavalier about taking lives.
if PETA is against it, then I’m all for it!
Ok am I the only one who was staring the contigo cup more than anything else? Yes…ok.
I like PETA’s message. Cannot stand PETA itself.
I forgot who said it but I agree with them. Fact of the matter is if people didn’t buy these things, it wouldn’t be made.
Personally, I feel if it’s (the dead animal) put to good use, such as food or at least a bag that does more than carry a blackberry, then I have nothing to say. However for pure vanity’s sake, as is the case with this bag then absolutely not would I have it.
1) Celebrities rarely pay for their products – companies and designers GIVE them away to high profile celebs for exposure..
2) PETA is annoying.
3) Snakes are gross, so gross for me that I would never purchase anything that resembles snake skin, real or fake because it gives me the heebs… but no living thing should suffer cruelly and unessecarily to make a purse.
@Jaded# 45 i am perfectly aware how the world works and the balance of our eco system, BUT my point is ITS NOT PETA’S PLACE TO TELL ME HOW TO LIVE MY DAMN LIFE! hold on … i have to check on my steak!
um, wouldn’t there still be blood on the fur and/or skin if the animal were dead before being skinned? I mean, unless you drained the blood, and even then it would take days for it to totally dry up, and then the fur or skin would be ruined….
i have seen videos of seals being skinned alive for their fur, and we know elephants are de-tusked while alive….so i dont think PETA is necessarily lying about that part-
but for the poster who says they worked in fur trade in vancouver, i dont get how killing them first would prevent said blood issue?
I thought they had some chemical that cleans up the fur or skin, anyway?
@ eve, (93) Yeah… I don’t follow… maybe I’m just not fluent in bad grammar/ incomplete thoughts.
oh well.
I don’t like the bag, the design isn’t my cup of tea…
I have no idea what the truth is about how the animals are treated, PETA tends to overstate and the fur/skin industry will understate, so I just don’t know.
I know that Mr Guilty Pleasures once went to get me a fabulous birthday present, and the salesman sold him a python bag…I had it, in it’s box, for weeks before I took it back. I just couldn’t use it and I don’t even know why. I use/eat/wear animals everyday.
Isn’t there a massive problem in the everglades with pythons which have been released there?
@ 100:
@ eve, (93) Yeah… I don’t follow… maybe I’m just not fluent in bad grammar/ incomplete thoughts.
No, my dear: judging from your comments here, you certainly are (fluent in that). You also seem to be very fluent in internet-moronic logic (see comment # 87).
@whome – well said. I have been laughing over the comment that “clearly” I know nothing about how nature works all morning! I grew up in the country and all of my friends lived on working farms.
I don’t drink PETA Kool-Aid.
How’s that steak? How about some chicken embryos to go with it??
@ eve… again with the incomplete thoughts. Would you care to explain your logic as to the flaw in mine? Or just speak in generalities?
oh and ps- I am not your “dear”.
She’s an ignorant moron. And the bag is ugly.
The process made me feel a little sick. I am doubtful if PETA is telling the 100% truth, but I guess right now that’s not the point.
I’m not against animal products, but I wish industries would concentrate on making the whole thing more humane. There has to be a middle ground where we can still have our pretties and the animal doesn’t needlessly suffer. If I had the type of money to throw away on this bag, I would happily pay a few extra hundred bucks to make sure it’s cruelty-free.
@ 104:
*sigh* You’re using the typical internet provoking technique, but I’ll bite:
There is nothing incomplete about any of my comments directed at yours (# 87).
You posted a link in order to prove your point…that there is no such thing as a vegan (by the way, I’m not a vegan). I cliked on the link, cared to read the entire post written by the person signing as “knowthankyou” and he/she questioned the image — which he/she did appropriately, unlike you. Here’s the excerpt I wish you’d read:
The artist makes the valid point that it is extremely difficult to avoid animal byproducts in our society. He or she is incorrect though in two ways. First, the list of products made from cattle is far from complete – there are many more. Second, the artist assumes that in order to function in our society a person immediately loses some kind of purity qualification necessary to be termed a vegan. I greatly appreciate then the high regard that the artist clearly has for vegans, and also appreciate that the artist believes vegans live to a strident standard apparently far higher than his or her own. It’s unfortunate though that the artist implies that the rest of society, all 99% of it, has somehow fallen from grace. By his or her definition, due to the proliferation of cattle byproducts, all of society is being deceived by a variety of industries and therefore fails to live by the pinnacle of health, ethical, and environmental standards.
Also, the logic you used in your comment # 87 doesn’t make much sense. Reading beyond your (poor) sarcasm, it seems you think that in order to defend animal rights, one has to have a completely radical way of thinking/behaving as if there was no middle ground for it. That sounds like PETA’s logic to me.
About my bad grammar. Please do tell me the mistakes I’ve made in that post (# 93). English is not my first language (no, I don’t think that’s an excuse but it’d — at least — explain why I make mistakes from time to time), I usually post on internet boards as a way of practicing it so I appreciate the help. Any help, even from someone like you.
P.S.: I know you’re not “my dear”. I was being sarcastic (poor sarcasm too, I admit it) and “dear” is always better than the other adjectives/nouns I could have used to address you.
I can’t stand the hypocrisy of PETA.
They kill animals (humanly or so they claim) but no one else should…yeah, OK.. When PETA kills NO more animals then and only then will I listen to anything they have to say about killing animals.
As for the purse. Not a fan.
Decemberist15- don’t be silly. Being vegan isn’t an issue of 100% animal-free purity. It’s about doing the LEAST harm possible. So yes, there is such a thing as a vegan. Just because it’s impossibl to avoid ALL animal products doesn’t make it okay to go out and slaughter cows and python and everything else under the sun for food and fashion. To think otherwise is seriously missing the point.
Emily – why can you only reserve compassion for one group of animals (humans)? I have enough compassion to go around, so keep your nasty “rich white girl” comments to yourself.
Seriously, to all the people who are saying “don’t judge unless you are growing your own food, blah, blah, blah” just stop. It’s ridiculous to say unless you can live a life of 100% purity then it’s fine to commit as many atrocities as tor black little heart desires. It doesn’t work that way. Your logic is flawed and you sound beyond stupid for it. If you want to eat meat, wear fur, etc go for it. But don’t try to rationalize it as some sort of kind decision.
“@eve, here’s some grammar education: “Funny that you posted that link to prove your point…but doesn’t seem to have read the post that follows it (especially its second paragraph). Oh well… ”
It should have read (at least I think, again, it was hard to follow) “Funny that you posted that link to prove your point… but YOU DIDN’T seem to read the post that follows it…” at least that’s what I think you meant to say. And as for your snarky “even from someone like you” comment: you do want grammar help from me. I do have one of my masters degrees in Linguistics, so I’d like to think I know a bit about grammar.
As for my militant logic on vegans: listen, if you are vegan/ vegetarian for health reasons, that’s great, good for you.
If it’s because killing animals is wrong, that’s where I take issue. Where do you draw the line as to what deserves to be saved and what doesn’t? PETA seems to favor the cute animals, but everything else is fair game. Basically, if you do the whole animal rights thing, it should be animal rights for all living things: roaches, spiders, mice, rats, bees, etc. included.
Basically, either you kill nothing (ala Jainism)and value all life, or you don’t and sometimes it’s ok to kill things.
I have no problem with snakes, but isn’t there a growing Burmese python problem in Florida? Snakes in exotic pet shops were “liberated” during major storms/flooding in the past decade and are very happy growing in the wild marshes and are becoming downright invasive.
I just heard a story of a wild Burmese python today – it had eaten a 76 lb deer in Florida and exploded. Also saw another exploded python that tried to eat an alligator. Who knows how these animals will impact the native ecosystem if they continue to grow in population?
My point is that maybe there is a humane way to kill these invasive python – schedule python hunts like they do for deer in the Northeast. I can’t imagine they’re helping the Florida native ecology much.
@littlemissnaughty/@atorgnalorwhatever no one said. i’m pointing out the hypocrisy and moronic soapbox people like to stand on for one thing and in the same breath wax justification for something else. i can say whatever i want.
PETA and some people are calling out reese for carrying poor little monty but the same people will call pro-life peeps all kinds of names for wanting to protect a fucking baby and will have data and justifications for it.
i find that type of evil hypocrisy delicious and telling of the human condition in general.
so she brought a python cum hot ass purse. good for her. if she’s pro choice, then i love it even more because she supports useless killing across the board which makes more sense to me.
keep it real reese. loved her mtv award speech. we say it all the time, so she said it for us and until she leaks nudie pics/sex tapes she can say it because she is a good girl for hellywood standards. telling teenage girls to have self-respect is never wrong.
eta: this is very relevant as i watched in horror in college when a few peta pussies took it upon themselves to throw paint on some kids who were wearing leather jackets and one girl practically had a break down because her jacket was one of the only things she had of her dead father. and the fuckers who did it a few weeks later were heckling a group of pro-life students who were meeting and not even protesting. when i saw that shit, i saw red. so fuck you very much because this is the best place to point out ass backwardness like we do everyday.
And I thought parenting was the #1 hot topic. The real crime here is Reese spent 4k on a dull bag when there are children starving. I rather see all this fervent snake saving redirected toward saving a child.
Decemberist15 – you have no idea what you’re talking about. Vegans DO care about “non-cute” animals. I don’t know where you’re getting your info from, but your attempt at logic is ridiculous. Plus, if you were actually a linguist you’d back off the person with English as a second language and keep your snarky prescriptivism to yourself.
@Victoria – I am vegan and pro choice. No, it isn’t hypocritical. I value bodily autonomy for all sentient beings, including human women. Other Vegans are anti-choice. Don’t think you’re being clever. There are arguments for both sides, neither of which negates the point of caring about animal welfare.
it is amazing the passion some people claim for animal cruelty yet they can treat people on a celebrity gossip site like total sh$t. You can’t hurt a snake’s feelings but you can really hurt people with put-downs.
@ Decemberist15 (# 111):
Here’s where we’ll always disagree — as I think you’re assuming I’m the kind of animal lover who only loves certain types of animals — I’m not completely against killing an animal. There are the pests, there are animals that need to be killed (in order to have its population under control) and I still think people can eat meat (and, for that matter, wear/use meat industry byproducts). I’m for the treatment and slaughter with the least pain and suffering possible.
Your stance seems to be that you have to be one thing or the other — any other way would be hypocritical. I just don’t agree with that. I don’t think it’s a reasonable way of arguing, I think it lacks perspective. That’s why I usually dislike PETA’s ways, their speech and antics. As I said on my very first post here: they’re usually counterproductive. I’d love if all animals’s rights were fully respected, but that would be an ideal world that doesn’t seem plausible in real life (to me).
Finally, the “someone like you” wasn’t an attempt of being snarky. I meant to point out that you were nitpicking on my grammar mistakes as a way to discredit my whole point of view and that’s one of the oldest, most childish (internet) ways of arguing. You should be above that (considering your degrees — no sarcasm or irony here) or you could have simply corrected me. So you clearly wanted to insult me rather than argue while using a valuable point of view.
By the way, I never said you didn’t know anything (or enough) about the English grammar. As I failed to see where my comment was wrong, I really needed to know what kind of mistakes I had made. Thanks for the correction anyway.
P.S.: most people don’t find snakes cute (you mentioned that PETA and other animal rights activists only care about the cute ones). I do, though (have saved a couple from people who wanted to kill them just for the sake of it).
@ Catherine- I never said I was a linguist, just have a masters degree in it. I have 3 masters degrees. What can I say, I like collecting them, everybody has a hobby.
Vegans care about non cute animals? For real? Some might, I’ll give you that. But I know many a vegan with roach and mouse traps in their apartments, and not the humane kind. That doesn’t sound very vegan-like.
And ps- yep, I totally have a right to be snarky to someone (even if English is their second language). You know why? I’m not sure if you know this, but this is site is called celeBITCHY, not celebhugskissesandcuddles.
@ eve, we can agree to disagree. I’ll take that. Thanks for the healthy debate.
I really do think (not that it matters but I’ll say it anyways) that it’s great (and brave) that you are getting out there and practicing and not afraid to make mistakes.
indeed. CELEbitchy. We choose where to place our emphasis.
And on another note: I want to see if anybody’s going to make a cockroach purse – see if there will be any outcry and anger over that.
Decemberist15 – Seriously? Vegans have a right to defend their homes from PESTS! There is a huge difference between wearing fur and spraying for roaches. Just because you’ve decided on some arbitrary magical vegan purity line, doesn’t mean it’s an all-or-nothing prospect. So your logic is, if someone protects their homes from poisonous spiders they might as well eat every animal they can find because they’re already hypocrites? Come on. You’ve GOT to see the absurdity in conflating pest protection with meat eating/animal skin wearing. Also, why does everyone throw the “It’s called cele-BITCHY” card whenever they are asked out for a-hole antics? I’m sorry, I thought you were interested in making valid points, not simply being mean. I guess you proved me wrong with your “celebhugsandkisses” comment.
@catherine i don’t care. no one is trying to be clever. it’s common sense.
you can be vegan and pro-choice all you want. my issue is people calling out others for their inhumanity for one thing, trying to preach and deny others their right to do them. it makes me mad.
i am a meat loving ho and pro-life because humans come first and also because i know what the real reason behind the choice movement is and a sista will not back that shit for anything. but i would never come at someone else for their backing. why? because it’s none of my business. and if someone wants to wear their animal love, it’s no one’s business either.
eta:@decemberist i love you.
As one who grew up on a Marine base and had the annual “rattlesnake in my house” celebration (I mean “freak-out”), I don’t like snakes. (But they make some damn fine boots! And they don’t taste too bad either.)
On base, EVERYTHING was a “protected species” and you couldn’t kill it unless it threatened your life.
Now, I don’t advocate cruelty EVER, ANYWHERE, to ANY creature. But if you’re going to kill it, for God’s sake, have the decency to do it humanely and use EVERY SINGLE PART of the creature. (Food, boots, purse, shelter – WHATEVER! Don’t waste it! And don’t be a sanctimonious asshole about it either.)
@ catherine: but PESTS are animals too! Rights for all!
@ Jermsmom:
it is amazing the passion some people claim for animal cruelty yet they can treat people on a celebrity gossip site like total sh$t. You can’t hurt a snake’s feelings but you can really hurt people with put-downs.
I’d rather have my feelings hurt — multiple times, in fact — than being skinned alive. Nobody here is talking about animals’s feelings but actual, physical pain.
@ 52 I worked for the company because I needed a job! I was fresh off the plane after emigrating and it paid much better than serving coffee, practicality over ethics. I don’t work there any more and don’t wear fur.
@53 and @ 72 yes the murder of people takes presidence!
@80 this was my point about PETA, they lie about practically everything, thanks for the link. I’ve seen the videos before, and they are horrible, but I refuse to concur that those animals are intended for clothing.
By the way Eve, you say that you are for pests being killed- mink, racoon and beaver can be classified as pests.
It never ceases to amaze me how worked up people get about fur and animals on this site- I read it religiously and everyone is lovely until fur comes up. I never said that I APPROVED of fur, just that I don’t believe PETAs reasoning. Logically, I still stand by the reasoning that animals cannot be skinned alive for usable fur.
@123
The most sensible comment I’ve ever read in this entire comment section.
If there was anything that invaded YOUR property and posed a good threat against yourself, your family and your assets, you have a right to defend yourself even if it meant killing the animal. It’s just basic instinct.
By the way, what does snake taste like? I’m curious.
Victoria – your post is basically nonsense, and yes, being anti-choice denies rights to women.
KaitX – yes, sometimes mammals do become pests and the government intervenes, but those are NOT the animals used for fur. The government isn’t selling beavers to furriers after they kill them.
I don’t understand why some people find it so unreasonable that some people value the lives of non-human animals.
@ KaitX:
By the way Eve, you say that you are for pests being killed- mink, racoon and beaver can be classified as pests.
Where did I state anything that is contrary to what you’ve just said? I mentioned pests and even went on to say that there are some animals whose population need to be controlled. My general point has always been this: killing them in inhumane, cruel ways (which is usually what happens with the fur industry) can and should be avoided. Killing them just for the sake of wearing fashionable outfits is wrong too (even if it’s from an animal that is considered a pest). If (at least) the animal meat had been used to feed someone (or other animals) — like what happens with leather (it’s usually a byproduct from the meat industry so I’m not completely against it).
I think fur for fashion is a f*cking cruel, heartless thing and it’s my opinion, for crying out loud — that’s how I feel about the subject. You don’t agree with that, fine. But don’t try to convince me that you’re right and I’m wrong because I know that isn’t true.
By the way, the minks, raccoons and beavers (not sure about this one) used for fashion usually come from fur farms. The small percentage that comes from the wild are captured in traps that leaves them agonizing for days.
I forgot to add, to the person who asked about chemical use on fur(sorry I forget who it was!) – chemicals are used very sparingly on fur because of the damage they can do. The skin side of the fur is chemically cleaned but it would be impossible to remove blood from the fur side of the pelt without causing irreparable damage to the pelt.
@M255 – completely agree
@Catherine, the government doesn’t literally gather up a bunch of beavers and present them to furriers, they licence the hunting of them.
@Catherine
There’s nothing unreasonable about that – it’s helpful.
It’s only when people place the importance of animal welfare and protection ABOVE their own damn race instead of placing support of animal and human rights at the same level. That’s the kind of ignorance that pisses me off.
Thus why PETA can push me over the edge with their logic.
Reese – Im so disappointed. No matter how you feel about PETA killing animals for fashion is sick!!!
m255- i would be appalled if someone made a cockroach purse. Why put any living creature through torture for a purse or a coat, etc??! sickening!
Eve -I know. I can tell that you are passionate about your beliefs and while I can’t say I agree with all of them it still bothers me that you would be attacked on a personal level and not just for your beliefs.
@ Eve, yes I agree that the majority of animals for fur are from farms- my point is simply that they are not skinned alive as PETA says. Please don’t generalise the fur industry, in China yes the practices are not governed, but in Canada they are.
As i stated in other posts, it is not practical that an animal be skinned alive for use as clothing, the garment/ accessory would be unusable. I am against killing in inhumane ways- but is there any kind of killing that could really be considered “humane?”
I’m not attacking you for your personal beliefs, I respect them and don’t want to change your mind, just explain the realities of fur skinning., You were the one that called me ignorant and full of crap in your comment @26!
@ KaitX:
In all honesty, please read again your comment # 16 and tell me that it didn’t deserved that answer. I may have been rude, but you generalized (as in anyone who agrees with PETA sometimes — which happens to be my case — must be full of crap like them) and refused to accept that animails being skinned alive is a relatively common practice or even that it happened (at all).
I reread all comments and nowhere I said that animals being skinned alive was the norm. I said the following: “animals can and are skinned alive” to counter-argue your remark that they couldn’t possibly be killed that way (because of the damage caused by the blood). Also, even though I despise the fur industry, I don’t think I generalized. But believe me, that practice is more common than you think.
Again, I apologize if I was rude but I still think it (your comment # 16) was an ignorant statement.
@ Catherine: Well said. On all your points.
@ Victoria: You can’t know what most of us think of abortion so bringing it up in the first place was a little ridiculous and didn’t belong here. It seems these days just about everything can be linked to abortion, it’s downright stupid. And saying that you find people who are against animal cruelty and also support women’s rights hypocritical while also proclaiming this is people’s personal business makes no sense. We all judge. It’s not our best quality but we do it.
So you’re anti-choice, good for you. I still have no idea why that means you feel the need to judge my stand on animal rights.
That bag IS gorgeous…
@Eve, we can agree to disagree on your “ignorant” comment. In my mind, I was contributing my knowledge and experience from the modern day fur industry. I generalised PETA in terms of the organisation itself, rather than directing my opinion at its followers.
I took your comment “killing them in inhumane, cruel ways (which is usually what happens in the fur industry)” to be a generalisation.
Even if we do disagree, I admire your passion for the subject, and I hope that doesn’t come across condescendingly.
@littlemissnaughty Amen and well said.
We don’t know where the python that became the bag came from. We don’t know if it was humanely slaughtered. All we know is that it is hanging on Reese’s arm, is ridiculously expensive and has made PETA angry. Oh, and that it would be illegal to buy it in Cali.
I’m completely confused by the goings on about how people should care about people instead of animals. Last I checked, it was possible to do both.
@ catherine… I was just looking through the comments and I totally overlooked something you said about veganism (108) “Being vegan isn’t an issue of 100% animal-free purity. It’s about doing the LEAST harm possible.”
That makes no sense. Thats like saying “murdering people is ok, as long as your doing the LEAST harm possible”. It doesn’t make sense. That’s why there is not such thing as veganism. Either you use or eat products that kills animals in the process, or you use only what you grow or make.
I’m not saying lets go kill animals willy-nilly, but at the same time you HAVE to realize that not buying or eating meat because you don’t want to contribute to the killing of animals is futile at best.
Two interesting non-PETA reads on the subject:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1472075/Why-the-snakeskin-coat-looks-better-on-a-python.html
http://www.glambrowser.com/snake-skin-leather-handbags.html
@catherine i am not denying any one’s choice i’m personally saying it is your choice as long as it comes out of your pocket, when my money becomes involved and they start targeting minority communities (planned parenthood)then my choice get’s taken away then it does become my business.
stop with fucking the hypocrisy. folks are always claim its nonsense when people call them out on double standards.
@naughty all i did was point out the issue i had with peta and SOME of thei supportees. i’m not stepping on your rights nor did i imply anyone on here said any thing. i never made assumptions about anyone but was speaking in general because this has come up in my circle of friends before.
but i know how this goes.
@ Mich: Interesting links. Thanks.
@ decemberist115: That’s actually not true. “Vegan” is not a frickin’ trademark, it’s a concept and its definition isn’t that clear-cut. You described your definition, it doesn’t have to be everyone else’s.
And yes, there is a difference between trying to be conscious of what products you buy and how you behave as a consumer in general or just saying “Eh, won’t make a difference.” and going balls-out. We can’t all go live in the woods, that’s just a ridiculous notion. But that doesn’t mean we can’t try to be mindful of where our products come from and how they’re produced.
I sometimes eat meat and yes, my shoes are made of leather. I do try to buy meat from local farmers and I try to find out how it got on my plate. I’m not an animal rights saint but at least I don’t publicly support PETA and then run around with a python handbag. Like Mrs. Witherspoon did. Where the heck is her PR person???
m255 – I would say they “taste like chicken” but everyone says that about any non-descript meat, and they really don’t. (I’ve also had frog legs, and while they taste CLOSE to chicken, chicken they are NOT.)
I don’t know how to describe it (it’s “white meat” if that helps) and can be tender or tough, dependent upon the age/type of snake.
On base, one had to “prove” that said snake (or coyote or wolf or whatever) was a valid threat to said home/kids/pets to the Game Warden. They were in charge. (And I swear to Buddha, I have NEVER IN MY LIFE seen a tarantula as huge as the one I saw when I was 10. A VAN (!) ran over it, and only squashed its body. Legs still all up and out like it was gonna wander off!)
One has never lived until trying to get one’s cat out from under the car (a rattle snake is NOT a TOY, kitteh!) or chasing a rattle snake out of the living room while trying to contain the cats and dogs.
my two cents: the bag is FABULOUS.
sad about the snakes though. shouldn’t we blame the people who kill them inhumanely?
Her husband is cute. And not wee, as someone said. He looks tallish to me.
The design of the bag is nice; the Paraty also comes in leather. As for snakesin, I hate the texture of it.
What I’m curious about is PETAs constant claim that animals are skinned alive. Is there proof of this and if so, give me a non-PETA link. The only reason I ask is because fashion companies avoid this issue. While there is a company that claims it ethically sources fur and the like, it doesn’t elaborate on the skinning process. As for the notorious Chinese skinning video, I’m aware of that, but then again China isn’t renowned for any ethical practices [from worker rights to samaritan behaviour] and shouldn’t be used by PETA as a generalised statement of a practice.
Bag aside, on the whole, using pelts from endangered animals should be outlawed.
Here is a video PETA made: http://meat.org
Nearly $4000 for a bag?
Seriously?!
I don’t make that for two months at the fulfilling non-profit organization I work for.
F PETA, when are we all going to say that enough is enough with how much celebrities are paid?
Burmese pythons are a pest destroying the Florida ecosystem. I think a lot of people would be happy if you nailed one to a tree and skinned it alive. Make it into a handbag and you waste nothing. Is that really worse than being suffocated while a giant snake eats your head? The endangered birds and alligators will thank you.
Anyway, some people might chose to be vegan or whatever but none of them would be here to make that choice if sometimes in history living things didn’t decide to be cruel callous jerks and start eating each other. BTW, getting eaten alive isn’t very humane.
@jermsmom
Catholoics were not a group that were kept in concentration camps or who were executed or tourtured for their beliefs.
I believe there was always a catholic priest blessing the nazi soldiers before they went off to war.
The main targets of Hitler & co were: Jews, gypsies,homosexuals, the disabled, mixed race folks and the only religious group (who could leave anytime if they denounced their religion) were Jehovah’s Witnesses.
@ sara
Just because an animal is a pest, doesn’t warrant its suffering.
It’s not the burmese python’s fault some moron imported it here to sell in pet stores and then a natural disaster set them all free.
I mean, c’mon. Don’t be silly. If they need to be killed, they can be killed in a way where they don’t suffer – same for any animal.
@Addie – Catholics were certainly not as large a target as the groups you mentioned, however, they were a target. In the early days of the Reich there was a bit of a truce (in fact, some factions of the catholic church enabled Hitlers take-over) but Hitler’s ego could not allow for any other person or group of people to be deemed as having leadership or a following. Many Catholics also became very active and vocal in their protests against what was happening under the Nazi regime. But, yes, you are correct in including several groups of people that I left out (not intentionaly, just hastily).
It sickens me that we can be so cruel to one another.
@Jermsmom: Agreed. Sad that we still have things like genocide and racism in this day and age.
Glad that we have sites like Celebitchy to apprecheate the fun side of life with good old fashion gossip 🙂
I like animals and I’m not on board with the idea of torturing them or wearing them around as shoes, clothes and accessories.
@ Decemberist15:
I reread my comment # 93 and finally spotted the huge mistake (“doesn’t”) that I had completely overlooked before. I meant to say “don’t” — it’d have been wrong anyway because of the verb “posted”, but I know “doesn’t” is a third person (singular) conjugation. Don’t know what happened, I don’t usually make mistakes when it comes to verb conjugation (especially a ridiculously simple one like that).
Awesome post SC. Thanks for the link.
What kind of insanity is it to torture a live animal in order to ‘save’ them? I truly cannot understand the mentality of these AR extremists.