Approximately two years ago, the plague struck. It was everywhere; one could barely turn the corner of a high school hallway without seeing them.

Socks and sandals: the most scandalous crime in all of fashion history – and yes that includes mullets and all of the 90’s.

No one could have predicted it, it simply came on the wave of Nike and Adidas merchandise, washing over teenage boys everywhere. It was a nightmare. Sure, comfort is important, but at what cost?

Known as ‘soxers’, hardcore fans of the socks-and-sandals look have been around for quite some time, but only recently projected into common custom. Popularity has risen up enough to give the phenomenon its own Wikipedia page. According to the Telegram, a British paper, a recent archaeological discovery found that the fashion faux pas reaches back even to Roman days, over 2000 years ago. Well, there is a reason Rome fell, after all.

Some might disagree. The socks and sandals combination cannot be too incredibly hated if there are so many teenage boys walking around with it, and who better to represent teenage boys everywhere than Justin Bieber, who was mocked openly by the British paper Daily Mail for sporting it in public on occasion. Unfortunately the phenomenon reaches beyond generation, the Evening Sun reporting that it is popular amongst older generations and inexplicable, Germans. Even 39-year-old David Beckham was cited in the same Daily Mail article as Bieber. Futball fans everywhere weep.

At the end of the day, fashion choices belong to the individual – but quite frankly, this individual will never be seen in socks and sandals.