You have to wonder if the makers of this fashion atrocity ever considered the irony in naming their hideous boots Uggs. And for such an aptly named piece of dead cowhide, why is it we have to be subjected to seeing them everywhere? Because some sadistic soul decided to make them trendy, and when you see someone sporting them on "Sex in the City," expect fashion madness to ensue.
We live in the middle of the desert, and if you think fat sherpa boots paired with your teeny tiny mini make you a fashion goddess, think again. Unless you like to look as if you have boats for feet, by all means, continue to clomp around campus looking ridiculous.
For more than 45 years, Uggs have been comfortable and tough sheepskin boots, made in New Zealand by a seven-generation family of boot makers. Tony Mortel now heads the company, still making the same product, under the same name, but he had little to do with the ridiculous marketing campaign that made them fashionable, other than making them.
According to a recent New Zealand Herald article, in 1971, a local surfer, Shane Steadman, started to sell Uggs to visiting surfers who liked the warmth of the boots after being in the cold of the ocean. Steadman took his idea to the United States, registered the long-time name of Mortel's product and subsequently sold his company to a U.S. conglomerate, who now enjoys great perks by suing everyone who uses the name, including the original Ugg boot manufacturer and heir, Tony Mortel.
OK, so in lieu of this history lesson, please abstain from perpetuating this sickening trend; If not for the sake of preserving the sanctity of tasteful fashion, then for the sake of preventing another greedy businessman from making a buck off the sweat of honest New Zealand Folk.
Reach the reporter at saman.mehrazar@asu.edu.
