Distressed denim: Feeling torn

I'm feeling torn about the whole distressed jeans trend. (Groooooaaaaan! Sorry.)

How much do jeans like this cost? Click and see!

I wonder how the factory workers feel, taking a cheese grater to some perfectly good jeans, and then knowing people will fork out $500 bucks for them!
Or what would our grandparents and great-grandparents say? "Um, you're buying them with holes ALREADY IN THEM?! Back in my day, we used clothes as rags well before they looked like this!"



Isn't the whole point of long pants so you DON'T have to shave your legs?!

Now that I'm supposed to wear pants with holes in them, should I also wear my nail polish all chipped and peeling off? Come on, I could be a trend setter!


And yet...


I could wear this...

There are so many pretty outfits with distressed jeans. They make everything look effortless and casual. 


This, plus the ironically half-tucked shirt... very stylish.
And I know some teenage boys at church who would HATE to know how unintentionally stylish they are!

And yet, I'm not sure I'm 100% on board. I have no trouble looking casual and unkempt. That's actually my forte. I have some jeans already well on their way to being fiercely stylish!
But would I buy them like that NEW?

I guess my final opinion on distressed jeans is my opinion about tattoos: Some look great and some don't, but is it ever an improvement on the original?

Sorry, distressed jeans. I'm going to have to be a lot cooler before anyone would believe I was wearing you ironically.