• Mayor Bloomberg has proposed raising the sales tax by half a percentage point. That's certainly not going to do much to help struggling retailers, now is it? [NYDN]
• With a fresh batch of stores and restaurants closing each day, life on the UES has gotten pretty depressing. [NYT]
• A few weeks ago, Thom Browne denied that his fashion company was in trouble. The fact both his CEO and CFO departed the company today certainly doesn't bode well. [WWD]
• A few notables not expected at the Costume Institute Gala on Monday: Karl Lagerfeld, Carine Roitfeld, Matthew Williamson, and Bernard Arnault. [FWD]

• Pamela Anderson hit the catwalk at Vivienne Westwood's show in Paris today. Her boob popped out of her dress at the very end, which was totally an accident, you can rest assured. [SW, HP]
• Reports from various shows at Paris Fashion Week. [WSJ, NYM, T, Telegraph]
• You can credit/blame Barack Obama's inauguration in January for the recent resurgence in fur. [WSJ]
• Michelle Obama is wearing Michael Kors for her new O cover. [Fashionista]
• Ikram Goldman, Michelle's fashion guru, is in Paris for the shows. [FWD]
• Madonna is teaming up with Ed Hardy on a new clothing line. [Mirror]
• What's it like to be Bernard Arnault, France's richest man and "arguably the most influential tastemaker in the world of luxury"? Quite nice, actually. [WSJ]
• Try not to fall out of your chair—we'd hate you to get hurt—but Esquire has named Prince Charles the "best dressed man in the world." [Guardian]

Not that we're suggesting you'd even pay attention to the cost of a crate of Krug, but apparently the retail price of champagne has increased much faster than inflation. To blame? The high global demand for bubbly in recent years and the finite number of grapes available from the specific region of France permitted to label its sparkling wine champagne. Now with the economic crisis, winemakers are worried about a likely disconnect between what consumers are willing to pay and the high price of grapes. The CEO of LVMH, which owns Veuve Cliquot, Dom Perignon, and Moët Chandon, must be losing sleep! Oh, except probably not as he's the richest man in France.

"French forbidden writer" Francois Dor writes in to add that the French court of Nanterre fined him 45.000 Euros for referring to Louis Vuitton bags as being "feces and urine colored." He also notes that the Prime Minister's wife, Bernadette Chirac, is a big fan of the bags and that LVMH chief Bernard Arnault is a big fan of the Chirac administration. Conspiracy? Probably not. General stupidity? Of course.