The Discerning Brute: fashion, food & etiquette for the ethically handsome man » karl Addison

GQ’s Fuzzy Memory, ZOO¡Creatures of Curiosity & Retire Ronald

joshuakatcher — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 15:00:36 +0000

• I was totally thrilled when I came across this retro GQ cover from November of 1970. "Should animals become fur coats?" it asks, showcasing a man bottle-feeding a baby leopard while wearing a leopard coat with one sleeve missing. Where's he gonna get the other sleeve? I wonder if they could have predicted what would happen over the next 40 years in fashion? Wish I could see the article. Anyone want to buy me an Ebay gift or a large deluxe framed cover-print from CondeNast for only $500? OK, fine... 20 greeting cards with the image on the cover for $39.95. • When Karl Addison told me about his book, ZOO¡ Creatures of Curiosity, I was enthralled - I've always been fascinated by creatures of our own imaginations. Who wouldn't love "a collection of aesthetically strange and unusual animals accompanied by preposterous tales of origin...whose goal is to inspire thought provoking conversations about the outrageous treatment of animals-both past and present. Without serious intervention into the destruction of wildlife habitats and continued experimentation on animals-wild and domestic-is a two-headed ostrich or a one-eyed Grizzly bear really that far off?" Get it on Etsy! • Ronald is old and mean and he needs to join Joe Camel, the Marlboro Man, and Spuds McKenzie in the retirement home for marketing characters designed to entice children to hurt themselves. The organization, Corporate Accountability International launched Value the Meal, a campaign, which is described below:

"Value the Meal is a campaign led by Corporate Accountability International dedicated to reversing the global epidemic of diet-related disease. Launched in 2009, the campaign challenges McDonald’s and the fast food industry to curb the range of its practices that are contributing to the epidemic. The campaign’s advisory committee consists of leading experts on food and nutrition, marketing to children, and sustainable food systems."

Fresh Friday Finds

TheDiscerningBrute — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 05:09:27 +0000

1. If you thought they couldn't possibly be any more disgusting, the parting Bush Administration has denied dwindling, drowning and starving Polar Bears protection under the Endangered Species Act. Human generated global-warming, mostly caused by meat & dairy production, is the #1 culprit. Read the full article here.

“This rule makes a mockery of the Endangered Species Act, our nation’s most important wildlife protection law,” said Defenders of Wildlife executive vice president, Jamie Rappaport Clark. “The polar bear doesn’t have time for political maneuvers. Its habitat is melting away, its food is becoming scarce and the science is clear that the cause is global warming - yet the rule this administration released today affirms that little will be done to save the species from sure extinction.

2. If you wear glasses or sunglasses, and you don't know about Fabulous Fanny's, you are missing out! Get the most amazing selection of thrift & vintage frames and shades. Buying thrift is the greenest way to shop! It's one of the East Village's best kept secrets, and one of my personal favs. 3. Farm Sanctuary strikes again! With an awesome party, of course! With Miss Guy on the turn table, more amazing vegan food than your eyes and tummy can handle, and the most inspiring crowd of activists and celebs from Danilea Sea and Alison Becker to Jennifer Coolidge, Corey Feldman & Inder Bedhi of Matt&Nat - this Winter Wonderland fundraiser was not to be missed - but if you did miss it, make sure to make it to next one! Farmsanctuary.org 4. Our friend Karl at PARTYBOTS has designed some awesome, 100% post-consumer recycled, originally designed notebooks! These are sweet and under $6 each! Cheap gifts for everyone this holiday! 5. This holiday, you may be feeling philanthropic. However, be very aware of organizations like Heifer International - whose promises of alleviating malnutrition and poverty through providing animals, actually has disasterous results. Like the little fact that over 90% of the Africans who are given dairy cows are lactose intolerant. Our friends at WFAS school us on this, and tell us how we can really help: "While this might sound good on paper, the water and land needs of livestock in areas that are often short on both quickly outweigh the benefits -- instead it increases human dependence on an unsustainable food-system that depletes the environment and does not fulfill all of a community’s real nutritional or long-term survival needs" Read the full article. 6. Organic Cotton from Alternative Apparel is so much better than conventional cotton from the notoriously homophobic Urban Outfitters. 7. December 20th is National "Adopt, Don't Shop" day. The Saturday before Christmas is the biggest puppy-buying day of the year. This year, In Defense of Animals is teaming up with activists in dozens of cities around the country to educate the public about the horrors of pet factories (puppy mills) and encourage people to adopt a homeless animal from a shelter or rescue group instead of buying one from a pet store. Enzo and I say you should adopt! 8. In case you missed it on Ecorazzi, Chloé Jo Berman, and yours truly were interviewed about ethical fashion. Read the interview! 9. Elephants should not be in zoos. For example, the Los Angeles zoo has killed 13 elephants. Help close down this horrible slave-trade, and save Billy from the same fate that his previous 13 fellow elephants experienced. These intelligent, emotionally complex and gorgeous beings belong in their native habitat, not in captivity. You can view video of Billy and the Los Angeles Zoo here. You can donate to IDA's campaign to Free Billy here. 10. The sleek Pool Collection from Matt&Nat has arrived! Get it while it's hot, then take a dip in the pool. 100% vegan, recycled lining, and cool as hell.

Totes Awesome!

TheDiscerningBrute — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 23:13:18 +0000

Check out these new organic cotton totes from Partybots! The size is 15x15 inches with a 25 inch dual strap. They are hand cut, printed to order and sewn in-house in Seattle, WA. As always, any of his artwork can be printed on these fancy but simple and extremely usable tote bags.

Soft Spot: 'White Gold' & Partybots

TheDiscerningBrute — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 00:14:08 +0000

1. PARTYBOTS

Who doesn't want awesome, organic tee-shirts with illustrations of dorks, animals, robots and skulls? I know I do... Karl Addison, designer and artist, started Partybots "out of a love of clothing and art that would break the norm", and that he did. In 2003, Karl gave two friends tee-shirts with Robots on them. Obviously, this was magical, and the rest is history. His humor and warmth penetrate even the website. Check it out!

"The colors, placement, effects and more continually evolve, the end result being work that’s always one-of-a-kind—even when it’s reproduced. All of my printing, painting and production is done in-house by me. This allows me to use a variety of media—clothing, bags, books, posters, textiles—and easily create custom work." - Karl Addison

He uses soy inks, water-based glues, organic and eco-blend apparel, and low-impact color-dyeing. Who needs Urban Outfitters (with their right-wing President) when we have people like Karl Addison making original clothing-art? Karl is certainly a Discerning Brute. Thumbs up. 2.WHITE GOLD "One of the most staggering disasters of the twentieth century" - UN official statement about the conventional cotton industry. I've had a lot of people ask me recently, "whats wrong with cotton? It's a plant!". When I think of cotton, I imagine tucking my knees up under a soft tee-shirt, white cotton-candy-puffs growing in a field, and those incredibly melodramatic "cotton, the fabric of our lives" commercials. Whose lives are they referring to? Ours? When we look more closely, we'll see that the fabric of many peoples' lives is falling apart due to that fibrous, little cloud-like plant.

Gentlemen, the switch to organic cotton we see happening in so many clothing lines is not just a hip trend or buzz-word to sell products. I do not believe it is a passing fad either. 'Organics' is here to stay - and for good reason. Organic, fair-trade cotton has some real legitimacy when the social and ecological devastation caused by conventional cotton industry is considered. Toxic dust from pesticides and thirsty plants are destroying aquatic ecosystems and causing TB and cancer-rates to skyrocket in Uzbekistan. The social injustices have even led to murdered cotton laborers, who were shot by state security in 2005 while protesting their treatment. Educate yourselves (it's sexy). Did you know:

Uzbekistan is the second-largest exporter of cotton in the world

It takes about 530 gallons of water to produce 1 tee-shirt

The Aral Sea, once the world's fourth largest inland lake, providing the region with fish and water, has shrunk to 15% of its original size due to cotton production

Up to one third of Uzbekistan's workforce is made to labour on cotton farms; denied ownership of the land they work, and forced to labour without reasonable wages

In Uzbekistan, laborers are unable to opt out of cotton cultivation -- those who try are subject to violence, imprisonment and intimidation

Much of the cotton comes from child labor

Watch this video:

DB 's Etiquette Recommendation: Read labels and take responsibility for how you vote with your dollar. Refuse to buy cotton products coming from socially and environmentally destructive situations. Spread the word and support fair-trade and organic products.