European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - July 31, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Tuesday juty31, 1990 the stars and strips a Page 3birds of a Feather get wet together three cormorants,.which Are Pelican Dock along the Charles River in Cam Cormorant raises a Flap Over the Forren Type diving Birds hang oat to dry on a Bridge mass., after a downpour. One tial Rains that recently hit the Boston a area. The National weather service said almost 7 inches fell in 24 hours. Clouds Over soviet Economy grow Darker Moscow apr the soviet Economy fell sharply from january through june As workers earned More rubles for producing less and paid higher prices for potatoes and other scarce necessities according to statistics released sunday. The Gross National product dropped 1 percent and labor productivity fell 1.5 percent compared with the first half of 1989, the government printed 9 percent More rubles and the average monthly wage for Industrial and service workers shot up from the equivalent of $407 to $443, said a first half economic report printed by the official press. Less meat and fewer vegetables were available. The Price of potatoes Rose 10 percent fruit prices were up 14 percent and vegetable prices increased 9 percent. Overall Consumers spent 14.2 percent More on Basic goods and services. The Litany of economic gloom released by the official Tass news Agency and the government newspaper Izvestia should have provided few surprises to soviet Consumers who Battle daily with finding food clothing and other necessities. But the reports indicated that the government has so far been unable to make Progress on correcting some of the Economy a major problems. A a definite increase in pay for labor in comparison with the output of production is continuing which worsens the situation on the consumer Market a Tass said. A the output of Money increased. The increase of prices for consumer goods and services continued. The using Power of the Ruble dropped. The foreign Trade balance remains  this years budget deficit is estimated at about $103 billion. President Mikhail a Gorbachev and Premier Nikolai i. Ryzhkova have promised to Start implementing reforms next year to free the Economy from heavy state control. They have acknowledged that state controlled prices must be raised. But the plans have met with stiff resistance from More conservative communist party and parliamentary officials As Well As Consumers worried that their Standard of living will fall even further. At the same time the government has acknowledged that some of its plans were ill conceived. Last month Yuri d. Maslyu Kov the head of economic planning said the supreme soviet parliament was Wise to kick Back a government plan to raise bread prices beginning july 1. The reports citing figures from the state statistics commission said that while Basic economic indicators showed no improvement some decentralization was taking place in the Economy. They said a about 1.3 million people Are working in enterprises in which groups of workers rent facilities from the government rather than work directly for the state. A the number of people working in cooperatives a Small privately run businesses a almost doubled and the value of their goods and services reached $51.7 billion. A the amount of consumer goods produced in factories retooled from defense production increased More than 20 percent. But the statistics indicated that economic problems Are not limited to the production of food and Basic consumer goods. According to the reports a construction of apartments was Down by 6 percent compared with last year and Only a Quarter of the years planned construction of schools hospitals and clubs had been achieved. Capital construction takes twice As Long As it should because of Supply and labor problems. Q a the balance of Trade also continued to Worsen. Exports dropped from $57.6 billion in the first half of last year to $52.2 billion this year. Meanwhile imports increased from $61.9 billion $63.3 billion a exports to countries of com econ the soviet led economic Union that includes its former East bloc allies dropped 10,2 percent. Those countries most of which threw out hard line communist regimes last year Are Tang to reorient their economies away from the soviet Union. Mayor of Pisa leaning on Rome to repair Tower u t c a to 011t \ Quot to \ cite a a a 41\ of n it n v p it _ _ it. It a. Pisa Italy apr six months after the leaning Tower was closed to the Public work to keep it from toppling has yet to begin and the mayor of the City abandoned by tourists is appealing to Rome for help. A Fig tree was recently spotted sprouting inside the Tilting Tower but that a about the Only sign of life. The towers 293 Steps to the top were last climbed on Jan 7. Then the mayor reluctantly locked the wooden doors to the 180-foot Tower with a steel key and expressed Hope work would begin soon so the Monument could reopen. Since then the mayors office has a new occupant and the City has been losing hundreds of thousands of dollars in Entrance fees a the Monument attracted some 800,000 tourists a year who paid about $3.35 apiece to climb the spiral staircase for a disorienting View of the tuscan City. Some tourists of course still pass through Pisa but the City is less appealing with the Tower closed. Newly elected mayor Sergio Cortopassi said he a appealing to Premier Giulio Andreotti in Hopes of spurring a Quick Start to the work italian newspapers re ported sunday. The reports said Cortopassi wants the government to Convene a meeting on the situation in the next two weeks. Cortopassi a predecessor signed an order in december authorizing closure and since then the order has been renewed. But experts have yet to get moving on a plan to Stop the Tower from leaning even More. Parliament has yet to appropriate the $410,000 that experts estimate the work w ill Cost. The Tower began to lean almost immediately alter Bonnano Pisano began work on it in 1173 when the ground beneath it shifted. The Tower now leans some 13 feet off the perpendicular. At least once a year italian experts announce new findings that the Tower has leaned some More usually a tiny fraction of an Inch. At this rate the Tower will eventually topple experts say. But even without intervention it should stand at least another 100 years. One plan under consideration Calls for a wheel shaped support to be planted around the base of the Tower and connected by spokes to the Marble foundation. Although experts disagree on which is the Best strategy ail say the keep its famous lean