BY HARRY RING
The can-do system - Since the Union Pacific Railroad took over the Southern Pacific hundreds of freight trains have been idled for lack of locomotives, hundreds more for lack of crews. Thousands of cars sit in sidings blocked by stalled trains. There's been a series of deadly accidents. The feds are investigating.

Sure, not to worry - "U.S. May Be Shielded from Asia's Woes" - Headline on Los Angeles Times story on Hong Kong stock plunge.

The caring society - Of 10,000 nursing homes with federal violations, only 2 percent were fined or otherwise penalized. The feds say that this shows the other 98 percent fix things when it's called to their attention.

Meanwhile in California, a review of 300,000 nursing home death certificates showed that in seven years nearly 22,000 patients died of such preventable ailments as malnutrition and dehydration.

Exceptions, except- -Miami's Catholic archdiocese hopes to fill a cruise ship to Cuba during the pope's visit. What about the travel ban? No problem. The Treasury Dept. said visits are OK for "clearly defined educational or religious purpose."

Last summer it denied authorization to the young people who went to Cuba for a world youth festival, and to see the revolution first hand. Obviously not "educational."

Dang, must be here somewhere - Responding to a Freedom of Information request, the Energy Dept. said it can't find records which assertedly prove that between 1945 and 1975 it dismantled some 30,000 nuclear weapons.

That does figure - Britain's Royal Navy admitted that it's missing thousands of spare ports for the Trident intercontinental nuclear missile. It's speculated that the U.S. manufacturer never delivered them, but no one really knows.

Writes opinions? - The feds spent $4 million renovating the courthouse in Greenville, South Carolina. That included $200,000 for mahogany paneling in judge's chambers and $494 brass shower heads. But records are missing, so we'll never know the details on the two $250 toilet paper holders installed in one judge's lavatory.

Prince Mickey - "Despite the savings that would come from deposing the queen, British officials argue that such a move would be penny wise and pound foolish. Without a living monarchy, tourism would suffer.- So think of the living costs for Elizabeth and her princelings - as the salary and maintenance costs for a British Disneyland and you get the right picture." - Los Angeles Times.

Thought for the week - "We're starting to see a backlash to some of these branding efforts. When the profit motive of a firm becomes so apparent, and the consumer infers that all the firm wants to do is make money, the consumer starts resisting." - Marketing prof. Margaret Campbell on current brand-name megahype.  
 
 
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