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Friday, December 9,1988
The Battalion
Pages
Economic trouble seen by many
as just dues after boom times
NEW YORK (AP) — A large percentage of
economic forecaiten are looking for trouble
ahead, and they're finding support for their
fears in the past.
Whether the fears are justified is an entirely
different matter. A vocal minority of forecasters,
for instance, say their brethren are locked into a
neurotic view of the economic world as one in
need of punishment.
Why the punsishment? Good times breed the
feeling. Ana when those good times persist de
spite budget and trade deficits and myriad other
unresolved problems, a sense of guilt develops.
Good times, it is felt, are undeserved.
In the political realm, therefore, a good many
economists say that even if George Bush enjoys
an extended honeymoon he eventually will be
confronted by the problems. It is his fate, they
say, to face the deficit and tax monsters.
This is how they set the stage:
For the eight years of the Reagan administra
tion the economy enjoyed great prosperity. In
terest rates fell. Inflation oWlined sharply and
remained fairly low. Both stocks and bonds rose
by roughly 11 percent a year in real terms.
Business strengthened itself during this time.
Small companies prospered. Employment grew.
Large companies became much more compet
itive. Corporate profits rose. By most measures,
real income also rose.
All this came about while some economists
spectacular
rate, and shaky financial institutions.
They insist we have run up debts that must be
repaid.
The comparison of Ronald Reagan and Calvin
Coolidge is convenient for such thinkers. The
“Roaring 20s” of Calvin Coolidge’s administra
tion were among the best years of the century for
stocks. Then the economy collapsed.
In the “bad things to come" scenario. Presi
dent-elect George Bush plays the role of Herbert
Hoover. Coolidge’s era ouried Hoover. Ronald
Reagan's era could disintegrate and smother
Bush and his plans.
The scenario appeals to those who like their
rationales well packaged, but such packaging is
accomplished only by eliminating some factors.
Securities markets, for example, might be
overpriced but not to the same extent as in 1929.
The Federal Reserve Board has a better handle
on the economy. Industry today is stronger than
it was two decades ago or in 1929.
Such factors don’t fit into the package. It
doesn’t stop the thinking, however. Those who
see trouble ahead then point to an expansion that
already is six years old, which they view as old
age. It cannot last, they say.
Perhaps not, but recessions have always been a
threat, and an actuality too. President Eisen
hower had three of them, and his terms generally
are viewed as having been economically stable
and successful.
There is no question that Bush’s administra
tion will be forced to deal with tough matters, in
cluding the twin deficits of budget and trade, tax
questions, bad debts everywhere, structural prob
lems in banking, poverty, uncertainty.
In the years since World War II the stock mar
ket has declined five of six times during the first
year after a Republican election victory. It could
do so again, adding to the existing pressures. But
it will come back.
As important as the potential downside to the
problems is how effective the new president's
policies are. There are always problems to deal
with, which is why presidents are elected. Bush
isn’t without weapons to use.
Some of those weapons might have to be used
to infiltrate the minds of those who spread the
philosophy of inevitable failure.
Tips supply needed income LTV § ets
for low-salaried food servers
By Ron Pippin
Reporter
“Tipping is not a city in China” re
ads the large pickle jar on the bar at
Duddley's Draw. Five nickles and
two dimes are scattered about the
bottom of the jar. Nothing more.
Although less lucrative tips could
be expected at a place that sells 64
ounces of beer for less than $3, 15
percent of the total bill is considered
sundard gratuity for service in most
restaurants and bars.
Many students work as waiters,
waitresses or bartenders, relying on
tips from customers to pay college
expenses.
Because most Bryan-College Sta
tion restaurants pay their waitstaff
between $2.01 and $2.25 an hour,
tips are essential.
The Deluxe Burger Bar, located
on University Avenue (Northgate),
pays its food servers $2.25 an hour.
Manager Kevin Warren, who also
waits tables part time, said waiters
and waitresses at The Deluxe aver
age about 15 percent of total sales in
tips.
“Our people make between $30
and $60 on weeknights and some
times more than $ 100 on weekends,”
Warren said. “Sunday nights are
much worse because we get a lot of
Corps and dorm students.
“People who have never waited ta
bles don’t realize how hard it is," he
said. “They also don’t realize you’re
making two bucks an hour.”
Warren also said he thinks people
tip poorly not because they don’t
know any better, but because they
are inconsiderate.
Warren said families who visit for
football games and other events are
usually the best tippers.
“Sororitv girls also tip well, but
C.T.s are tne worst," he said.
Although tips at The Deluxe ap
pear average, gratuity at Ken Mar
tin’s Steaknouse in Bryan doesn’t.
Tip percentages over the past three
months show an average of less than
11 percent for all waitpersons.
Darla Darcy of Bryan, who waits
tables at Ken Martin's, attributes this
to the fact that the restaurant doesn’t
serve alcohol and attracts a more
conservative patronage.
“Local people aren’t as conscious
of etiquette as people from Dallas or
Houston," Darcy said.
She also said she doesn't think
people tip poorly to be rude, but
simply because they aren’t aware of
the 15 percent standard.
Darcy said she averages between
$20-$30 on weekdays and about $60
on weekends.
Bartenders around the area re
ceive higher hourly wages than wait
ers — between $3.35 an hour and $4
an hour — but smaller percentages
in tips.
Raimund Gideon, a junior land
scape architecture mkjor from Con
roe, tends bar at Yesterday's billiards
bar in Bryan.
Gideon said he averages $8 in tips
on weekdays and $20 on weekends.
Gideon said although $3.75 an
hour is decent pay, he still relies on
tips to meet expenses.
“I have weeks-where I eat less
than normal because my tips are so
bad," Gideon said.
Couple leaves city ‘rat race,’
finds haven in countryside
ML’ENSTER (AP) — It’s the
American Dream — chucking the
city rat race and the pressure of a 9-
to-5 job for a cozy home in the coun
try and a creative commercial ven
ture.
Two and a half years ago, Paul
and Jody Valentine left congested
traffic, polluted skies and hum
drum jobs in the Dallas-Fort Worth
area.
“We just decided we didn’t want
to commute to the big city any more
to work," Jody says. “Some of our
neighbors still commute, and we feel
so sorry for them.”
It was three months after they
first saw the 42 acres of rocks and
trees that the Valentines decided to
pull up stakes and move from Lake
Dallas to the country. Working to
gether, they cleared a small area in
uie gently rolling hills 10 miles
northwest of Muenster and set about
building a new life.
“Where we’re standing right now,
we dug through the brush to find it
— we cleared it by hand,” Paul says,
lounging against the rustic kitchen
bar m their compact solar- and
wood-heated home.
“Everything here has been done
by just tne two of us. Not one thing
was hired done. Except the well —
we did have that drilled."
“Everything includes their sunny
house, a workshop and the rustic
boardwalk that connects them. The
Valentines make their living wood-
working.
“The workshop’s not finished and
the house is not finished and I don’t
know if they’ll ever be finished,”
Jody says, laughing.
“Things got to rolling pretty fast,"
Paul agreecT
Jody says their experiments in
woodworking led to the move.
Today, the Valentines’ steadily-
growing catalog of full-color prints
records more than 160 items they
have designed and made for their
Rock Creek Farm business. Their
creations range from tiny wooden
books bearing the titles of well-
known classics to primitive angels
and seven-foot-tall hutches.
They work in solid pine and scorn
the use of hot glue guns.
"The real country stuff is what we
make — the more dents and nicks,
the better,” Jody says.
"There are no two pieces the
same,” Paul adds. “That may be the
bask idea — nothing’s the same.”
This time of year, the Valentines’
days are filled with their work. They
begin planning for Christmas well in
advance, and enlist the help of a
neighbor for packing and mailing
orders.
“It's about six or seven months out
of the year that we’re pretty busy,”
Paul says. “We work from just after
daylight until way after dark,
maly, mb’
Us
y, Quitting time is just before
o’clock nev
the 10 o’clock news — and that’s not
so we can watch the news; that’s just
so we can come inside and go to
bed.”
Paul does the saw work; Jody
paints and stencils. Both spend
hours pouring over tavome mag
azines and craft books, drinking in
rustic settings and accessories with
an eye toward their next creation.
“We’re always making different
things, new and different things,"
Jody says.
“It’s something you can’t keep up
with,” Paul says. “You never know
from one week to the next what’s
going to be popular.”
They are among the craftmen ex
hibiting on the courthouse square in
Gainesville Dec. 10, 16 and 17.
Pets make poor gifts
in certain situations
By 1 imothy J. Hammons
Reporter
When giving a gift for
Christmas, there’s alwavs a prob
lem of getting the right size or
color. Even when the gift is an an
imal.
In fact, when the gift is an ani
mal, there are a lot more things to
consider than just color.
Dr. Bonnie Beaver, a Texas
A&M professor of veterenary
medicine, said if you are deter
mined to give a pet as a gift, it is
best to do some research and con
sider all those involved.
People do not take into consid
eration the responsibility in
volved when giving a pet, she
said.
“The primarv problem is the
person who gets the pet may not
want it,” she said. “You may also
be giving an animal that is not ap
propriate."
People who live in apartments
have to consider the rules of the
complex in whkh they live, she
said. Some apartment complexes
do not allow pets, while others al
low only certain .kinds of pets
such as cats and fish.
Even people who live in houses
may not want a pet because they
have a small yard or they travel a
lot, Beaver said.
No one kind of animal is better
to give than any other, she said.
For instance, terriers are inde
pendant dogs while beagles arc
uioic depciiucm. i iicic aic loo
many varieties of dogs to say what
is the best to give.
“If you want to give a pet, then
give a picture or a collar, Beaver
said. “This is a way of saying.
‘This is what I’m going to give
you,’ and then the person will
nave a choice in selecting the
pet."
Allowing the person to select
the pet is better oecause the per
son may want a short-haired dog
as opposed to a long-haired dog.
she said. It is also more fun for
the person receiving the pet.
Waiting until after Christmas
to bring a new pet into the house
is better because there is less
stress on those involved, Beaver
said. There are a lot of things
going on at Christmas that make
waiting to bring a puppy into the
home a better decision, she said.
As for giving children pets,
Beaver said it is best to check with
the parents of the child before-
hand. Usually parents end up
with the burden for their chil
dren’s pets, she said.
Either way, the animal still has
to be fed, cleaned up after and
vaccinated. The animal is going
to require a lot of patience before
it can be properly trained, she
said.
It must be understood that pets
are long-term commitments, she
said.
Scout rocket
launch rights
• WASHINGTON (AP) — LTV.
the Dallas-based aerospace firm that
has produced Scout rockets for the
government for the last 28 years, has
been granted the exclusive right to
produce and launch the rocket com
mercially, the National Aeronautics
and Space Administration an
nounced Thursday.
The Scout is used mainly for small
science payloads. Since the first
bunch on Juljr 1, 1960. there have
been 112 Scout launches. LTV said
the value of contracts to date has
been more than $350 million. Each
Scout costs from $7 million to $12
million, from start through launch-
in t
The agreement with the Missiles
Division of LTV Missiles and Elec
tronics group is “another important
advance in establishing a strong U.S.
commercial launch vehicle indus
try," the NASA announcement said.
Since Aug. 15, 1986, when Presi
dent Reagan ordered NASA out of
the commercial launch business,
NASA has signed such agreements
with McDonnell Douglas, maker of
Delta rockets; Martin Marietta,
which markets Titans; and (ieneral
Dynamics, manufacturer of Atlas-
Centaur.
Each agreement is followed by
others that convey the right to use
government launch pads on a cost-
reimbursable basis.
American launch contpanies have
contracts worth nearly $1 billion to
launch 18 payloads through 1992.
All the agreements were reached
since President Reagan announced
his policy, whkh was designed not
only to free the shuttle for govern
ment satellite launches, but also to
spur a private launch industry.
LTV built the Scout under a series
of government contracts for flight
vehicles used for NASA science mis
sions. The Scout usuallv is launched
from either Wallops Island, Va., or
Vandenberg Air Force Base in Cali
fornia.
It was the first solid propellant ve
hicle to place a payload in orbit and
has an operational success rate of 95
percent, including 37 successful
launches in a row between 1967 and
1975.
Originally, the 75-fool-tall Scout
could put a 131-pound payload into
a 300-mile-high orbit. Today’s
rocket can lift 450 pounds into that
orbit.
False invoices
incriminate
importers
EL PASO (AP) — A federal grand
jury returned a conspiracy indic-
ment against officers and employees
of a now-defunct apparel importer
as part of an ongoing joint investiga
tion by the U.S. Customs Service and
the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Operation Mexican Express has
been gathering evidence over the
past vear involving falsified invoices
for imported clothing. Customs offi
cials in El Paso said shipments into
the United States by Harco Indus
tries between 1983 and 1987 were
undervalued, resulting in an esti
mated loss of $500,000 in U.S. reve
nue.
Harco was part of a maquiladora,
or twin-plant, program, an
agreement between American com
panies and Mexican labor. The com
pany provides the components and
sends them across the border for as
sembly.
A dutv is charged on the expenses
incurred during the manufacturing
processe, according to Darvl Shu
maker. assistant special agent of en
forcement in El Paso.
Customs officials announced
Wednesday the 52-count indiement
is the “tip of the iceberg” and indi
cated that other indkments would
be forthcoming on other companies
involved.
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Petal Patch
Florist
707 Texas Ave. Next to Taco Cabana
696-6713
We accept credit card orders by phone
Complete Florist... Specializing in weddings and
flowers for all occasions.
We deliver around town or around the world.
Enjoy
Your t
Holidays
Texas Safety Association in cooperation with
State Department of Highways and Public Transportation
nils mesdkqe is brought to you by:
The Center for Drug
Prevention and Education
845-0280
222 Beutel Health Center
DECEMBER
GRADUATES!
Keep up with your classmates
with the
• l
y
Texas A&M University
Directory of
Former Students
Former Students, including class of
’88, are listed alphabetically geo
graphically and by class year. Pick up
your free copy Mon.-Fri 8-5 at the
Clayton W. Williams Jr.
Alumni Center