European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 8, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 18 a a a the stars and stripes sunday april 8,1990 business new few gis care to make cents of Dollar rate for the Young men of troop c in Fulda West Germany the Dollar rate rarely is out of sight but its often out of mind. Take spec. Jason Davis who drives a Bradley fighting vehicle for a living. Davis tracks the dollars journey almost daily by Reading the newspaper but whether the Bucko a fortunes Rise or fall his buying habits done to change. A if i want something id probably buy it anyway a said Davis 20, who joined the army immediately after graduating from High school in Beckley w. A. His attitude is shared by Many of his Barracks mates with the 11 the army Cav regt in Fulda. For them income is disposable. The Dollar to Mark rate be damned. A it does no to bother me a said pvt. 2 Jayson Drevers referring to the Dol Dave Walczak Lars recent sluggishness in relation to the West German Mark. A if i have the Money i buy. If i done to i  Twenty year old Drevers has spent just six months in the army the last four in Fulda. He said his spending habits Haven to changed since his High school Days. A i always Tell my friends that if i have Money in my pocket its already spent. My Way of saving Money is never to take it out of the  Yasmin Thomas Goodman a financial assistant with the army Community service Agency in Darmstadt West Germany has seen her share of such free spenders. They come to her office seeking counselling after having spent their Way into a tight Comer. She helps them wriggle free through better budgeting. A dealing with a lot of Young soldiers without financial training we try to educate them As much As possible on How to manage Money a she said. Thomas Goodman a favorite questions to clients involve what lies ahead a what about the future a she usually asks. If a Soldier plans to marry and raise a family  it be smart to open a savings account or what about life after the military Why not save something for a Rainy Day some service members apparently think the Sun is always going to Shine. When Drevers and his friends spend Money on the Economy it almost always goes for entertainment. Its hard to find a member of troop c who does no to spend at least one Friday or saturday night in Fulda partying. Pfc. Patrick Wesely 20, said that off Post entertainment is a must and a one or two pfennig drop in the Dollar is. The Mark has no effect on his lifestyle. A unless you re a mathematician you re not going to notice it. You re talking about cents there a he said. Pvt. John Wrigley 19, said the Dollar Hasni to varied in value enough to put a Dent in his activities since he arrived in West Germany a few months ago. A the biggest fluctuation in be seen is from 1.65 to 1.68 Marks a he said. A you wont hardly notice  pfc. Brady love 20, holds a different View. The san Antonio native said that Afier serving 14 months in Fulda he a Learned the True value of a Dollar. A when i first got Here i went out every night and spent All my paycheck. But when i was going out every night id Wake up the next morning and say a what did 1 get out of it a a it was fun but i done to need that that much a love said. A now in a saving  Thomas Goodman and other financial advisers who work with Young service members say the lesson love has Learned is a hard one to master but its perhaps the most valuable one of All. A the Best Way to be financially secure is to Ian How you want to spend your Money a Homas Goodman said. A that Way it just does no to frivolously go  Tim stars and stripes arc announces changes at hotels to fight higher costs by Steve Taylor Munich Bureau Garmisch West Germany a the armed forces recreation Center is raising room rates closing one hotel and reducing food service at another to combat rising costs. Arc operates a Chain of hotels and recreation areas in three resort areas of Southern Bavaria for . Service members and their families. A room rates will increase at hotels in Berchtesgaden or. Doom Drew laughs in �?T77 now people listen by Chip Brown associated press Dallas a Ravi Batra was used to making tumultuous global economic forecasts and having nobody listen. Then some of his predictions started to come True. Batra is republishing his 1977 Book a the downfall of capitalism and communism this month 13 years after the India born economist predicted the Iron curtain and Berlin Wall would come Down. A when i took the Book around to american publishers in 1977, they fought Back laughter and said they weren to interested in such an outrageous forecast a Batra said. A Cdr. Doom still is scorned by most mainstream economists but he no longer lacks an audience. Batra a 46-year-old professor of economics at Southern methodist University attracted International attention when his 1987 new York times Best seller a the great depression of 1990�?� predicted a cataclysmic drop in the Stock Market for 1987. That oct. 19 the Dow Jones average fell 506 Points. The crash helped bring Batraw a alarming forecasts of worldwide unemployment deflation and Bank failures into focus. He expounded his theories on television talk shows and was invited to advise a Senate committee on economic growth. A i predicted then and i am sticking to my guns that capitalism and communism will both endure a Complete collapse around the year 2000,�?� he said recently. A except for an introduction and one additional chapter outlining what i think will happen in the 1990s, a the downfall of capitalism and communism is exactly As i wrote it in 1977,�?� he said. Britain a Macmillan press printed 5,000 copies of the Book in 1978. Now Batra is publishing it again via Dallas based Taylor publishing co. A every depression starts with a recession a Batra said. A we Are already seeing signs of a recession with the recent collapses of Campeau and Drexel  problems in the Market for High risk junk Bonds pushed the . Retailing operations of Campeau corp. And investment banking business of Drexel Burnham Lambert into bankruptcy court earlier this year. A the junk Bond Market is in shambles and savings and loan failures Are magnifying Quot Batra said. A unemployment is also beginning to Rise and will probably reach 8 percent by the end of 1990.�?� by 1995, he said the country will be plagued with a soup and Kitchen lines worse than in the 1930s.�?� Batra wrote in 1977 that communism a Bare Bones living standards combined with the continued repression of Basic freedoms a will Force marxism to crumble under its own weight perhaps in the next 25  he a revised that scenario since communist governments began unravelling in the East bloc last year. But Batra suggested that communism As a system in the soviet Union is Likely to make one last stand before succumbing. A soviet hard liners and army officers who have lost out in the recent realignment of Power could take advantage of growing unrest and economic stagnation and overthrow soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev in a military coup a the Book states. A even when communism recovers to make a last stand it will prove to be a rear guard action delaying not stopping the inevitable a Batra adds. Batra has said he hired a bodyguard after Black monday in 1987 to protect himself from death threats. He has drawn worldwide criticism for columns published in prominent newspapers predicting nightmarish economic conditions. And Garmisch beginning june 1, arc executive director James my Candle said thursday. Rates s two arc hotels in Chi Emsee will remain the same a these increases Are being made with great Rew Tance a Mccrindle said. B relic the Cost of a room without Bath will increase $4 a night and with Bath $5 per night. That Means e-5s and below will pay $24 per night without a Bath for double occupancy. E-6s and above will pay $28 for the same room. Rooms with Bath will jump to $39 a night for double occupancy for e-5s and below while e-6s and above will pay $44. Single occupancy rates Are $3 less per room. Rates at Chi Emsee will remain at their current rates of $36 to $49 for double occupancy depending on the occupants rank and room location. All rooms at Chi Emsee have private Baths. Mccrindle said rising labor costs and the effect of a weaker Dollar on other services prompted the increases. A we budgeted at 1.80 Marks to the Dollar and the average for the year has been about 1.68,�?� he said. The difference Means about $610,000 in higher costs he said. Arc also announced it will close the 52-room Alpine inn in Berchtesgaden effective april 16. Arc spokesman Harry Connors cited unsafe conditions caused by deteriorating bunkers under the hotel. Those bunkers which were built in world War ii Are in need of reinforcement a project that is economically unfeasible he said. Mccrindle said the repairs would Cost $550,000. The hotel will be turned Over to the Usa eur real estate office. A Usa eur spokeswoman said officials have not determined what will happen to the hotel. Four hotels in Berchtesgaden will remain open. All Alpine inn employees have been placed in other jobs Mccrindle said. In another move to Cut costs arc is reducing food service at the Abrams hotel in Garmisch. Beginning june 1, the hotel will serve Only breakfast. Abrams guests will receive a $2 discount on any dinner purchased at the general Patton or general von Steuben hotel restaurants and the shuttle bus service Between the hotels will be improved. The number of vending machines and the variety of Light meals will be increased at the Abrams bar. Full lounge service and entertainment will continue Mccrindle  official still seeks Europe phone service by Randy Mcclain financial writer Frankfurt West Germany a Donald e. Berg Herm assistant commissioner for the internal Kee services International division has t Given up idea of establishing a Telephone service in Europe where . Taxpayers could get tax a vice. Previous efforts to set up a toll free irs in overseas have fallen victim to budget cuts in a g ton but Bergherm has something new up his Sie. He wants to Experiment with a phone service to the 700 and 900 numbers in the United stat through which taxpayers could at least Call Date on their tax accounts. The catch is that there would be some sort of charge for the Call. The assistant commissioner said he d like idea on a Small scale at first. A ror. A we May have to limit it to providing accoun1 mation at first but that a 50 percent of the Calb irs anyway a Bergherm said. Tapu Aye n s for or what a Bill they be received in the a of they be made a payment and they want its been credited to their account. Jnt0 a if that works maybe we could exp other taxpayer information a he said. H has Bergherm said the irs Isnit ready to each Ca idea yet and he does no to know How m absorb would Cost or whether the govern rent be done any of the Cost. But he said something y a to further expand service for the 1 null taxpayers in Europe. He com the irs assistant commissioner Maat ments on a recent visit to West Germany