Would you rather go naked than wear fur, as per the models in the famous anti-fur ad campaign? (I always had a problem with that question: Does it have to be either/or? Can’t I just choose to wear, y’know, regular clothes?)

Well, whether you wouldn’t dream of wearing fur—or dream of wearing fur—this season has seen an explosion of both faux and for-real versions; particularly, though, of the former. You know your position, so pick your preference.

Problem is, you may not always know what you’re buying, and price can be an inaccurate indicator. Case in point: I spotted a pair of plush animal-print earmuffs selling in Midtown for $7.99, about as low-ball a figure as you can find. “Faux fur” read the affixed sticker. Would there be any doubt in your mind that given the price and the sticker, these are indeed a pretend product?

Of course not—but there should be. Upon careful inspection, I noticed a sewn-in label stating “100 percent rabbit fur, made in China.” Yeeks. I pointed out the problem to the seller who seemed dismayed, but not surprised: “Rabbit is cheap,” she shrugged. How sad is that? The life of a sentient creature: cheap; cheaper than polyester pile.

I’m not singling out any one seller for two reasons: The problem is not limited to a single merchant and, second, the fact that the earmuffs’ contradictory sewn-in tag wasn’t snipped out suggests there was no deliberate subterfuge. The takeaway here is caveat emptor. Read all labels, trust your instincts and know that the more established and reputable a brand and retailer are, the likelier it is that you’re buying what you think you are.

A fabulous source of top-name faux-fur finds is Bolton’s. Have you also overlooked this humble but quintessential circa-40-year-old local discount chain (easily predating, in Manhattan, Loeh
mann’s, T.J. Maxx and other more out-there names)? It wasn’t until our recent biannual pilgrimage to the nonpareil jewelry department at Bergdorf Goodman that I found myself, after a long hiatus, peeking into the nearby Bolton’s at 27 W. 57th.

Yowza: Calvin Klein earmuffs fashioned of chocolate-and-gold-spotted pretend fur attached to a leather-like band for just $19.99—the manufacturer’s suggested retail price-tag of $40 is still attached. Klein’s kind-to-animals version sports a discreetly sized gold-metal plaque bearing his name on one side of the band.

Prefer earmuffs in a solid black? Another Klein version here for the same price has the band and ear coverings wrapped in a velvety rich facsimile of beaver pelt; just so you know, the plaque is a bit buried in this model’s piled band.

Evelyn K weighs in with a circular 30-inches-all-around “eternity scarf”—yup, big enough to lasso some waistlines—in a kitten-soft black, brown and coffee-colored plush pile that’s pure Polly Esther; $7.95.

For all-over warmth, consider the spectacular Jones New York whiskey-colored mink-look-alike coat with fit-and-flare shaping, thanks to the multi-tiers sewn in below the waist. This glamorous, approximately knee-length garment has the practical, updating feature of a hood. Its already low price of $159.99 is further discounted 20 percent (perhaps more by the time you read this), and that includes the usual luxury touch of spare buttons.

Are you also kicking yourself for habitually zipping past Bolton’s en route to flashier/newer/trendier stores? Personally, I’m going to wear a (faux) hair shirt.

The Chinese invented woodblock printing. And in China, printing very quickly took on religious implications—Buddhism teaches that reproducing sacred texts is a way to receive blessings, so printing became a way to receive blessings while spreading the state religion.

The exhibit starts with a room of seventh-, eighth- and ninth-century prints of the Buddha with short texts. There are a few standouts, like the luxuriously painted “Banner with Bodhisattva.” But after a while, most of the prints start to take on the sameness of dollar bills—they’re spiritual currency.

The show moves on to the Ming period (1368-1644), where prints of leaves and flowers are executed with military precision. The period saw a big growth in literacy and wealth; at the same time, color printing took off. The exhibit includes many examples from the Ten Bamboo Shoots Collection of Calligraphy and Painting, a manual for artists full of lichen-covered stones and vines.

Color printing flourished into the Qing dynasty (1644-1912), whose Manchu rulers gave away prints to their guests to show off their power. The Qing period verges on the garish; loud pinks and greens, overflowing fruit plates and flower baskets all scream money.

The warmest pieces in this show are the so-called popular prints, which ordinary people bought to hang in their homes. Most are “door guardians” from the late 19th century, round-cheeked generals and kitchen gods with open, cartoonish faces. There are a few moving, expressionistic woodcuts from the revolutionary period, too. And the show does include some exciting works from the 1980s and beyond, notably Chen Haiyan’s “Dream,” an evocative swirl of animals on a black cloud, and Wu Jide’s “Fleeting Years.”

But these pieces beg the question: why isn’t The Met giving these artists an exhibit of their own? We would never see contemporary French or Italian artists wedged into a show of this historic scope. Contemporary Chinese artists deserve the same respect we give their Western counterparts.

The Printed Image in China: 
8th-21st Centuries 
Through July 29, The Metropolitan 
Museum of Art, 1000 5th Ave., 
212-923-3700, www.metmuseum.org.

Mike Daisey, called a “master storyteller” by the New York Times, has developed a special blend of personal history and gonzo journalism in his hilarious and touching monologues. This time around, Daisey narrows his laser-sharp wit on the empire of Apple in The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs, playing through Dec. 4 at The Public Theater at Astor Place.

Starting out as a techie and devoted worshipper of all things Jobs, a chance sighting of photos of an iPhone assembly line compelled Daisey to voyage to Shenzhen, the Chinese city where many Apple products are made. What he found on the expedition was shocking: factories that hold 430,000 people, 13-year-olds working over 12-hour shifts and twenty-something workers crippled by the chemicals used to clean iPhone screens. Daisey, once a worshipper at the altar of the upgrade, found himself forever changed by his most recent shows.

Is this piece a departure from your previous work, in terms of focusing on broader cultural and social issues?

A number of them have been in this vein, like If You See Something Say Something. It is a form of what you might call journalism—I research these broader issues and canvass people. Not every monologue is this kind of monologue, but I have been tending to do this for a while now.

Why do you think your work is going in this direction?

I think in large part I am interested in stories that I feel our culture is telling.

The Steve Jobs biography just came out—it is about 700 pages long. It is a comprehensive view of him, but through one lens. If we put on a different lens, Jobs’ story is fundamentally one about a man who made things. In the book there is not even one paragraph about how these things were made. Those are the stories that bind us together, but it is hard to see them and what they are.

Throughout the piece you mention “seeing” and how we are often blind to the things in front of us. I noticed that as the show ended, people whipped out their i-devices, but I bet everyone felt differently about them after seeing your piece.

That is the idea of the metaphor shift. Everything is back the same as it was a moment before, but now we see things in a new way and it changes our world. It changes the dialog.

Something that resonated is how Apple is helping to continue this First/Third World socioeconomic dynamic, which seems like a similar narrative to the Industrial Revolution. Looking at his work through this lens, would you say Steve Jobs was truly as revolutionary as some might say, if this narrative seems to be repeating itself?

This echoes something I wrote about in a New York Times op-ed column. I think if we are going to export these jobs [to other countries], we have an ethical responsibility to uphold fair labor practices. Steve Jobs choosing not to do this was actually the conservative thing to do.

Shenzhen invokes all of the images of the Industrial Revolution, but we didn’t need it to work this way. To say that this is simply the way a global economy works is an inherently false worldview. These changes are very recent. Shenzhen has really only existed for the last 30 years, and the factory was made only in the last decade or so. The whole reason the systems works the way it does now is to avoid U.S. labor laws. Change is not only possible, it is inevitable.

It is interesting that the sense of apathy is changing even now. I see it doing this monologue…and through Occupy Wall Street. There is a paradigm shift. People are remembering that it is possible to protest something.

What can people do to more ethically interact with Apple products?

One can educate oneself. There is a lot of information that is available about how this world works and Chinese labor laws. A large part of our responsibility is thinking about our upgrade cycle. I, for instance, haven’t upgraded anything since I went to Shenzhen.

Did you feel a quick pang of lust when the iPhone 4S was announced?

It was like a pang, but I am doing OK. It was far from torture.

Monologist Mike Daisey turns his eye to his beloved Apple and its creator, in the The Agony and The Ecstasy of Steve Jobs, extended through Dec. 4 at The Public Theater. Photo courtesy of The Public Theater

New York Chinese Film Festival prides itself on offering American audiences the best and most up-to-date in Chinese cinema.  The lineup features 17 films and will run at AMC Village VII Theatre at 66 Third Avenue between 11th & 12th Streets on Wednesday, November 9th through Sunday, November 13th.  There will be Five North American Premieres including Sleepless Fashion (Devil Wears Prada-like) a comedy opening in China on October 21st, Perfect Baby a Sino-French urban romance, Hello! Mr. Tree an art-house black comedy, The Sorcerer and the White Snake, and One Wrong Step a new romantic comedy invested by Sony Pictures.  There will also be two New York Premieres:  The Stool Pigeon an action thriller that examines the fine line between cops and their undercover informants, and Little Big Soldier an action adventure comedy starring Jackie Chan.

The New York Chinese Film Festival will be running from Tuesday, November 8th through Sunday, November 13th.  For a complete 2011 NYCFF schedule of events and to order discounted tickets for AMC Village VII Theatre or Lincoln Center’s black-tie Red Carpet Opening Night Gala visit www.nycff.org.