S: Is for Seasons of Change

On July 6th 45 percent of Americans favored initiating impeachment proceedings against the President, and 54 percent favored impeaching the Vice President. The nation is steeped in irreversible debt, diseased, terrified, bankrupt and addicted to oil that's running out. On top of that, thanks to Bush-contrived military imperialism, it has alienated every other nation in the world and has now become the most-hated nation on the planet. The conviction and sentencing of Scooter Libby for lying to prosecutors – was muted after the President commuted his sentence. Holding those in power accountable for their actions is critical for maintaining a functioning democracy. It can be messy. It can be painful. Ultimately our government needs to answer to the American public, and not to powerful corporate interests. Bush's and Cheney's abuses of power and violations of the Constitution and the rule of law have been done not openly and in consultation with Congress, but in secret and in the dark of night. His secret monitoring of American's communications--phones, mail and internet, went on for four years before it was exposed in an article in the New York Times. And the President has still not explained to anyone why he felt the need to break the law. We need to restore Congress role in our government and the Supreme Court's role in government, impeachment has to go forward. The question should be who in this administration is fit for this job. Maybe the F.A.C.T.S need to be sorted out.

T: Is for the triumph that is Harry Potter

10 years, 325 million copies later the phenomena known as Harry Potter was born. The final installment “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” the seventh and final book in J.K. Rowling’s series won't be released until midnight Friday and already 12 million copies have been printed for the US alone. Over 500,000 copies have been pre-ordered. The five motion pictures released to-date are among the highest grossing film series of all time, with $3.5 billion in worldwide receipts. The James Bond films made $4.3 billion and Star Wars films $4.1 billion. The newest film “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” opened July 11th at 12 midnight. Opening sales for the midnight opening $12 million. Total for the weekend $44.8 million. Why are so many flocking to see this? Run do not walk to see why this film has garned so much enthusiasm it is the best entry in the series to date. for the Harry Potter series has turned dark, really dark, and it’s exciting. Not only is it visually dazzling, the special effects and the Ministry of Magic set are brilliant. Harry is growing up while coping with the death of his parents, Cedric Diggory, his self estrangement from his friends and the fact that Voldemort wants him dead. Harry becomes a very angry child struggling to become a man against every odd that could possibly be heaped upon him. Hogwarts has a new presence Professor Dolores Umbridge who brings an especially ruthless form of McCarthyism to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and is played by Imelda Staunton with a sense of glee that quickly becomes irresistible. The last half hour is “edge of the seat” action with Wizard duels that marvel and there is plenty of intrigue to keep us wondering what will come next (though three years is a long time to wait). The Harry Potter story is beginning to twist, adding the psychology of fear, propaganda, and hate. As Harry begins doubting the good within himself, as his anger intensifies, the magical world around him, so impenetrable for so long, shows it weaknesses, its susceptibility to deceit, cowardice and emotion. Kudos to the girl who steals the show as Luna Lovegood. Evanna Lynch a newcomer steals our hearts with wide, attentive eyes who has seen her share of death and deals with it with a shaky lunacy. My favorite scene however is between Harry and Sirius Black played to perfection by Gary Oldman. I sat through this movie twice. I had stopped reading the books at 2 but discovered I was missing details and have started reading them again. In a world gone mad and our identities hanging by fragile threads these books give insight. I wish every child the series of books to read and tickets to see these films. To every adult, re-discover those difficult times. Everyone has them and that is a F.A.C.T.

C: Is for the click your heels 3 times

Fall is around the corner and so is a girls worst agony....HEELS. If you don't have perfect arches and lets face it who does, you are caught in the age old dilemma of pain over a fabulous look because there is no getting around it heels make your legs look endless. The amazing Laura Rubin sent me a catalogue to die for. Elizabeth Brady's inspiration is the accomplished women from the 1920’s and 1930’s. The searing wit of Dorothy Parker, the courage of pioneering aviator Amelia Earhart, the chic sensuality of Josephine Baker, the silky sounds of songbird Ella Fitzgerald,



















all these elements and more formed the backdrop of Elizabeth’s design process. These shoes bring to mind Lauren Bacall, Joan Crawford and Betty Grable, burst of self-expression by a talented group of writers, poets, choreographers, dancers, actors and chanteuses. These silhouettes, while influenced by the 1920’s and 1930’s, are thoroughly modern. Lynette is Black pinstripe and flannel peep-toe with a burgundy velvet bow and a 4" black stacked heel. EEK and I thought 3" was high. Victoria is French lace with satin trim and again a 4" heel. Betsy is my favorite and is a Leopard print pony double peep toe with crimson accent 4” crimson stacked heel



















Brady sources her leather, soft nappas and suede, along with textural reptiles and sleek patents in Italy, which guarantees you’re getting high-quality kicks. Shoe making is in Brady's blood as her grandmother was also a shoe designer in the ’20s for Marshall Field’s and Saks. Elizabeth launched her Italian-made couture women's shoe collection in August 2005. Her collection can be found in a number of boutiques across the U.S. To be inspired to go to great heights for fashion log onto www.elizabethbradyshoes.com. I can tell you I have my eye on the Lynette's for dreaming of reaching a special someones lips under the mistletoe and that is a F.A.C.T.

A: Is for the art of Michael Souter

My friend Frederique is an artist manager and her taste is impeccable. When she sent me an invitation to Heidi Cho's Gallery at 522 west 23rd to see some of her clients last Thursday I made time to go. There were three artists that made me want to write and to share with you. I start with Michael Souter whose work "Narcissist" was on view. Influenced by material dealing with Narcissism from the plays and movies of Neil LaBute to Sam Vaknin, author of Malignant Self Love - Narcissism Revisited. Souter combines words, sentiments and image with personal experience, the five part series express different sides of the disease. "Daggers" explores the violence of Narcissism from its physical and mental abuse, to the power struggles, and overwhelming aggression that lies hidden beneath the surface. Penetrating layers of color reveal the identity within. The "Dagger" series explores the connection between control and freedom, using a repeated abstract shape, and texture. This series of mixed media on hollow core doors is muted with layers of color against monochrome. The unconventional pairings of paint, elements, images, and text, these paintings are an organic process of intuition. The texture is added with ground highway glass, embedded in the painting’s surface. Emerging from the background, the presence of a dagger seems to glow with emotional intensity. The result is half-hidden forms and layers of color. Each piece is continuously worn away and deconstructed, and then “reworked” and built up until the piece strikes the right balance between process and product. Remnants from each layer bleed into one another, creating a wilderness of half-seen images that emerge from the background of foreboding tension. "Wraps" show the immersion of a victim in the Narcissist's reality and non-reality. "Wrap", raises questions concerning manipulation, seduction, ego, and control, examining the traces they leave on
relationships, especially our recollections of them. The use of fluorescent and metal evokes a sense of vanity, while grandiose, poetic messages, verging on self-absorption, simultaneously seduce and taunt. Numerous panels of color are applied, only to be stripped, revealing luminous layers that recede yet come into focus like a





developing photograph. Color fragments merge into a singular, overriding image that feels both punishing and provocative. Overlapping swaths of paint pulse with the boundaries of control and power. Half-hidden beneath ethereal layers of paint, our own voyeuristic desire that punctuate one's personal mythology. The Narcissist's weapons of choice: his reflection and words, re-arranging and deconstructing them to dissect their true nature leads to "Mirrors". "Film", a work in progress dramatizes the thought process. From wild accusations to grandiose musings. This September 25 of his works will be on display in Salt Lake City in a one man show. His paintings have been exhibited in New York, Detroit, Kalamazoo, Torino Italy, Salt Lake City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Geneva. Those who admire his work are: Ken Landis, Tim Allen, Ann Margaret, Michael Lembeck, John Travolta, and William H Macy. Yes the celbrity crowd has taken notice and so should you. He will be at Heidi Cho's till August 10th and that is a F.A.C.T.

F: Is for the Federal Death Association!

Our government is suppose to protect us or so they say, but it has become whoever pays the big bucks get a patent and those who don't well......You know the rest. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates roughly a quarter of the U.S. economy, food, dietary supplements, drugs, biological medical products, blood products, medical devices, radiation-emitting devices, veterinary products, and cosmetics in the United States. The FDA influences every American life including our pets. Despite a long-standing reputation for operating above politics, since the Bush administration it has been plagued with problems of a political nature: advisory committees accused of conflicts of interest; a partisan approach to the Plan B contraceptive drug; the recent finding that marijuana has no medical benefit, despite evidence that it does; and the sudden and mysterious resignation of Lester Crawford, who served as commissioner for only two months. Americans spend $30 billion a year for drugs to treat hypertension and heart disease, and obesity costs the nation over a $100 billion. Yet apart from occasionally updating food labels, the FDA does almost nothing to improve our diet.

There is a new bill sneaking its way into our lives, HR.2900 and S.1082. On Wednesday, July 11, 2007 the House passed HR.2900. This action demonstrates that the House of Representatives, much like the Senate, is utterly controlled by Big Pharma and has abandoned any responsibility to defend the interests of the voters. This new law grants more power to the FDA and deeps the financial ties between the agency and drug companies. The law effectively surrenders America to a system of medical tyranny. Nothing in the new law protects consumers' access to dietary supplements or natural medicine. Drug companies now have complete control over the U.S. Congress, and through a campaign of intense lobbying and financial influence, they have managed to easily water down a law that once proposed to end the American monopoly on pharmaceuticals and ban advertising on new drugs, now it does the complete opposite. This bill is like paying the mob for protection. It is a fake safety legislation that provides the FDA with unprecedented new power to stamp out competition and give all the power to a company called Big Pharma. The FDA has turned into a quasi drug company with unprecedented new regulatory power to control all our health options in America. How many deaths and injuries will it take for a comatose and medicinally-overdosed public to wake up? A careful look at the history of the FDA shows that it protects their own vested interests at the expense of human health. Both the House and Senate think its completely fine that the drug industry pay shake down fees so the new drugs get approved faster and if they made a little mistake a few years down the road just recant. They've done thier jobs. Who cares if people get sicker or die. Hey what if the medical community forces them on unsuspecting patients, the FDA told them too. Dr. Andrew C. von Eschenbach, a longtime Bush family friend is at the head of this debauchery. Recent reports state that he is more concerned with drug approvals than with drug safety. In 2006, Time named him one of 100 "People Who Shape Our World". He stated " I wield enormous influence on American lives". He served in the US Navy Medical Corps with the rank of lieutenant commander from 1968 to 1971, so you would think he would of checked into the tainted water to our soldiers in Iraq (see the documentary: Iraq for sale: War Profiteers). This organization under von Eschenbach is selling out the future of America's health to a tiny but powerful group of ultra-wealthy corporations that now virtually rule this country. There is nothing in the new law worth celebrating unless, of course, you are the CEO or major shareholder of a Big Pharma corporation, in which case you will be stunned at just how cheaply and easily U.S. lawmakers can be bought. Welcome to the United States of Big Pharma and that is one disturbing F.A.C.T.