Quote Originally Posted by seanachie View Post
Steve:
I have to say to my mind your and Rocky's posts are fairly generous, you noted: "It should not matter that one of our members buys one of these kilts. It should not matter, as long as they are informed and know what they are buying." Fair enough, but it is probably is worthy to note the many of the craftsmen/women here earn their living from what they sell. I think part of the informed decision is do you feel good about potentially spending money for something that may have been made in a sweat shop and by exploited workers. And I do not mean to suggest all Asian kilts are produced this way, just that these conditions do exist. The other part being if we offered all our custom to low priced, cheaply made kilts and gear when we did need a nice tank or modern kilt craftsman such as frequent this board will have gone under. I also believe there are intangibles such as the human interaction, customer service and camraderie that develops.

I am not blameless in this, but I think my thinking and purchasing have evolved as I have become more informed, better understand the issues and come to a better general understanding. Now I need to find an excuse not to buy from the merchants who frequent this board rather than the reverse. An no I am not a person of means at all, it just means sometimes I have to wait and save a little more for something I would like. Sometimes instant gratification is not all it is cranked up to be.
Sean-

I just took a look in my closet, and guess what? My levis were made in Mexico and Cambodia. T-shirts and dress shirts? Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong, and Bangladesh.

My point? People don't stop me on the street and tell me that my clothes are garbage, poorly made, and not worth wearing. I respect that there are people on these forums who put their hard work into making kilts that are durable and made to traditional standards. But there are also folks here who make and sell (and plenty more who wear them) kilts that are not traditionally made (USA Kilts, Stillwater Kilts, Freedom Kilts). If traditional kilts were the only accepted form of kilt wearing allowed, then none of these wonderful kilt makers would have anyone to market their wares to. So forgive me if I dismiss your argument. Being a traditionalist does not give one and excuse to insult other people, especially when the criticisms offered have nothing to do at all with the original topic.

Thanks.