I actually think that Vimes rant emphasised socioeconomic differences and inequality: it’s not that good boots we’re too expensive, it’s that he was poorly payed and couldn’t afford them.

Good boots (in Vimes’ fictional era and Today) are hand made and use quality materials so therefore the difference in price is justified… You can use Vimes theory to highlight social differences but it’s a far stretched, bad extrapolation if you are claiming price differences in the cost of life are unjustified: take the price of houses… housing is the actual problem.

By the way, those boots look like mine :)