I have to wonder about the practice of women covering their hair (a general outline of sources can be found here) with another piece of hair (שייטל - sheitel). If we assume that one of the reasons behind the law of covering hair is that hair entices, then how does a nice sheitel prevent enticement? For some women, a sheitel allows them to have nice hair for the first time. I feel that our whole system is quite stubborn about this. While I am not arguing about the halachic issue of covering one's hair, I find it highly difficult to accept that a woman, by putting on a fancy wig, is truly fulfilling the purpose behind covering her hair in the first place.

And of course, as with most things, this too costs much money. On sale, a decent sheitel, which still needs to be shaped for the particular woman, may cost anywhere between $450 and $1000. If you ask me, the price for "modesty" seems to be ridiculous. Now, I am not arguing that women should feel uncomfortable in the workplace by wearing a hat, but perhaps we need to reevaluate whether the whole enterprise is truly worth the money spent on it. Of course, one could say the same for many religious items. However, the issue here is one where the reason behind the commandment isn't even being completely fulfilled. Yes, the woman's own hair is not showing, and yes, this would technically imply her hair is covered. However, the practice has gotten out of hand. Presently, women go out of their way to appear as if they are not covering their heads by spending exorbitant amounts of money on something that is often ultimately more immodest because it might look even nicer than their own hair.