child labour >>>>> child sex labour.

Sadly, a lot of these individuals in 3rd world countries are presented with only these options to survive.

worse grammar ever

oh that's good

90% of the people who buy real, are the same as those who buy fake. They don't actually have taste they think that spending $600 on a LV bang flashing off the designer name makes them higher than the lower-middle class that they are. It doesn't.

You mean WORST grammar ever?
Dont you know the difference between worst and worse?

Anyways, me no speak English!!

;)

Laterzzz;););)

^you know what they say... the key to a girl's heart is chanel

You can argue about value but at the end of the day the value of any good is relative, inherently subjective and based on perceptions of the individual consumer.

I think the bigger issue is that buying fake goods is essentially theft. It`s intellectual property crime and based on that principal, I would never buy a fake.

the problem lies deeper than other people noticing. yes, the idea behind brand names (especially those plastered all over the product) are geared towards appearance and what people think of you, read: status symbol. but lets face it... if you buy a fake, you're fooling yourself into thinking you're someone that you're clearly not.
typically, authentic designer wear is superior in quality alone, next comes trend... and 75% of the reason for its price is driven by its story of build quality and brand history (which knockoffs clearly lack)

the real benefit to buying high fashion is the experience of actually BUYING it. ever bought something from a louis vuitton boutique? it's a lot more gratifying that picking it out of a pile at a night market and passing it off as real... even if your dumb friends can't tell.

the moral of the story is self-honesty. be proud of what you have and live within your means... you'll attract the right kind of people by living an honest life. if you lose out on fucking some whore because you bought an esquire watch instead of a fucking knockoff cartier, consider yourself lucky... people who base their relationship decisions on brand names are even faker than the people wearing them.

if you can't afford it, it wasn't meant for you. deal with it.

i haven't read most of the thread, but all i can say is it's up to the the person buying it.
If you want to buy fake that are so well made that people can't tell the difference, go for it, flaunt it all you want.
It's your decision to buy it, and your decision to flaunt it. If you want to buy real, then buy it and flaunt it.
At the end of the day you know you didn't buy the real thing, but there's no need to justify whether or not it's real or not as long as you're comfortable with it.
I like to buy legit cause it pays for people's salary, the sales person, the designer, the producer, and transporter and it does make me feel good about myself,that i made enough to buy it legit. I will keep on buying the things i like so the designers can make more money so they have the motivation to design new items that i will like.
It's a free country, do what makes you feel good. If you like vintage items at value village go for it. I don't like the old vintage look. If you like to buy the fake stuff, go for it and pretend all you want. However, I like the whole fresh clean look, i like to wear new stuff. You can call me a consumer, materialistic whore, so what? I probably am, as long as i can support that habit in a legal way then it's alright.

It's like the whole downloading music problem right now.
You can download music for free or you can go buy the CD. If you want them to continue to produce good music then buy the good music. If you want people to stop producing music then sure download all you want because soon, there will be no one willing to make music.

Yes, i'm making the an assumption that 99% of people are money driven and will produce because of the monetary increase they will receive.

well then. they're not really making music for the sake of artistic expression and communication then, now are they? then what are they making? aside from a paycheck and poor image?

It's called making a living. Doing it for expression is called a hobby. If you suck @ your hobby and want to turn it into a living, then good luck to you.

I could build a bridge for fun on my free time and it would work, but it's gonna be half-assed. Why... because doing it properly takes extra effort, like 8 hrs/day effort. MOST ppl would rather use that time & effort to pay the bills. Welcome to the pressures of the real world.

well, because since they can money by their artistic expression and communication people would then follow that path.
if you can't make enough to eat/survive darwin will prevail, you die, and there's no incentive to take that route.
there are many artists out there that aren't there to make a quick buck. They make music because they love it, but they still need to eat or feed their family. If they make music that people enjoy and people will buy their CD and them being rich is a by product of them making good music. They get rich by their hard work and good luck.
But if you're looking for a good justification of buying fake goods, don't sweat it man, who cares what people think. Buy it, use it, and chuck it.

Ill buy the CD, if i like the artist and the music

EPIC.

yea dont buy fake shit. buying fake shit = faker. unless if you THOUGHT it was real, then it turned out fake, then shitt....:(

nice how you edited out the last sentence of my statement, by which would have given your reply no validity.
not to mention the irrelevant comparison.
it's actually interesting, and quite telling, that you would liken an art form to big business industry. completely straying it from what it's original centuries old intent was

you mean that? i took that as a cheap shot u threw in @ some ideology you're against. you're telling me it wasn't? :lol

Who the fuck cares what I liken. I'm just telling you the truth. It's up to you whether or not you can handle it.

We were talking about ppl producing because of monetary incentives. Artists, plumbers, teachers, lawyers, cops, and most of the bell curve of rational PEOPLE are gonna go make a living doing whatever works for them - a balance of what they enjoy vs what they're good at that's in demand - and put effort into doing it well. Bills need to be paid. Lives need to be lived. Chasing dreams of forgone centuries sounds romantic, but it doesn't resolve the fact that you need money to survive in 2009.

If I wanna design bridges but I can't add 2+2 in a world of integration by parts, why would I do that as a living? Instead, I can build spaghetti bridges for fun, let the real bridge builders do their thing, and make a living @ something else. I satisfy my expression and I don't live in the poor house. Sounds like a win-win, validity & relevance up the wazoo to me.

what can i say? i put my foot in my mouth and you've called me on it. you post a very reasonable argument. i admit defeat, respectfully

no way, that is stupid. but i think you are referring to the fake stuff in china not hong kong

+1

lol good point

i tried to pass off that "fake phase" for a bit, i just couldnt pull it off
...went legit and buy the real shizzz now

I soooo wanna buy a Panerai watch, but can't afford one at the moment.

There are shitloads of homage watches available for $100 USD or less. I won't buy one. fake is a Fake. Period.