European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 16, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 6 a a a the stars and stripes thursday August 16, 1990 stateside crowd turns out to cheer opponent of realty signs Greenwich Conn. Ai it a More than 300 people showed up at a Public hearing monday night to support a millionaire who has been charged with spraying paint on a real estate sign. Rene Anselmo Drew cd cars and applause As he told town residents that the signs Are unsightly and should be banned. A the fault is with the town for 90 percent of this pollution Quot Anselmo said. The towns Board of selectmen called mondays Public Mcling after the recent outcry Over ans Lmos a arrest on july 3. The 64-year-old owner of a television satellite company became an instant Folk hero after he was charged  criminal mischief for allegedly defacing the sign. He has pleaded innocent and a trial in the Case is set for aug. 24 in Stamford Superior court. The charge carries maximum penalty of a $1,000 Fine and six months in prison. Town backs Down in Flap with Flag flying surf shop Atlantic Beach by it apr there was no rockets red Glare no bombs bursting in air. But our Flag was still there t us Day at a surf shop where officials backed off from ticketing the owner for flying old glory. It Only took hours for mayor Fred lager to rescind the ticket citing a misinterpretation of a local Taw Atlantic Beach surf shop owner Tom Sena has been lying the Flag outside his Long Island store since he opened it five years ago. But on monday inspector Frank la Vicchi gave him a $250 ticket for violating a 1976 ordinance barring Quot hanging exhibiting and swinging of banners and flags without the written permission of Atlantic beaches Board of trustee a 1 lager said the Law was meant to keep shop owners from flying several flags particularly in commercial displays. The mayor said that Levicchi apologized Ana that the town might consider changing the Flag Law s language business inventories decline As sales Advance Washington Fuji a inventories declined 0.4 percent in june As businesses a worked to control their stockpiles of goods while sales advanced i percent for the second straight month the Commerce department said wednesday. A ,. The invent try to sales ratio which tracks the amount of time it lakes to move goods from warehouses to Consumers also declined from 1.49 in May to 1.46 in june a the 1 owe is level since 1982. A government spokesman said the 0.4 percent drop in inc glories was the largest since a 0.4 percent fall in february and the Back to Back i percent gains in sales were the Best showing since 1.4 percent in february. A killer Tomato seeds bearing harmless fruit Atlanta i f Pic so called Quot killer Tomato Quot seeds from outer space arc bearing a rather tame Harvest. People have sampled the in Ruil of the seeds exposed to five years More space radial Ion than planned. None turned into a space monster a or even got sick. More than 12 million seeds were Seni into orbit aboard a satellite in 1984 to lace deep space radiation exposure for it months. Bui the 1986 challenger disaster and other problems at Nasa left them aloft five years longer Man planned. Astronauts retrieved the 11-ton Long duration exposure facility satellite in january and the seeds were distributed to 4 million students nationwide. A memo from a n Asa contractor warned of a a Remote possibility Quot that mutations in the seeds could produce toxic fruit prompting some teachers to abandon the program. A paying millions in benefits to dead veterans Gao says Washington apr the department of veterans affairs has paid benefits to More than 1,200 do. Ceased vets including about 100 who died a. Decade or More ago the general accounting office says. The congressional investigating Agency pegged the potential annual loss from the erroneous payments at $5.7 million. Gao auditors said the department could have reduced the erroneous payments by Matching a Benefit payment files with death in foliation maintained by the social Security administration. The department agreeing with the Gao a findings said it intends to follow that procedure. A a we found that in april 1989 a paid compensation or Benefit payments for 1,212 veterans who social Security administration records reported had died at least four months earlier Quot the Gao said in a report to the Senate veterans affairs committee. A about 100 had been dead 10 years or  the a pays out More than $14,7 billion a year in disability compensation and pension benefits to More than 2.8 million veterans and nearly i million surviving spouses and other dependents. The Gao said that although benefits should be ended when a beneficiary Dies a if surviving relatives or other knowledgeable persons do not report death to a in a timely manner substantial erroneous payments can  the Agency said the department has relied on voluntary . But investigators said the social Security administration goes much further receiving reports of deaths from Many sources and buying death certificate information from states. Federal agencies such As the a Are authorized to obtain this information the Gao said. The Agency said that by Matching vans Benefit payment file with social Security records containing information on 39 million deaths a a we identified 1,212 veterans who were reported dead As of december 1988.�?� the Gao said it first found 1,065 veterans that social Security data showed were dead but who were still receiving a  erroneous payments to these veterans accounts could amount to $5.1 million annually a a it said. Tire Gao said it then checked a social Security file containing about 450,000 death certificates purchased from the states. _ that search added an additional 147 deceased veterans whose Bank accounts were continuing to receive payments. The Gao said it estimated these erroneous payments at $638,000. The review was conducted from August 1989 to april 1990. The a acting at the Gao a request investigated several of the cases with these results a a Veteran identified by social Security As having died in August 1984, continued to receive a benefits. Records showed that a total of $30,369 in direct deposits had been made to the veterans Bank accounts. The a ended Benefit payments concluded that overpayment of $30,000 had been made and opened an investigation.9 social Security records showed that another Veteran had died in september 1983 but that the department continued to make direct deposits totalling $ 13,797. The payments were ended and the department is considering further action. A social Security records showed another Veteran had died on aug. 8, 1986. A payments had been sent since then to the veterans last known address. The a ended payments after determining that the Veteran was indeed dead and that a sister had been cashing his checks. Erroneous payments were estimate Chat $2,755. In a letter the Gao Edward j. Derwinski the Secretary of veterans affairs said he concurred with the Agency a findings and was moving to obtain death information froth the social Security administration. Quot upon verification of the death a Darwin skin a letter said a we will take prompt action to Stop any erroneous payment and to resolve any overpayment that would develop a looking into the future Chrysler corp. Chairman Lee Iacocca addresses journalists Industry representatives and Chrysler managers tuesday As he launches production of redesigned 1991-Model mini vans at the Windsor on Tario Assembly Plant across the Border from Detroit Laronca hoping to improve struggling Chrysler a prospects has had talks with Volvo Renault and hat about a possible  worried about Long hours of trainee doctors Chicago apr Many medical residents arc is ill working Imus than St hours a week de pile a growing movement to limit the on duty Lime and the fatigue of doctors in raining a new report indicates. Five specialities All surgical have residents working an average of More than so hours per week m the first car of training according to the report in wednesdays journal of the american medical association. The specialities Are nervous system surgery general surgery children a surgery blood vessel surgery and Chest surgery said the report part of the journal s annual medical education Issue. Nine other specialities have on duty hours ranging front 70 to 80 hours per week for first year residents the report said. It did not list the nine specialities. The number of on duty hours worked has. Been a growing area of concern among residents and other health care professionals. The 1984 death of a new York woman resulting from inadequate care by unsupervised residents and interns prompted a study that raised serious questions about the dangers posed by residents fatigue. Last year new York which trains 16 percent of the nations doctors became the first state to limit residents shifts to 24 hours and their work weeks to 80 h ours. Although still grueling trainees say it is far belter than the Century old tradition of 36-hour shifts and 100-hour work weeks. At least 12 other states have considered or Are considering limits on residents working hours. One third of leaching hospitals have already implemented limits voluntarily according to a Survey released in february by the association of american medical colleges