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There's more to it than that, especially around my area. Clothing is your shield from the elements. You want clothes that protect you from sunburn and frostbite. You want clothes that will turn away thorns and don't rip easily.
Ranchers and farmers, construction workers all dress as their clothes are part of their toolkit. Good clothing let's you work in extreme conditions.
I had an office job for 28 years. Hated those ridiculous pants that let every breeze pass through, and that useless jacket that offered no heat in the cold, but had you sweating buckets in a meeting. The tie was good for nothing but dipping in your soup at lunch. Office clothes were uncomfortable and served no real purpose except to cover your butt.
Now I'm retired and ranching again. I like good clothes that help me do my job. I couldn't care less about fashion. I buy a couple pairs of blue jeans for summer, Carhart for winter. Dressing up for me is a new pair of jeans with my good boots and hat, a clean longsleave western shirt, nice vest, and either a silk neckerchief or bolo.
If that ain't good enough for somebody, it's their problem. No skin off my nose.
People dress up to convey a sense of culture, respect, etc...it will look different in Florida than Montana, in Chicago, than Carolina, etc...
I don’t go to any events that require dressing up.
Solves that problem. I do not miss the dress codes of my (New England) childhood and young adulthood. Not one iota!
When we lived in NW WA for a few years, I loved the fact that not only did the locals not give a whit about dressing up, the older folks tended to let their gray and white hair and nonmade-up faces just be natural. It is a beautiful thing to see healthy older animals of all kinds.
The look I see more often here in a rural part of CO in some circles actually came as a shock. Heavy makeup, obviously-pouffed and/or dyed hairdos...ugh. But most people dress casually.
There's more to it than that, especially around my area. Clothing is your shield from the elements. You want clothes that protect you from sunburn and frostbite. You want clothes that will turn away thorns and don't rip easily.
Ranchers and farmers, construction workers all dress as their clothes are part of their toolkit. Good clothing let's you work in extreme conditions.
I had an office job for 28 years. Hated those ridiculous pants that let every breeze pass through, and that useless jacket that offered no heat in the cold, but had you sweating buckets in a meeting. The tie was good for nothing but dipping in your soup at lunch. Office clothes were uncomfortable and served no real purpose except to cover your butt.
Need to tell you a story I heard in a survival class for pilots I took in college. The purpose of the class was to teach pilots how to survive in and after crashes in bad weather. We learned about successes and failures of crash survivors trying to stay warm and send up signals for searchers.
The story was about a pair of executives in business suits who crashed in deep snow on a mountain pass in a small single engine plane. They both survived the crash but had no survival clothing, not even warm coats, with them. His first lesson, actually, was about bringing along some warm coats and sensible shoes, just in case... but his second lesson was about adapting what you have to work with. The woman, in a skirt and panty hose, had a special advantage in staying warm. The two of them crumpled up all their presentation materials and stuffing from the seats and stuffed them into their clothes for insulation. When they found them, still alive and well, the woman had stuffed so much wadded paper and foam into her pantyhose that she looked like a balloon. But she didn't lose her toes to frostbite. She stayed warm enough. Panty hose, he said, are actually a very flexible tool in survival situations.
Typically, my wife & I dress casually as "everyday" wear. I got rid of my ties when I retired. What surprises me is the proliferation of extreme casual wear chosen by some. At a nieces recent wedding (pre-Covid) most attendees were in T-shirts & flip-flops. I wore a dress shirt (open collar), sports jacket & casual trousers (not jeans). Wife wore a nice dress. Only the groom & best man wore a tie. We felt a bit overdressed to say the least. We like to hit a nice restaurant from time to time and by that I mean someplace where the waitstaff is more formal with the men in a tuxedo & women in black skirts & hose.
The number of customers in torn T-shirts, sneakers and flip-flops boggles my mind. It's as if people don't care how they look anymore. I guess it's a generational thing. Me ? i just don't like looking like a slob. I wasn't brought up that way.
private school uniform always included a tie. I had to wear dress blues while traveling when I served. Always wore a suit & tie for job interviews. Especially so for the last 12 years when I was in sales. I'm always after my 23 year old son about the way he presents himself too. He's usually got a five day stubble beard. Either let it grow or shave !
I've noticed early in life I'll get better service if i'm dressed well. I'm just not into this whole slob look which seems so popular these days. I'm starting to feel like a dinosaur. End rant.
Calling them hose you sound like a dinosaur. LOL What you call being a slob is normal fashion today. Torn jeans cost a great deal of money and they're designer jeans. The 5 day stubble is very trendy. He's acting perfectly normal!
Need to tell you a story I heard in a survival class for pilots I took in college. The purpose of the class was to teach pilots how to survive in and after crashes in bad weather. We learned about successes and failures of crash survivors trying to stay warm and send up signals for searchers.
The story was about a pair of executives in business suits who crashed in deep snow on a mountain pass in a small single engine plane. They both survived the crash but had no survival clothing, not even warm coats, with them. His first lesson, actually, was about bringing along some warm coats and sensible shoes, just in case... but his second lesson was about adapting what you have to work with. The woman, in a skirt and panty hose, had a special advantage in staying warm. The two of them crumpled up all their presentation materials and stuffing from the seats and stuffed them into their clothes for insulation. When they found them, still alive and well, the woman had stuffed so much wadded paper and foam into her pantyhose that she looked like a balloon. But she didn't lose her toes to frostbite. She stayed warm enough. Panty hose, he said, are actually a very flexible tool in survival situations.
You're so right. I'v known of folks surviving by stuffing their clothes with leaves or grass or hay for the same reason. increase the insulation.
Very good point.
Little secret of the wild west, There are cowboys that wear panty hose on long rides to reduce chaffing and avoid saddle sores.
Well... leggings and tights are a different thing than panty hose.
Even us old folks have had those before! But I'm not sure anyone wears actual panty hose any more.
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I wore a dress shirt (open collar), sports jacket & casual trousers (not jeans). Wife wore a nice dress. Only the groom & best man wore a tie. We felt a bit overdressed to say the least. We like to hit a nice restaurant from time to time and by that I mean someplace where the waitstaff is more formal with the men in a tuxedo & women in black skirts & hose. 
