European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 13, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 b the stars and stripes Friday March 13, 1992 retail sales claims for jobless Aid climb Washington a retail sales jumped 1.3 percent in february marking the first time sales have risen More than 1 percent for two consecutive months since 1985, the government said thursday. All categories except for grocery stores posted gains. The report was the latest suggestion of a turnaround in consumer spending which is vital to any recovery from recession since it represents two thirds of the nations Economy. Retail sales account for half of consumer spending. However in another report the labor department said the number of americans filing first time claims for unemployment benefits Rose to 459,000 in the last week in february pushing the claims figure to its highest level in a month. The new claims for jobless benefits Rose by 22,000 from the 437,000 level of the previous week officials said. Sales had edged up just 0.8 percent in 1991 As the Economy struggled to recover. That was the smallest increase in 30 years and compared with gains of 3.8 percent in 1990 and 6 percent in 1989. The Commerce department said sales of such items As apparel appliances and automobiles totalled a seasonally adjusted $157.7 billion in february up from $155.6 billion a month earlier. January sales were even stronger than first estimated. They were revised to a 2.1 percent Advance rather than the 0.6 percent in the initial report. The revision reflected higher automobile furniture and department store sales and marked the steepest increase since a 2.2 percent gain in february 1991. The Back to Back increases of More than 1.0 percent were the first since sales Rose 1.1 percent in August 1985 and 2.7 percent the following month. Sales had been Flat in november and december. Car dealers reported sales were up 1.4 percent after rising 2.5 percent in january. Excluding the automobile category sales still were up 1.3 percent. Bush proposes to sell 792 missiles to Kuwait Washington a the Bush administration wants to sell Kuwait a $2.5 billion package of americans top of the line air defense weapons including 450 Patriot and 342 Hawk missiles the Pentagon said wednesday. The proposed Sale a will help improve the Security of a Friendly country which has been and continues to be an important Force for political stability and economic Progress in the Middle East a the Pentagon said. It said Congress already had been told of the package designed to improve Kuwait a battered defences in the Wake of the persian Gulf War. Lawmakers have 30 Days to reject the Sale. Little opposition was expected since the weapons Are considered defensive in nature. The Patriot anti missile system produced by Raythelon co. Of Lexington mass., emerged As a Star from the War Given its capability to defend against iraqis scud missiles. The proposed package includes six Patriot firing units one training unit and such support equipment As radar sets engagement control stations and launching stations. The Sale would also include six batteries of the Hawk medium Range guided missile system. The Mobile All weather missile system was designed to defend critical installations and Battlefield forces from Low to medium Altitude in attacks. The proposed Sale comes As the administration reportedly is considering several other Large weapons sales to the Middle East. One of the largest is a $5 billion Sale of 72 f-15 fighters to saudi Arabia. Patriots also have been requested by Bahrain the United Arab emirates Qatar and Turkey among others congressional sources have , a no hands a ski acrobat flies upside Down from a High Rise in Frankfurt Germany to promote Gold and Silver coins of the 1994 Winter olympics in Lillehammer Norway. The coins went on Sale in Germany on tuesday. The skier jumped Down a special ramp to land on a giant air cushion.73% of College students believe in god poll says new York up a a Survey of 1,000 College students around the United states shows that 73 percent believe in god and 10 percent have had sex in the school Library Esquire Magazine reported wednesday. Twenty two percent said they thought god was a Man while less than 2 percent said woman. The somewhat whimsical College life �?T92 poll conducted for the Magazine by bkg youth showed that most of those who filled out the questionnaire believed they will be making about $75,000 a year by the time they Are 35. But Thev also believe that it takes $80,000 a year for a family of four to live comfortably. Fifty two percent of those questioned said they believed they had done something in College that would disqualify them from political office. Twenty percent said they might consider running. Asked what would impress their parents most after four years of College 45 percent said a a diploma a 57 percent said a a Job a and 4 percent said a a  asked How Many books including Homework they have read during the year the average number was 13. Sixty six percent said they had read a Book on philosophy. They read newspapers an average of three times a week. Asked when they lost their virginity the average age was 16. The average number of sex partners Over the past 12 months was two with 85 percent saying they practice Safe sex. Eighty five percent however said they knew someone who was a Virgin. Forty eight percent said they had cheated on tests mor it than once a but not  eight percent said they halt cheated often 12 percent said they had cheated once an it 33 percent denied Ever cheating. As to political affiliations 32 percent said Democrat 3 percent said Republican and 26 percent said Independent. R eighty percent said they planned to vote in november presidential elections. Asked to choose Between Mick Jagger and Georg it Bush As a life they would rather have 59 percent chose  outbreak traced to tainted Finger prick device Boston a a hepatitis outbreak in a California veterans Hospital was traced to contamination of a handheld Gadget used to prick fingers to draw blood according to a report published thursday. Researchers from the Federal centers for disease control tracked 26 cases of hepatitis b infection in a single Ward to improper use of a Spring loaded Finger stick device. These instruments Are commonly used to draw Small amounts of blood often to Check Levels of sugar haemoglobin or cholesterol. The researchers found that nurses always changed the lancet used to prick the Finger after each use. But a third of them failed to replace a disposable prong that is held against the patients Finger to hold the device in place. They theorize that the prong became contaminated with hepatitis tainted blood which spread the virus from patient to patient. The outbreak occurred Between june 1989 and March 1990 at the veterans affairs Hospital in Fresno Calif. The cd earlier put out a nationwide Alert about the Hazard. Or. Louis b. Polish and other researchers described the investigation in thursdays Issue of the new England journal of Medicine. They cautioned that even if the lancet and prong Are changed after each use the virus could still contaminate the vice if nurses fail to change their go too. A each patient should ideally a separate dedicated Finger stick Dev the doctors wrote. A if one device my used for More than one patient it so be cleaned and  since the outbreak the Hospital switched to individually packaged d Sable devices. No new hepatitis infect have been reported