BY HARRY RING

Tip: check out the `c' word - A panel of educators, clergy, business folks and - nice touch - a vice prez at Disney, will study why U.S. people are "so cynical, so distressed, so angry, so ticked off about so many things."

Socialism anyone? - "Roughly 100 million Americans suffer from chronic illnesses, such as diabetes, heart disease or arthritis, and the health care system is not designed to treat their growing ranks and rising costs, researchers said. The chronically ill are not necessarily old and millions below 65 are trying to be independent but need an array of medical and social services." - News item

Clear enough? - While GM's hourly labor cost is, allegedly, $43 an hour, ITT Automotive, a big-time global parts supplier, says an increasing number of its employees earn less than $10 an hour. Currently, 15 percent of its 55,000 workers worldwide, are making less than $10 an hour in wages and benefits. The company aims to boost that to 25 percent by 2000.

`Great, but how about Rasputin?' - People scoffed when Texaco said a "digitally enhanced" version of that tape showed its exec really said "St. Nicholas," not "niggers." Actually, he wasn't talking about Santa. He was discussing the Moscow report that the Russian Orthodox Church is moving to confer sainthood on Czar Nicholas II, who was terminated by the Russian Revolution.

Think you got troubles? - The folks who pay big bucks for quality caviar are finding there's less available and, it's now disclosed, a good amount of what they're getting is falsely labeled lower-quality stuff. With Russia and Iran the principal suppliers, overfishing is shrinking the supply of egg-producing sturgeon to near-extinction.

The ultimate condo - King-size mausoleums are being pushed by the funeral industry. A high- rise mausoleum on an acre of land will hold as many as 17,000 crypts. Prices vary according to tier. The second or third row - the "heart and eye" level - are usually the priciest. The top - "heavenly" - row is the cheapest.

Must take a straitjacket - As central London rental values continue to rise, realtors are offering guidance to interested investors. Like, one rental agent declares, "The first thing we will stop landlords from doing is spending too much money."

Why pay hotel bills - For a comfortable stay in London, there's a nice four-story building in the choice Mayfair district. Fully furnished, with a roof terrace and ornamental gardens. The Times of London does advise that it's at "the highest end of the rental market" -7,000 a week.

...meanwhile - The YMCA reports that some 140,000 young people are homeless in Britain. An additional 315,000 have no permanent place to live.  
 
 
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