[Ghost of Philip Marlowe]

Umm, big difference.

In the Chinese example, little girls had their feet bound in their childhood in order to force them to grow malformed. Once done, there is no going back. It also causes women to walk with a very small gait and awkwardly, with shoes or in bare feet.

The high heels are only a look while the women choose to wear them. And the look that drove the development of the high heel had less to do with how it made the foot look and more to do with how it formed the calf (contracting the muscle high in the back of the calf and creating a greater taper from knee to ankle).

[Yaelle]

But in the past, women’s legs looked great in 2 inch heels. And they could dance all night in them ! I get why you like the look. But if there were no heels over 3 inches in the shops, as there used to be, you would still be very happy. No?

[grey_whiskers]

And the look that drove the development of the high heel had less to do with how it made the foot look and more to do with how it formed the calf (contracting the muscle high in the back of the calf and creating a greater taper from knee to ankle).

So you're telling me that Hillary walked around with five-inch TOE supports...

Cheers!