Just Visiting
The SA was written in a time before modern clothing manufacture. If you look up “belt” on WIKI you will see its purpose was to give shape to a shapeless garment. In the old days, garments were manufactured on looms in rectangles and had no shape. So if you went to see an important person you “dressed up” by putting on a belt.
I find it very hard to believe that a gartel is considered “dressing up”. It does not add shape to modern tailored clothing, just the opposite, it makes the garments look weird.
Furthermore, I have yet to see anyone put on a gartel to meet the president. It does not fulfill (IMO) the purpose of the belt worn by the cohen, it neither cinches a rectangular garment (that the cohen wore) nor is it ornamental.
