As someone who once ate an appetizer of kangaroo carpaccio (legally, in South Australia), I probably shouldn’t comment on the latest news rocking the youth soccer community in northern California. But the ban yesterday on the sale of kangaroo-skin soccer shoes has struck uncomfortably close to home.

I have a wildly eager soccer son and he has noticed with a little envy his teammate and next-door neighbor’s Adidas Predator shoes. Looks like they are not going to be on our shopping list this season.

I’m against cruelty to animals, of course, and would have no tolerance for trade in endangered species. But it’s patently ridiculous to claim that most kangaroo species are endangered. The most common kangaroos – red and gray – are staggeringly ubiquitous in Australia. Other than kangaroos being rather appealing looking creatures, I can’t understand the point of this ban.