Older post, but...

[conuly]

Are there really people who'd rather spend lots of money to simulate barefootedness than to just go barefoot?

Not counting, of course, those who really can't be unshod (and have lots of money).

Comments

[mortaine.livejournal.com]

Well, those are orthopedic shoes, which are usually covered by insurance.

That said.... my mother can't go barefoot, for example. She lacks almost all sensation in her feet, and can easily get a cut or puncture wound that she wouldn't know about and which would almost certainly become infected and probably septic (she's diabetic). Many diabetics become amputees because of injuries like this.

[conuly]

That's why I excluded those who can't go unshod. See?