Oprah, Dr Phil, Rachael Ray Give Away Shows - A Blessing?

This is the season for Harpo "Christmas Give Away" Shows. Today it was Dr Phil and his family giving away oodles of gifts to an audience filled with disenfranchised California Fire families. I always Watch these shows thinking the same thing:

Are these shows really blessing these poor people?

If I had lost my home to Katrina or California fires, or any other catastrophe, what would be my biggest need? Would it be a huge Lcd HD TV, or the latest Camcorder? If I don't have a house to live in, what am I going to do with this huge television?

I was on a television show once and was "blessed" with a wonderful Conn organ. It was three layers of push a button and get a trumpet section; push another button and get a harpsichord sound. Since I am a musician, it was a wonderful gift ... until April 15th! I knew nothing about "gift tax" so was totally unprepared for the additional money I was told I owed IRS. It didn't take any time at all for that organ to turn into my worst nightmare!

Harpo (Oprah spelled backwards) Productions gets big ratings boosts for every "give away" show they put on the Air. Doesn't matter if it's The Oprah Show, Dr Phil Show, or The Rachael Ray Show. All of the manic screaming and distorted faces thrill their television audience, and these celebrities come off looking like Santa Claus himself. They are also a great time for participating companies to get FREE advertising and, hopefully, increased sales in the last month of the year.

I picture these people going back to where ever they're living temporarily, loaded down with thousands of Dollars' worth of posh items they would have never bought before the catastrophe took their homes. A cell phone from ATT with two months' free service? What happens after the two months are up? Expensive bath products to use, even though they may not have a bathtub of their own?

Well, you say, they could give the gifts away as Christmas presents! OK, then who will be responsible for the gift tax? Remember, these audience members' names and social security numbers are on file for IRS to come after! They don't leave the studios without giving out that information!

When Oprah started her 19th season, she wowed the world by giving away new "fully-loaded" Pontiac G-6 midsize 2005 sports sedan to each of the 276 members of the studio audience. What caught the eye of Michael Kirsch (Notre Dame) was this stateMent by a spokesperson for Pontiac (which donated the cars) in an AP story: "Pontiac will pay for the taxes."

What "taxes" was Pontiac talking about? If federal income taxes, how would Pontiac value the car? Presumably it would be valued at something less than the ,400 MSRP, but how much less? How would Pontiac figure out the appropriate tax rate for each individual audience member?

After much discussion it was ascertained that Pontiac would pay only the sales tax for each car, not the federal gift tax! Wow! What a big surprise each of those 276 families had on April 15th! They owed ,000 - ,000 extra federal tax, depending on their individual tax brackets.

I'd like to see a Christmas Give Away Show where Food, Clothes, toys for the kids, and money for apartMent rent and utilities given to these poor people! You know, like on Extreme Home Makeover where a mortgage company representative hands the new home owners a stateMent saying their home is paid for?

Naw, I guess that wouldn't work. Wouldn't be glitzy enough for all of us to Watch. It wouldn't give all of these companies a chance to wow us with their chosen high-end Christmas gifts. It just wouldn't be "good TV".

(c) 2007 April Lorier

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Rachel Ray's Diet - Is the Rachel Ray Flat Belly Diet Any Good?

You've probably heard an awful lot of hype surrounding Rachel Ray's Diet, also known as the flat belly diet that can supposedly help to drop 25 pounds in 3 weeks. Find out in this article exactly what is the flat belly diet and whether its worth your time even looking into.

Rachel Ray's Flat Belly Diet Any Good?

This diet's main focus in on a high consumption of monounsaturated fatty acids, otherwise known as MUFAs. These beneficial Fast are not absorbed into the body as other fats and are primarily flushed out of the body, although they do make you feel full when eaten, that's the claim at least. The diet is limited to only 1600 calories per day so it doesn't let you eating a whole let. Especially when you consider that many Foods containing MUFAs are very high in calories ironically, although the calories technically do not add up in the same way a high carb calorie Food would for example. Still this makes it seems quite odd.

This diet has a promising list of foods that are accepted such as fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains and lean meats. However with each meal some form of MUFAs are meant to be consumed. This can become somewhat Tiresome to consume the same types of foods every day but this is what they claim works.

So What's the Downside?

The biggest flaw in this diet is its repetitive use of MUFA high foods with a low calorie diet, ironically enough its biggest selling point. You see when you consume the same foods every day and to go one step further as a low calorie diet, you basically set yourself up for trouble when you finish. You see diets such as this one will lower your metabolism to match the calories consumed every day. Once you finish the diet you need to be careful of what you eat for at least a month as your body will be ready to store any calories you consume as fat.

How Can I Avoid This?

The best suggestion I can make for you is to either stick with the diet for good and not increase your calories or try a diet that instead focuses on boosting your metabolism such as calorie shifting. You see with any diet that requires low calories you will end up gaining some weight back when you finish. This is not true however with calorie shifting as by focuses on raising your metabolism through eating foods you actually continue to burn fat even once you finish the diet. Best of all you get to eat a wide variety of foods and requires 3 complete meals every day, it's a enTirely unique diet in this way.

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Overview Rachel Roy Dress

Overview Rachel Roy Dress

Kayne West so call collection was tragic , clearly he only knows how to dress skanky hoes for his video clips. I bet the fashion industry will not write any criticism about him and will suck up his ass like they do with Tom Ford and Marc Jacobs (why do people not see him ripping Prada off seasons after seasons?).

Label Overview

 

Rachel Roy turned an internship at Rocawear into a classic-leaning, feminine clothing line that’s respected by critics and a favorite of celebrity stylistas. Roy launched the line in 2004 and has since expanded to full ready-to-wear and resort collections. Her uptown predilections are evident in every tailored skirt, embellished dress, and subtly sexy blouse. With a new venture into handbags, a diffusion line in the works, and plans to go global, Roy is arguably ambitious—and she might prove to be one of fashion’s few success stories.

Status

Newcomer, Up-and-Coming

Clients

Chanel Iman, Oprah Winfrey, Ivanka Trump, Lindsey Price, Helena Christensen, Niki Taylor

Owned By

The Roc, TSM Capital LLC, Jones Apparel Group Inc.

Address

148 W. 37th St., second fl. New York, New York 10018 212-629-7170

Where To Buy

Saks Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman, Intermix, Estis, Shopbop

Related Websites

• Rachel Roy (Official)
• Wikipedia: Rachel Roy (Other)
• Style.com: Rachel Roy (Media)

• Rachel Roy

  
  

  Designed By

  Rachel Roy, Spring 2005 - Present

  Shows In

  New York

  Collection Types

  RTW, Resort

  Similar Clientele

  Blugirl, Tory Burch, MICHAEL Michael Kors

  Styles & Tags

  American, Commercial Success, Feminine




• Rachel Rachel Roy

  
  

  Designed By

  Rachel Roy, 2009 - Present

  Collection Types

  RTW

  Styles & Tags

  American, Feminine, Lower Priced

Designers

What's Been Said

“Clothing from the designer Rachel Roy recalls a time when women had impeccable manners, hourglass figures and the good sense to flaunt them with clothes on.”

Thank —Jennifer Tung The New York Times