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Show a a Sun Advocate Tuesday, October 4, TS88 FCC's idea is Dro-consum- GViWeliD er The Federal Communications Commission recently did a good deed for the television viewers of the nation, though most might not notice it anytime soon. But here it is, in all its technological hocus-pocuIn essence, the FCC decided that existing televisions should be able to receive television shows broadcast television, using a new system called h which offers movie-filpicture clarity and sound. The agencys action means that when broadcasters move to the new system, expected over the next decade or so, you wont have to buy entirely new equipment to receive it. Thirty years ago, television was switching from broadcasting to color. At that time, the FCC made a similar ruling: People who owned sets should be able to existing receive the new color shows (in black and white, of course) without buying new equipment. Thats what some television owners didnt switch for happened sets continue to be decades, and s: high-definiti- on m top-notc- black-and-whi- te black-and-whi- te black-and-whi- te made and sold. There, of course, lies one of the few problems with sets will the FCCs ruling: People with continue to get pictures, not the high-tec- h sharpness that the new television system offers. But that problem is relatively minor: Viewers who television picture dont want or need a movie-qualit- y shouldnt have to invest in new equipment. As was the case with television, each person will be able to decide whats important to him. sets arent on the market The new be for few wont a and years. The Japanese are yet of U.S. ahead manufacturers and plan to apparently 50 of the new on summer broadcasts Olympics display televisions in department stores across Japan. The system could be in Japanese homes by ed ed black-and-whi- te high-definiti- high-definiti- 1990. The FCC was just doing its job when it set guidelines for the development of the sets in the United States. That is something that needs to be done early in the game, rather than later, when it may be too difficult or too expensive to make the necessary Life & other trivialities adjustments. More miles per gallon Shop for credit cards For the past three years, the Reagan administration has excused auto manufacturers from having to meet federal fuel efficiency standards. Last year, it went a step further and' tried to get the fuel efficiency law repealed outright. Thus, the recent Transportation Department proposal to do no more than partially reduce the mileage requirements for 1989 and 1990 model cars can be seen as a kind of progress. But thats hardly good enough. Congress voted in 1975, in the middle of the energy crisis, to require every auto-mak(foreign and domestic) to annually raise the average fuel efficiency of its fleet to a specified level. And while that might not have been the most refined method for reducing oil consumption in America, it was a simple, and it and essentially fair program was extraordinarily successful, helping to raise average car mileage in the nation by a third before the Reagan administration started If anything, the argument for reviving and preserving federal mileage requirements is even more compelling today. The countrys oil dependence remains as serious as ever, and its now compounded enby new information about the long-terThere is, vironmental risks of excessive moreover, no more effective fuel conservation strategy on the political horizon; the Reagan administration has canceled every other significant energy conservation program the nation once had. Every time the administration has rolled back federal mileage standards, it has talked about saving jobs for autoworkers, but that is a red herring. The standards are as likely to create new jobs building small cars as to eliminate jobs building large cars; and if that isnt what happens then the federal requirements should be fixed, not scrapped. Whats really at issue is the administrations desire to save General Motors and Ford the trouble of having to either redesign their big cars or offer more attractive bargains on their small cars to meet the required fleet averages. But that is precisely the trouble the manufacturers have to be put to if any progress is to be made. Its long past time to enforce the 27.5 miles per gallon fleet average that federal law says was supposed to be achieved by 1985, but which the administration isnt planning to require even by 1990. Its time, in fact, to move past that and start talking about even tougher standards for the future. er swift-worki- carry an interest rate of about By STEVE CHRISTENSEN ng Managing editor Im not the worlds most frugal individual. When I want to do something, I usually do it, eyen though the budget might not allow it. But, thats what credit cards are for, isnt it? Id never really thought much about credit cards, I just used the one my bank issued. But, the other day I received a news release in die mail from a company called 100 Highest Yields, that said perhaps I should take another look. The article suggests you should look carefully at your credit card, and make sure youre not paying too much for the privilege of going on your binges. Most bank cards, according to the article, 18 percent and have an annual fee of about $20. Some go as high as 21 percent and have higher annual fees. However, there are less expensive places to get a credit card. Numerous banks and thrift companies have cards with rates of 15 percent, or even less. As an example, the article said Peoples Bank in Bridgeport, Conn, charges only 12.5 percent interest. The savings can add up. If you maintain a $1,000 balance, each percentage point saves card may pay for you $10 a year. A itself, even if the annual fee is higher. However, if you do not carry a balance from month to month, the thing to look for may be a card with a low annual fee. Some cards have no fee at all. Interesting, but it gets even more com low-ra- te plicated. Many banks give you 25 days from the date of the bill to pay off the balance without incurring an interest charge. You can use the banks money and if you never pay interest, the card is essentially free. Other institutions start charging interest the day they receive a copy of your charge slip. So, what to do? The article suggests that if you carry small balances, or none at all, you might want to consider a card with no annual fee. Look at your charge bill for 1987. What was the total interest paid? If it was less than the cards annual fee, the card is right for you. If you paid much more in interest than the annual fee, a low-racard is the answer. too but complicated for me, I Interesting, think Ill just stay with the old standby. no-f- ee te back-pedalin- g. mike royko m fuel-burnin- You AW WHAT IT PIP FOR 10U6AW$ g. ... NEXT ' Norway's looking better and better Most married couples occasionally quarrel. The disputes can be brought on by money problems, shirking lawn duty, noisy kids, which TV show to watch, leaving the bathroom a mess, lingering over a drink after work, coveting a neighbors wife or husband, or countless other trivial issues. In our case, its Norway. It happened again the other day, as I was catching up on news stories I missed while on vacation. I looked up from the paper and said: I really think we should move to Norway. She snapped: Youre not going to start that again. I said: Again? I havent mentioned it since ... since ... You mentioned it yesterday. Well, time flies. And I think it would be a good idea. OK, what brought it on this time. I explained that in reading the paper I discovered that a thug had raped a woman on a downtown subway platform during rush hour, in full view of snickering commuters who thought it was an amusing case of exhibitionism. Or possibly they thought they were seeing something akin to street musicians. Had the rapist put a tin cup nearby, some might have tossed in coins. On another page, I read of a decent, t law-abidi- man being shot dead on an elevated train. A kid was killed on a bus. Also, a loony had taken up his gun which every American is entitled to own and used it to kill a lady cop and three other people. Those highlights, are I said. just the Ill skip the more mundane gang shootings, d muggings, throat slittings, strangers crawling through the windows of helpless lust-fille- biddies and the usual political corruption. She shook her head. Thats still no reason to pack up and move from the land of our birth. And if we did, why Norway? For the hundredth time, I explained my choice. I want to move to Norway, I said, because Norwegians are nice. But you dont have to move to Norway to find nice people, This country has she said. millions of nice people. True. But the nice are becoming outnumbered, overwhelmed and made extinct by the hooligans, barbarians, thieves, crooks and plain jerks. It isnt that bad, she said. Of course it is. Just turn on your TV. What can you say about a society that thinks David Letterman is funny? Or a nation of 240 million people that wind up with Bush and Dukakis as their choice for president? I could do better picking random names out of a hat. Or even a thimble. But why Ill tell you why. When was the last time you read about a Norwegian man raping a Norwegian woman on a subway while Norwegians looked on in amusement? When have you read about Norwegians running amok in the streets with guns? Or a Norwegian politician saying he will be a great leader because he can recite a Pledge of Allegiance and get it right 75 percent of the time? She said: I dont recall. Of course you dont. And think, when was the last time Norway started a war? Or even threatened one? Why, even back when the Vikings discovered America, Eric the Red looked around at all the hostile Indians and said: Ved have to hit all dese fellows on dar heads vit our axes. Dont seem vorth the bodder. Lets go home and drink glogg instead. And they did. you sure thats historically accurate? . It could be. But the point is that Norwegians are peaceful Are and sensible. Their idea of a A bigger percentage of Norwegians speak English than Americans do. That may be true. But could you adjust to a different culture? Could I adjust to little crime, politicians who talk straight and a society that educates its young, takes care of its aged and tends to its sick? It might be tough, but I could learn. What I meant was, they dont have baseball. So? We dont have it in Chicago, either. Why dont we start packing." O.K. At least the Norwegians have rock n roll music." They do? Of course. Say, I wonder what housing costs are like at the South Pole. NOTICE TO SUN ADVOCATE READERS Contents of special written columns or letters published in this newspaper do not in any way reflect the position, attitude or support of the Sun Advocate. A. ; she Norway? asked. whoopee time is to drink a cup of glogg and sit around a sauna discussing the price of herring. But how can you live in You she asked. Norway? cant speak Norwegian. I dont have to. Almost every Norwegian speaks excellent English because they learn it in school. Do you realize what that means? What? t 'A- 4T. |