The longer I live in Asia, the more Western/Euro-centric articles like this seem to be. A man wears a skirt/kilt? BFD. Although I haven't worn a kilt in almost a year (the occasion hasn't arisen), I can count on one hand the times I have worn pants. Here in Nepal there are some 40+ ethnic groups and some say over 90 languages. Men wear lunghi and dhotis as do Indian (in fact many are Indians), Tibetan men wear chubas---floor length coats--- especially in the winter, Bhutanese wear a shorter, kilt-length version year-round, Buddhist monks wear robes that have a shang tab or ankle-length skirt, Hindu holy men wear several kinds of unbifurcated garments, etc. etc.

Conformity seems more rampant in the West in its own way, where some feel their masculinity so challenged when they step outside the norm by wearing a kilt or skirt that the colors and accessories must denote machismo, according to the article. But on the other hand clothes are more of a statement of one's individuality, rather than one's ethnicity, religion, caste, or other societal identifiers. I have come to appreciate Jock's approach to the kilt more and more. It, like much Nepali dress, is received wisdom, that shows where one comes from and where one fits into the culture, rather than carving out a statement about one's uniqueness.

Forgive my rambling. It's late here. And so to bed...