Tradewinds, 1984-01-06

              T-3 P$i V r"i A i r n i Ni L j Volume 11 Number 13 By Brian C. Nutter It began several years ago when AT&T refused to allow 'low cost long distance phone service' to mass purchase the inexpensive WATS LINES. These special lines had been reserved for business customers who indulged in extensive long distance phone calls. The result of that refusal cost AT&T an initial $5 million legal settlement. The company who won out over the giant monopoly purchased satellite equipment and established a totally independent long distance telephone network. Following this lead the voting populus of the United States encouraged their elected officials and other groups to dig a little deeper. As a result of these probes what is perhaps the largest legal monopoly in the country if not the world is being blown apart. Spokesmen for the company have assured us that all will be well in the future and that we need not worry over minor inconsistencies. However what really lies in store may be a rude awakening to most of us. If you continue to rent an AT&T Telephone little will change, your monthly statement will come as always with assessment for the phone and lines and jacks within your house. But when that phone Student Leaders Make Plans At Retreat By Brian C. Nutter The great holiday vacation was short and sweet for UTC's student leaders. Planning and preparations for the new year carried on throughout the Christmas break. Before the start of school this week much of this planning and preparation culminated in a leadership retreat. The first ?S' Numerous students and staff connected with student services attended a retreat recently at the Homestead. They discussed ways of working together to give the school more unity. Photo by Brian Nutter. The Official Student breaks down you will lace a repair fee for $40 for the first 15 minutes and 820 for each additional 15 minutes. Kven if the phone is the property of AT&T you will be charged for the repair. Telephone lines themselves will become the property of local phone companies however costs for installing lines may also be high. Lines may be installed by homeowners but then maintainence and repair of those lines becomes the responsiblity of the homeowner. Phones currently in your home may be purchased or returned to purchase different models. Renting of existing phones and new models is also available. It should also be noted that there are nearly 1,000 telephone models registered with the Federal Communications Commission and available to the general public at various retail stores. It is apparent that the break-up could be a rather expensive affair for the consumer. A few tips have been recommended that may be helpful. First purchasing a phone will undoubtedly be cheaper in the long run, rental prices though lixed at present' will continue to rise and once a phone is paid for there is no further charge for its use. Remember repairs will cost you even if the phone is rented. retreat of 1984 was held at the Homestead in Heber Valley with over 30 of the Tech's student leaders in attendance. This assembly addressed many of the problems encountered during the previous term. Self discipline and actualization were discussed. Combining of efforts and communications in scheduling events were discussed to im I i Newspaper of Utah Technical College at ProvoOrem, P.O. Box 1609, own Installing and maintaining the wiring in your home will save on rental fees for wiring and will allow you to relocate phone jacks to your convenience. This could be especially helpful when remodeling a house or installing additional lines for teenagers, elderly or handicapped family members. Purchasing the so called generic phones may also be helpful, especially for extension lines. It makes better sense to replace an $8 or $10 phone than to spend $40 or more to fix one that cost less than $50 to buy. Many independent phone man-facurers are now offering less expensive models that can do more than the standard phones available through AT&T. The main reason for the break-up is to encourage competition and this will eventually hit the telephone repair service as well. We may see some of AT&T's repairmen opening private repair services at or below the service prices of AT&T. Carry-in phone repairs in all cases will be cheaper than in home service. The break-up which took place officially last Sunday leaves all of us with choices to make concerning the future of out- plione Services and li!l:. Its a choice that we each must' make in accordance with our own feelings and desires. The best of it all is that now we do have that freedom to choose. prove interaction groups. among The overall direction of the conference was to assist the student leaders in providing better events and services to the entire student body. Activities were planned for the session that worked to encourage the attitudes and idiologies taught in the lectures. ' "v Wide The AT&T breakup could be a very while consumer primps runten') the l in Garn Asked To Apologize Senator Jake Garn, R- Utah, has been asked to make a public apology for his reaction to Jesse Jackson's trip to Syria. Garn called Jackson's efforts to win the release of captured Navy Lt. Robert O. Goodman, racially motivated. In a radio interview, Garn said "You have to ask the question, would Jackson have been over there it Lt. Goodman Provo's Defines Provo City's books repre sent "typical" cash flow for the city, according to a representative of Hawkins, Borup, Cloward and Co., certified public accountants who releas ed an audit of Provo City's finances for 1982-83 at the city council meeting Tuesday night. But a faulty utilites billing system, a switch to the county computer system and flooding emergencies which taxed employees forced a backage of work and complicated operations, said Kevin Simister. Simister said his firm questioned the city's practice of advancing monies between funds. He also advised that proper accounting procedures be applied in the future in a particular area in utilities operations, through the lack of financial records did not present serious problems. Specifically, Simister said contribution of services and Provo, Utah 84603 Open V - expensive move for consumers. AT&T worst r ould happen. 71 tew suiiiiiiie weren't black? sometimes you have to call a spade a spade. "Although Garn was glad Lt. Goodman was freed, he said. "I just believe there were racial overtones to Jackson's motivations.. An aide to Garn said later, the senator would not apologize for his "call a spade a spade" comment because it was not Audit Problems products - such as underground piping - to the ut ility plant from land subdividers special improvement districts "have not been capitalized" in the Water and Wastewater Funds. Record of depreciation on those contributions has not been recorded either, in 1982-83 or prior years. The audit did not include financial statements of the Provo Redevelopment Agency or the Housing Authority. Except for the effects of lack of accounting in those areas, the firm believes it presented fairly the city's financial picture for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1983. Unappropriated funds left over totalled $730,000, and $498,000 remained in the revenue sharing fund. Simister said the most noticeable figures in the report is the $1.5 million increase in Friday, January 6, 1984 , officials say look for the best, . ment as a racial slur and that he was just using "western vernacular" in describing his opinions about Jackson's mission. Robbie Robinson, a member of the Utah Governor's Black Advisory council, called Garn's statement "an insult to black, and not only to blacks but to citizens of this county as a whole." total cash from the year before and the $1.3 million increase in accounts receivable. 1 his may seem to be a paradox in view of the fact revenues are down this year," he said. "But the $2.2 million in capital improvements budgeted two years ago weren't done.. because of the flooding..." Part of the increase in the cash balance was because of accrued liabilities, increased by $1.2 million, Simister said. "There's not a big cushion in the city's financial status," he said, adding though, that "it was a typical year for the city." Simister also noted that $410,000 would be available in the general fund if the Utah Supreme Court uphold a judgement denying a $1.6 million personal lawsuit against the city. The case is under appeal to the higher court.