Monday, August 23, 1982The Daily Tar Heel3E
ALANCEB BUDGET
The serious jo
Proposed amendment an illusion of responibilty
B
as a 9 to 5 bunker
h
as its ups, downs
By SCOTT BOLE JACK
I suppose I should have suspected
something from the start.
The man in the blue pin-stripped
suit didn't think twice before hiring
me on the spot. He didn't interview
me. He didn't even check my applica
tion to see if I had an education, job
skills or previous convictions for any
offenses other than minor traffic
violations. And, as far as I know, he
never even checked my references.
Our conversation, such as it was,
went something like this:
Well dressed man: "How ya
doin' "
"Fine sir. Thank you."
"Well Scott, as far as I am con
cerned, the job's yours if you want
it."
"Thank you sir."
"Any questions?"
"Not that I can think of."
"Well then, I'll see you this sum
mer." That was it and I was hired. I
should have asked some questions.
I guess he figured anybody crazy
enough to apply for a job as a bank
teller was sufficiently qualified for the
position.
Now if you are like most people,
you have some preconceived notions
about what it is like to work in a bank
ing establishment. You probably im
agine it to be one of those cushy jobs .
with a 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. work schedule,
air conditioned-environment and no
heavy lifting. True, but there are other
aspects of the job that make you wish
you worked 12 hours a day in 100-de-gree
weather lifting 100 pound bags of
cement mix.
What can be so bad about being a
bank teller you ask. Remember the old
saying "a fool and his money are soon
parted"? Well, for bank tellers the
phrase goes something like this: "A
fool and his money soon drive you up
the wall."
For the past two summers, I have
had the dubious pleasure of working
as a teller for one of North Carolina's
larger banks. And never in my 21
years have I had occasion to meet' so
many people" who were 'certifiably"
crazy.
A man walked into the bank one
day and while one teller waited on
him, another teller, who was not busy
at the time, asked him how he was.
"Fine, thank you." His voice began
to rise. "In fact, I'm always fine. I'm
fine every day." The man, who by this
point was speaking very loudly, con
tinued to tell everyone within earshot
exactly how fine he was. But rather
abruptly he got off on a theological
target of sorts.
"I've been in the desert for many
months and I've been there without
food. In fact, I've been in the desert
without food longer than Jesus was in
the desert without food. But does that
make me any better than Jesus?"
No one had an answer to his ques
tion and he left soon after his brief sermon.
Then there was the lady who came
in one morning with her bank deposit.
The only problem was that it was to
another bank. When I told her this,
she replied that she just happened to
be near my bank so she thought she'd
just drop her deposit by. I told her
that I couldn't take her deposit and
that I had no way of getting the money
to her bank. She told me it was the
dumbest thing she'd ever heard of and
stormed out.
You often get the types who come
into the bank with a personal check or
savings withdrawal. Those are also the
ones with no money in their account.
When you tell them the money isn't
there they reply, "That's OK. Just go
ahead and cash it and I'll put some
money in tomorrow to cover it."
Sure.
Now of course not all customers are
crazy. Some are just a pain in the
royal buttocks. Rush-hour is when it
hurts you the worst: between 12 and 1
in the afternoon, people are lined up
out the door.
It's really odd how you can always
tell the troublesome ones before they
say a word. It's just some look they
have about them. And for some
reason they always come in either dur
ing rush-hour or right before closing.
Take, for example businesses
which come in with their deposits.
You're all right until one of the more
successful convenience store operators
comes in. They always have about
$3,000 in $1 bills. Do you know how
long it takes to count $3,000 in $1
bills? And they wonder what's taking
you so long. They're in a hurry to get
back and be a convenience to some
one. Too bad you can't tell them what
an inconvenience they really are.
And the list goes on.
But not all of banking is filled with
humor. There's a sad side to the
business as well, a sadness that makes
you realize just how lucky you really
are.
My favorite customer was a middle
'' "aged black"marr whose nam? I won't
''bother
M He couldn't wnte."At the' time I'first
met him he had never held a steady
job. He would usually come in about
once a week to take money out of his
' savings. I don't know where the
money came from, but he always
managed to have $30 in his account.
He would put his "X" where his name
was supposed to be and take $20.
About a month before I left to
come back to the University, he
stopped coming in. I was worried;
maybe something bad had happened.
But on the last day I worked he
showed up with a pay check in his
hand. He had finally gotten himself a
job that looked like it might last a
while.
That man was always friendly to me
and the expression on his face gave me
the impression that he was somehow
sorry he had to bother me. His situa
tion made me realize how fortunate I
was to have both an education and a
job. -
Scott Bolejack, a senior journalism
and religion major' from Germanton,
is an editorial assistant for The Daily
Tar Heel who hopes ze never has to
work another day at one of ' North
Carolina's larger banks.
UNC
VOLUNTEER lffi:
'82
at North Carolina Memorial Hospital
Registration: 9:00 a.m. -5:00 p.m.
Returning Volunteers - August 16-20
New Volunteers - August 23 - 27 & 30
Volunteer Services Office
Hospital - 1st Floor
Required Orientation-Wednesday,
September 1, 1902
5:00 - 7:30 p.m.
4th Floor Clinic
Auditorium
Questions? Call 966-4793
By KEN MING IS
Two years ago, during the 1980 election, presidential
candidate John Anderson campaigned across the country
attacking Ronald Reagan's economic policies with a sim
ple question: How do you reduce taxes, increase defense
spending and at the same time balance the federal budget?
The answer with mirrors.
Earlier this month, the mirrors amendment otherwise
known as a constitutional amendment to balance the
budget was approved by the U.S. Senate. But like most
bills coming out of Washington these days, this measure is
long on rhetoric and short on real economic effectiveness.
Specifically, the bill calls on Congress to come up with a .
balanced federal budget two years after the amendment
is ratified. (Ratification means the proposal must now
pass the House of Representatives by a two-thirds vote
and be approved by 38 states.) While promising the
economically impossible, the bill is a spiderweb of loop
holes that allows the president and Congress several
means of escape, should election-year politics interfere
with fiscal responsibility.
Loophole No. 1: If both Houses of Congress vote by a
three-fifths margin to approve an unbalanced budget, the
amendment would go right out the window. Picture this
scenario: It's an election year and to balance the budget,
Congress must raise taxes and cut social programs. Con
gress, feeling responsible, votes to hold the line on
spending for the good of the country.
Right.
More likely, both houses wimp out and vote (by a
three-fifths margin) for a large deficit. Hey, the economy
goes to hell in a hand basket but the voters at home are
happy. ;
The latest estimates project that about $170 billion (yes,
billion) would be needed immediately to balance the
budget in 1985. And that money will not be coming out of
defense spending or congressional pay raises. You can bet
your bomber. Those cuts will be deducted from social ser
vices, meaning fewer financial aid benefits for students,
reduced food stamps and fewer Medicaid benefits.
There is little chance of that going over well back in the
home district, but just in case, surprise, there's yet another
out: Congress just throws the deficts out and predicts ...
a budget surplus! Isn't Congress great? The "well, we
were wrong" budget deficit game is already alive and
well in Washington. Just this year, the Reagan White
House projected a record deficit of $104 billion. That
was four months ago. Now the deficit is expected to be
in the $150 billion range.
It looks like David Stockman hit the wrong buttons on
the calculator.
To be honest, the idea of a balanced budget is not bad.
It would help slow down inflation and the runaway
federal growth so roundly criticized by the president in
1980. But such a move should be phased in, not rammed
down Congress' throat or watered-down like this bill. The
original balanced budget amendment would have required
a balanced budget, no ifs, ands or buts. But it would have
locked the federal government into a set economic policy
and crippled its ability to stimulate the economy.
Unlike the current proposal, however, it would have
forced some measure of fiscal restraint on an unwilling
Congress. Regardless of the political costs, at least Con
gress would have had to take a stand, voting either for in
creased planes, tanks, nukes, or more money for food
stamps, Medicaid and financial aid for students.
The lack of fiscal willpower is not restricted to only one
political party. The solution will not be either. Rather than
hammering away at Reagan for his economic two-timing,
the Democrats should be coming up with some concrete
alternatives. With glee, they daily call attention to
Reagan's flip-flops on economic policy.
' But try as they might, Congress' acting ability cannot
compare to that of the President. Who else could call for
an amendment to balance the budget and at the same time
propose huge deficits? And in case you hadn't noticed,
he's getting away with it. That, more than the actual
amendment, is what has infuriated Democrats: the presi
dent's skillful use of the political mirrors.
More than mirrors, what is needed in Washington to
balance the budget is guts. But fiscal responsibility re
quires elected officials to take a stand. But that's bad for
business, especially in an election year. That one reason
accounts for the popularity of this bill: it looks good, but
it doesn't means a thing.
And 1982, after all, is an election year.
Ken Mingis, a senior journalism and political science
major from Raleigh, is associate editor of The Daily Tar
Heel and never has his checkbook balanced.
'Cuz Quality
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EOS PASS
For freshmen and new students especially,
going without personal wheels means the bus
is more than a welcome convenience. It's a
necessity. And for the thousands of folks who
live at South Campus and other faraway
places, nothing beats the bus for hauling
home a small library of books, transporting
several bags of canned goods from some
store, or simply going out for a night on the
town.
soil vciiEsDfl do aOass.
wnen you re ie tor class
and still far away, those
hills and valleys between
you and class can get awful
steep. Unless you take a
bus. On the campus bus
route, you're never more
than five minutes from any stop on the line.
When it comes to beating those hills, the bus
really makes the grade.
Going without a car doesn't
mean you can't get around.
With a bus you can travel
just about anywhere in the'
village, take along as many
friends as you want and not
worry about driving home
with one too many under your belt. And if
you want to go on Sundays and nights, there's
Shared-Ride Service, a service to bus pass holders ".
that combines taxi convenience with bus rates ,
for the best of both worlds.
Our drivers know exactly
j where they're going, even if
you don't. And they don't
mind answering your ques
tions, when there's someplace
you want to go. If you really
want to learn the village,
there's no easier way than cruising it by bus.
When you trade your bag
of nickels for a bus pass,
you can ride unencumbered
for a whole year. No fumb
ling for exact change; no
cards to punch. Just flash
your pass and you're home
free.
For the cost of a few
tanks of gas, the Aca
demic Year Bus Pass drives
an easy bargain. And you
don't spend your day and
your temper hunting for
a parking place or fighting rush hour traffic.
If you plan to stay around here for four
years, the bus will help get you off to a good
start So give us a call when you get to town.
We're at 942-5174. Remember, semesters
come and go, but the bus will never fail you.
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