Should women wear camouflage Manolos during wartime?

In the old days, women supported the troops by sacrificing the nylon for their stockings to be used for parachutes. Now, ladies can salute our soldiers by wearing Manolo Blahnik camouflage suede pumps ($555 at neimanmarcus.com). Call the Rage a patriotic frump but it feels disrespectful to teeter about in camouflage heels when U.S. troops are wishing to hell that they could get out of Iraq. The Paul Smith camouflage bucket hat ($90 at saks.com) for men affects her the same way.  If you had just returned home from Baghdad and suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, would you be thrilled to see some chick skip by in her camo Manolos?

Weigh in, vets and troops.

Photos: Neimanmarcus.com; saks.com

Comments

[Luke]

Since Post Traumatic Stress disorder appears in so many different ways I do not believe that you can truly regulate that you can protect any one by restricting the appearance standards of others. Each individual is guaranteed the right to express themselves. A right which many Americans have fought and even died for. No veteran or for that matter any citizen should trample on what remains of the right to free expression. The idea that we would all be required to tow some invisible line. Well thats frightening indeed traumatizing.

[H Tran]

Woodland pattern is sooo retro.

[Feldwebel Wolfenstool]

...oooo-la-la....those $555 shoes wouldl go perfectly with my $6,000 USAF toilet seat!

[L.]

I did some freelance design a few years ago and refused to use camouflage print fabric. I felt it would be disrespectful (for obvious reasons). That said, I would never tell someone not to wear camo print unless they were asking for wardrobe advice.

[Trueblue]

"Fashion with a heart" Paul Smith's so called mission statement. Monica, you're "spot on" with you're etiquette
advice once again - Jeannine

[kat]

I could really get pretentious and preachy on this issue because if the fashion industry weren't as soulless and vacuous as it is you could almost say that $550 camouflage Manolas were a telling social commentary about pseudo nationalism as fad and fashion. After all, it was a bunch of mindless nazi-esque idiots caught up in post 9/11 mob mentality who started the war. So why not put camouflage on a pair of overpriced trendy shoes as a metaphor for social as well as fashion fadism? Brilliant.

But, alas, the fashion industry is indeed soulless and vacuous so I figure that instead of biting social commentary the fashion industry has just accidently revealed how truly stupid, insensitive and materialistic they are by using as shoe cover, the very fabric that soldiers suffer and die in every day.

Whenever someone goes postal and kills a bunch of young bright students or innocent children I always wonder why they can't do some good instead and go blazing at AM radio show hosts, the IRS or the Vogue floor of the Conde Nast building in New York.

Sigh.
(p.s. didn’t I say I wasn’t going to get pretentious and preachy?)