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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 29, 2000)
VOTE YES FOR M- In the Student Body Elections there will be a Referendum to raise the International Education Fee to $4.00. With this tee, $2.50 will be given immediately to students in study abroad scholar ships and the other $1 .50 will go to establish an endowment, allowing the fee to be self-sufficient by the year 2020. Finally a fee that will eventu ally end, instead of eontinually increasing! Students f felping Students. s/kyte Yes for I EES NATION Page 8 THE BATTALION Wednesday. Ma Consumer confidence drops again in Mart (nesday. Mar Mobil Aggieland Alternator Auto 8 Mobil Service NEW YORK (AP) — Consumer con fidence dropped in March for the second straight month, suggesting that oil prices and rising interest rates may cool off Americans’ spending. The Conference Board said Tuesday that its Consumer Confidence Index dropped more sharply than expected in March to 136.7 from 140.8 in February and a record 144.7 in January. Wall Street analysts had expected a March reading of 139.8. The consumer confidence figures are closely watched because consumer spending accounts for two-thirds of economic activity and has been the en gine of the booming U.S. economy, which has been expanding for a record nine years. The Federal Reserve, concerned that too-rapid growth could spark in flation, raised interest rates last week for the fifth time since June to try to Cool things down. “Analysts are wailing to see if a fur ther erosion in confidence triggers a slow down in consumer spending,” said Lynn Franco, director of research at the Con ference Board, a business-tiinded research organization. “As for now, a moderate cutback in consumer spending is unlike ly to stifle still-strong economic growth.” On Wall Street, stocks fell as influen tial market strategist Abby Joseph Cohen at Goldman Sachs recommended that clients reallocate some of their holdings from stock to cash. Long-term interest rates slipped as prices rose in the inflation- sensitive government bond market. Mark Vitner, an economist at First Union Corp. in Charlotte, N.C., said that Americans have had the confidence to spend a lot because jobs remain plentiful and incomes are rising. He wanted that the summer driving season is coming. “Higher gas prices will take more out of consumers’ pockets, so they’ll have less to spend on everything else,” Vitner said. “The volume of goods could fall off.” Most analysts expect the economy to show signs of slowing this quarter in re sponse to the Fed’s interest rate increases. There is some softness in home buying because of higher mortgage interest rates. Anthony Chan, chief economist at Banc One Investment Advisors in Colum bus, Ohio, said a stronger consumer con fidence reading in March could have put pressure on the Fed to raise rates. “Consumers are maybe not running for the hills but could be pulling back a bit,” Chan said. “Ifthat’s the case, the Fed won’t have to do so much.” Confidence drops Here is a look at thee confidence index from aa of 5,000 U.S. households, j Seasonally adjusted i® 150 130 110 Current 136,?^ One month ago 140,1 fl One year ago 134.01 I 1 1985:1 M t I °M AMJ J ASONDjtl 1999 Source: The Conference Board SUNDAY SPECIAL: OIL CHANGE FILTER & LUBE includes: Windshield • Tire Pressure Check • Washer Filled • Charging System Check • Brake Check • Transmission Check Sunday Price only $ 17.95 reg. $22.50 M/e Provide Auto Repairs, Maintenance, and State Inspections Mobil Hours: Mon.- Fri. 8:00 - 6:00 Sat 8:00 - 2:00 Sun. closed 815 University Dr. (Next to McDonald's) College Station, TX 77845 260-7272 Shoo Hours: Mon.- Sat. 8:00 - 6:00 Sun. closed APPLY YOURSIIF! Bryan/College Station's private dormitories are looking for motivated individuals to be a part of the 2000-2001 Resident Advisor Staff. All applicants must have at least one year of college. Applications can be picked-up at the front desk of University Tower in the lobby and are due Monday, April 3 rd by 5:00 p.m. UNIVERSITY TOWER FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL 846-4242 Casual dress causes confusion at work Dressing casual at work was sup- NEW YORK (AP) - posed to make life easier. But now, confusion is rampant across corporate America, with some stodgy types thinking casual means taking off your suit jacket, and others showing up at the office in ratty T-shirts or with bare midriffs. The situation has gotten so bad that some businesses are hir ing consultants to help people figure out what is appropriate for work. One law firm has even teamed up with Polo Ralph Lauren and Es quire magazine to hold a “business casual” seminar for its attorneys next week. “There is a lot of casual confu sion out there, people showing up at work in outfits that they wash their cars or walk their dogs in,” said Sherry Maysonave, aulltor of “Ca sual Power: I low to Power Up Your Nonverbal Communication and Dress Down for Success.” “Com panies are realizing that it is not so “One company asked me to try to help them with a lit tle problem: One girl was wearing a thong underwear and... everyone knew” easy to go casual. In fact, it can cause some headaches.” Casual dress has long been the norm for those working at high-tech companies. It began creeping into the rest of corpo rate America in the early 1990s. At first, companies allowed employees to ditch their suits and ties on Fridays during the summer. That was soon extend ed to Fridays throughout the year, and eventually was permit ted every day during the summer. Now, lots of big companies — including most Wall Street powerhouses such as Morgan Stanley Dean Witter - are dress ing down year-round. Many want to keep pace w ith the casual dot-com companies that they do business with. Fifty-one percent of companies with more than 5,000 em ployees arc casual five days a week, according to the Society for Human Resource Management Companies arc* learning that everyone interprets casual differently. At Development Counsellors International, a New York- based marketing firm with 25 em ployees that went casual year- round in 1998. some came to work braless and in gym clothes. The company now has a de tailed list of what workers can or cannot w ear. Button-down shirts and dress sandals are in; bare midriffs and beach attire are out. “It took more time to come up with this policy than anyone would have thought,” said Rob DeRocker, DC I executive vice president. “W'e never thought it would be so complicated.” That is why many companies Killer bees elderly worm ^gg — Myra McElhaney president of McElhaney & Associates BY fli are hiring consultants to develop casual dress codes, hold sem inars on proper wear and trouble-shoot. “One company asked me to try to help them with a little problem: One girl was wearing thong underwear and for some reason everyone knew” because her clothes were so tight, said Myra McElhaney, president of the Atlanta-based consulting fmn McElhaney & Associates. Instead of talking to the young woman individually, McEl haney held a group discussion on appropriate work attire. “I reminded them that they didn’t‘want to be remembered by their co-workers for their underwear,” she said. senior s !I 1 Aggies 6 LAS VEGAS (AP)—A77 woman lay in critical conditioilj after being stung more than.' by a sw arm of killer bees. The woman, whose namew; leased, was attacked while t ^ along a street a few blocks fe jQ t Jj ^ Vegas home, Fire Dcz spokesman Tim Szymanskisai He said they may have bed to something in a bag shewasa Firefighters wearing specif doused the woman with waten about 200 bees off her. Twopol cers were stung trying to resend Hospital personnel usedffi and duct tape to pull the stingers her body. The state Agriculture Depi" confirmed the bees involved Africanized bees, commonlyl® k i I ler bees because of the wayiMkhes in hand tack in large swarms. E )SS at the Van The attack was the secondin'® "^ 1 ' 5 " in ft Vegas area since January. OnFii urn ' )r Shuon h 79-year-old man was stung afpi ran ked i times. He survived. r° l ' x ' tter than Africanized bees have killed I - '. mated 1,000 people as they llom ^ grated northward from Brazil in 1957. The first swarm reportl United States was in Texas in The Texas / several opt The 13th-ra on Saturd lor, look a instNo.4 Pc current o] iversity of A The Aggies c h an intensit 1 cMofte Pneafuituuf CentetdL • 9 9 OF BRAZOS VALLEY FREE PREGNANCY TESTS ♦ Pregnancy, Adoption & Abortion Education ♦ Practical Assistance ♦ Post Abortion Peer Counseling ♦ Adoption, Medical & Community Service Referrals ♦ All Services Free & Confidential ♦ Mon, Tues & Thurs 9-8 • Wed & Fri 9-5 • Sat 8-12 846-1097 3620 t. 29TH ST • BRYAN www.rtis.com/hope Be One Of A Kind | Instead Of One In A Crowd “Quality Formal Wear for Men” Ring Dance & Formal Special Basic Pierre Cardin Tuxedo 10% Off Rental w/coupon only. Not valid with other discounts. 696-5557 • Ralph Lauren • Perry Ellis • Demetrios • Pierre Cardin • Christian Dior • Oscar dt la Renta • Unique Accessories • Business Suit Rentals • Guaranteed Fitting • Professional & Courteous Staff • Free Out-Of-Town Measurements Reservations must be ASAP, Styles & Sizes go quick. Fullback vests are $ 10 extra Open Monday - Friday (10-6). Open Late on Mondays & Thursdays until 8. SaturdayslM 2008 S. Texas Ave. College Station Next to Hastings Memorial Student Center Black Awareness Committee presents... _ 'At. tat* A celebration of Poivet Strength and Survival 1 Thursday March 30, 2000 o 8 pm ".f'A'T*’ - 'A’ : ' . Rudder Theatre ■v ’ ' rTY V $3 Student $5 Non-Student Ticketv .i\ ill iMr MSG Box Office To i-ifor -i u.« of your special needs or for more mfiptiention ofopectO §454$t5 ; The Original Unplugged Join MSC OPAS and the inaugural season of Intimate Gatherings for a concert featuring works by great American composers including, Aaron Copland, Samuel Barber and Stephen Foster. The American Radio Chamber Orchestra at the Bush Presidential Conference Center Thursday, March 30 at 8:00 PM With Intimate Gatherings, musicians host an Open discussion with audience members immediately following the performance. Discussion to be moderated by Peter Lieuwen, Interim Head of the Texas A&M University Department of Performance Studies. WT CLA For tickets, call 845-1234 or order on-line at opas.tamu.edu. Season Media Partners: —