Sarah Palin's wardrobe: the Louie Vuitton is a fake

[madaboutharry]

Huffington Post has a slideshow up of Palin's new $150,000 wardrobe. One of the photos shows Piper carrying her mom's Louie Vuitton handbag. It is an older bag since the leather is aged, so it is something that Palin has owned from before she was put on the ticket. The bag is a fake. It is a bit off from the authentic version and it has little brass feet on the bottom, which the real Louie Vuitton bag doesn't have.

Why is this important? Because it appears that Palin purchased an illegal counterfeit handbag that was most likely made by a child in an underdeveloped country. I have a HUGE problem with counterfeit designer goods. I am not going to feel a whole lot of pity for Louie Vuitton, but on principle no company should get ripped off. I think it says something about her character. These products are illegal to produce and they are made in sweatshops, often by children. The real Louie Vuitton bags are made in France, Spain or the United States by adults who work in "up to code" workshops and are trained in handmade leather goods.

Some may not think it is a big deal, but again I think it says something about this woman.

[Ian David]

1. It could also be stolen from Katrina relief supplies.

Counterfeit goods confiscated by U.S. Customs were given to Katrina evacuees, including gake Louie Vuitton hand bags.

It's possible Sarah Palin got her hand bag from FEMA.

[thunder rising]

3. Sarah shopping at the FEMA warehouse. That's a fckn thought...NOT!

[Vinca]

2. Good point. I've never understood why anyone would buy a knockoff bag.

They're usually poor quality and you know someone was exploited in its making.

[unblock]

7. interestingly, i've never understood why anyone would by a designer bag

well over 50%, and at times as much as 80%, of the price is advertising, for the sake of some completely artificially manufactured image.

not defending counterfeits at all, but i would better understand practicality and quality from a humble brand.

the louis vuittons and other 'high-end' brands have price increment that in no way justifies the marginal quality increment.

[goddess40]

17. right wing nutter encouraged kids to buy these bags

I went on a school trip to DC and NYC and the tour guide, a true right wing nutter, encouraged the eight grade girls to buy these bags. She explained how the guys would have large sheets laid out with the bags on them. She told them to not take too much time to pick out a bag and to not be surprised if the guy just gathered up the bags in the sheet and ran off. She explained they have to do that to avoid the police because what they do is illegal.

It's a public school, but the trips are arranged by teachers and are technically not district sponsored. Most parents think they are sponsored by the district.

[vaberella]

4. She has no ethical codes....I've come to terms with this.

So some poor kid Pipers age probably sewed that bag in Indonesia, who will never even think about holding that bag for their own mum in 10 lifetimes----the world just never seems to balances itself out.

[baldguy]

5. What's one more exploited worker to Palin?

If they win, they'll turn America into one giant sweatshop, just like China.

[WallStreetNobody]

6. That argument isn't going to work though for political purposes

I highly doubt Palin's uber-right-wing "God, Guns, and Oil" followers care about foreign sweatshop workers or the fact that fancy-boy Louie Vuitton is getting ripped off. If anything it will just reinforce their absurd belief that she's a regular ole' gal who has to pinch her pennies. Better to just focus on the fact that she took $150k in campaign money to buy a bunch of high-priced designer clothing worn by Hollywood and East Coast elites that cost as much as some people's homes.

[madaboutharry]

16. Louie Vuitton is no longer a person.

He started the company in the late 1800's and has been dead a long time. It is a big corporation now. Just as bad, I guess!

[iamahaingttta]

8. It's also possible that she has no idea...

...where she got the bag, no idea that it's a fake, or no idea who Louis Vuitton is.

I wouldn't read too much into this. Not yet, anyway. There are plenty of REAL reasons to have concerns about her character...

[AllieB]

9. A hick like Sarah may not know about the counterfeit bag issue.

But then again, as a Republican, the odds are she doesn't care. I had to explain to my friends on a trip to NYC that those bags are often made by children or slave labor, and that they were committing copyright fraud.

My Louis Vuitton bags were made in the USA and France, and the craftmanship is heads above any of the crap made in China. Do you know hard it is to find a leather or canvas bag NOT made in China or the third world? Coach, Nine West,and Cole Haan manufacture all their bags and shoes in the third world now.

My LV bags are close to five years old with barely a scratch, AND Louis Vuitton repairs and replaces any of the hardware. This is the kind of service-and craftsmanship-that you don't find in our 'throwaway' society, where you can get a leather bag for $29.99 in TJ Maxx and toss it when the strap breaks.

If the RNC allowed her to run up a huge bill at Saks and Neimans, the least she could do is buy a REAL bag. They fetch a pretty price if she wants to resell it on eBay, like she did with the plane. :eyes:

[Buzz Clik]

10. "Why is this important?" It isn't.

[peaches2003]

11. RNC $$$

I don't give a damn what she wears, but to a Repug and Cindy and her friends Sarah would have to wear designer clothes. But...the RNC pay for it with campaign funds??? Another story and I would be livid if I were a Repug donor, but I'm sure they think it is fine. I have to laugh at the $4700 hair and makeup. I knew they would make her over and they sure have changed the librarian hair!

As an email to MSNBC said- they should have called Stacy and Clinton on What Not to Wear and gotten all her clothes for $5000. :rofl:

[MichellesBFF]

13. Faux designer purses

I thought the authorities were saying not to buy fake designer handbags because terrorists are selling them to raise funds?

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

12. The fact that she bought a "designer" handbag, fake or not,

tells me a lot about her. To my mind, designer handbags are like the designer jeans fad of the 80s--you take a utilitarian item, have someone style it in a certain way, and then charge ridiculous prices for it. Both handbags and jeans are utilitarian items--and when "designers" get in the way, those items, even the regular ones, wind up costing a lot more. Hard on the working person.

[proud2BlibKansan]

14. She probably bought it from a street vendor in New York

on that trip she took with Bristol.

[Clio the Leo]

15. Well now THAT makes her more hockey-mom like....

.... there's not a WalMart mom I know who doesn't have a fake Louie, Douney or Coach. That's not a storyline that will get us anywhere I'm afraid.