Star Tribune from Minneapolis, Minnesota • Page 21

i tT i i 't Tt i 1 'jf TT ff; rf Star TribuneSaturdayOctober 91993 he columnists; Doug GrowCJ.Jim Klobuchar MiMMMMMMlMBBi B1 MM lMI West uses 2 sets of arithmetic for setting deadlines? "But vou also are including those --'f "The state hasn't ruled on this late pay by Oct. 18. Compared with you, telephone My local telephone company is 11 VI .1 same long-distance charges on theoi West bill you're assessing for late-pay penalties. In other not West service at all for which a lot of those late fees would be assessed. That's because the standard-.

1 bill is well below $50. It's the long-" distance charges that you're using to i run up the bill for late payment, and that's not your business at all but MCI's. So you're making money collecting those longi distance charges and making more M' money using those charges to the late-pay fees. Does West all of the late-pay fees or share it and MCI." Jim Klobuchar payment charge yet but we still get to pay the late charge while the state is deciding. In the meantime, US West has our money.

This takes away from a small business or individual cash flow. Small businesses, the backbone of our country, again are being clobbered." Well, let's take off our shoes and do some arithmetic. The notice with the current West bill explains: If you don't pay by the time West is processing the next month's bill, you get nicked a 1 percent fee. That happens if the balance is over $30, including the long-distance charges West collects for people such as and MCI. By a kink of coincidence, I got my bill Wednesday.

It was marked with a billing date of Sept 28. It was postmarked in Omaha, Oct 4, six days later. It arrived in my mailbox Oct. 6, eight days after the billing date. West said my money is due Oct.

1 8. Ten days after that my next billing date occurs. In order to be sure that my bill doesn't take four or five days or more to process, which it could if you have been hanging around computers lately, I'd better yakker, the telephone company with 25 million customers in 14 states can pay its bills at positive leisure. You get a bill due date of approximately 10 to 12 days after the West bill comes into your house. No matter what the company says about the actual time when you'll be late, that's when it wants your money.

Ten to 1 2 day after you get the bill. But now let's look at West's own habits for paying money it owes. West gives the news to its vendors bluntly and without room for appeal. The vendors are the suppliers who sell to West. The telephone company does not tell them it will pay in 10 to 12 days.

It does not say three weeks. It says 27 days. That is very comfortable economics especially if you happen to be the only telephone company in town and can eat from both ends of the billing loaf. A telephone user named Kay, who operates a small business, is fuming. ci, ncc rounnwesiern bcii.

is also the local company for a horde of phone users who are now going to be dazzled by a new display of billing voodoo. Your favorite octopus is imposing a I percent charge in Minnesota on all late payments, as defined by West. This is not an original scheme. It's widely popular in the telephone industry, a fact that probably won't amaze you. Minnesota is the 1 Ith state among West's 1 4 colonies where the charge has been imposed.

The old strategy was to cut off phone service to people who were either too lazy or too poor to pay, or dead. That was a bummer for two reasons. It not only caused a public relations problem for the telephone people (disconnecting customers) but took telephones out of commission, which is like a landlord driving a tenant into bankruptcy to collect rent. I have no idea if West needs to drill customers with a penalty for late payments in order to maintain the profit levels to which it is accustomed. It may.

Most commercial outfits use late-pay As a practical matter, that gives me 1 1 days to make sure I don't get docked a I percent fee for being late. I find that no special problem. I pay bills the day they come in the door or the next day. It's instinct. On the Range the collectors used to terrify us with the prospects of deportation or loss of rink time if we didn't do it that way.

But quick payment is a problem for thousands of people, and it's a problem for everybody who takes vacation about the time those phone bills come in. A West interpreter got into the act about here. He sounded decent but fuddled. He said I actually get several days of grace because they don't need 10 days to process the bill. He managed to stretch out the actual time when customers would get nicked for late payment to sound like a vacation to the moon.

But they want you to pay in 10 or 12 days under pain of paying a penalty. "Let me ask you," I said, "if you make money acting as a collecting agent for and MCI in billing their long distance charges." Yes. penalties, and most of them make sense. Most of them, in fact, give you close to a month to pay and tell you that. West is both a little different, as we will see, and slightly more brazen.

It's not the money that should bewitch you about this scheme. It's not even West's de facto deadlines for when you have to pay your bill to escape the penalty. What's fascinating and beyond argument is a casual piece of chiseling the difference between the time when West tells its customers to pay their bills and the time West takes to pay its own bills. The interpreter said that wasn't clean What is clear to telephone users ist that West can now threaten a late-pay charge, and what the customer understands from the bill is that there are only 10 to 12 days in' which to pay. So the customer will pay in less than two weeks.

I dialed 1 the company's accounts payable The recorded voice said West pays its vendors 27 days after the invoice date. Further, the vendor shouldn't be asking questions until 45 days have passed. If you're an octopus, you can do that.1 EOPL ing gaming on Indian reservations. Among Trump's remarks was the observation that many Indians who want to operate casinos "don't look like Indians to me and they don't look like Indians to Indians." The remark, reported the Washington Post, enraged -committee Chairman George Miller, D-Calif who responded, "Thank God that's not the test of whether or not people have rights in this country, whether or not they have passed your look test." 1 'A ts I i same San Diego hotel where this year's 36th annual Tailhook Association Convention is being held. "I assume that the naval aviators attending their convention will be perfect gentlemen," Mrs.

Florida, Jacqueline Mallery Solomon, said in a statement. "However, I have expressed my concern to the hotel that proper supervision and security be carefully maintained." The Town Country Hotel had no comment. Jackson in the land of the tango Pop superstar Michael Jackson met President Carlos Menem on Thursday at Argentina's government house amid tight security. The presidential guard kept dozens of reporters and photographers at bay while the entertainer, escorted by members of his local fan club, visited the Peronist leader and his children, Zulemita and Carlos Jr. The brief meeting in the pink Italianate government house was Jackson's second venture out of his hotel since arriving Wednesday to start the Latin American leg of his "Dangerous" world tour.

The first was a fleeting tour to Buenos Aires' most exclusive shopping center, which he cut short after hundreds of screaming fans packed into the posh arcade. Almost 150,000 tickets have been sold to three Jackson concerts in River Plate Club's soccer stadium. The prospect of seeing the star led local fans to start lining up at dawn Wednesday for Friday's opening concert. Among the early birds are Jackson look-alikes of all ages, sexes and sizes, some of them hailing from as far as Jujuy, a province 1,000 miles northwest of Buenos Aires. The Latin American leg of the tour will also take him to Chile, Brazil and Peru.

From the Donald's point of view Casino mogul Donald Trump testified before the House of Representatives' Natural Resources committee this week on the issue of regulations govern works at an after-school drug prevention program. He went to UCLA officials with the class idea soon after he got out of prison in January. At first, the school was wary, but it decided the value of Milken's experience outweighed any liabilities, said Associate Dean Carol Scott. Milken, 47, isn't getting paid, though he hopes to market videotapes of the sessions to corporations and educational institutions. Kim has four and a half weeks to plan Kim Basinger has a month to come up with a new debt-repayment plan, granted the time by a bankruptcy judge curious about her list of shrinking assets and expenses that include thousands for pet care.

Debts include $8.1 million in damages for breaching a contract to star in the movie "Boxing Helena." U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Geraldine Mund set the deadline Thursday in Los Angeles after grilling lawyers about the existing debt reorganization plan, including a claim that a house for which she paid $1.2 million is now worth only $600,000. The judge also inquired about her $600-per-month gardener bill and asked if the actress has a kennel license because her pet expenses run to thousands of dollars a month. The film star was ordered to pay Main Line Pictures $8.1 million for backing out of "Boxing Helena." After the judgment in March, she filed a Chapter 1 1 bankruptcy petition and appealed the verdict. The 39-year-old actress decided against playing the title role in "Boxing Helena" soon before production was to have begun, claiming she was unhappy with the script and nude scenes.

She was to have been paid $600,000. Main Line sued and a jury found she broke a verbal commitment to star in the movie. The Navy for a neighbor Some Mrs. America contestants weren't too pleased to discover Thursday that they were staying in the 1 i'it iff i Former junk-bond king Michael Milken Learning the tricks from insider who just got out Michael Milken is the hottest ticket on campus, and he's working for free. The former junk-bond king has 60 MBA students on the edges of their seats at the University of California at Los Angeles, with a class he started this week on corporate finance.

"He made $550 million in one year. It blows your mind," gushed student Michael Seery. "He's the best finance guy since J.P. Morgan," said another, Jeff Stargardter. "This is a great opportunity." The former Drexel Burnham Lambert financier served two years at a minimum-security prison after pleading guilty in 1990 to manipulating stock prices.

He must complete three years of community service and Associated Press A handsome picture This 1920 photograph of Georgia O'Keeffe's hands, taken by her husband, Alfred Stieglitz, was sold in New York on Friday for $398,500, the most ever paid for a photograph at auction, Christie's said. MetroState news 2 former Hooters waitresses settle suits Arrest might be near in the '92 beating of Miranda Paffel Claims of sexual harassment resolved for undisclosed terms with the settlement, then I am happVV' for them." Peterson has called for the restaurant to change its name and Gray said those are First Amerid''5; ment issues. She said the name, which is a federally registered trade- mark, is not going to be changed. Gray said the restaurant has a strict'-1 policy against unwelcome behavior from employees or patrons. Peterson said the Bloomington ers has fired or transferred managers and hired its first female manager since the suits were filed.

"If, that's not an admission of wrongdo- ing, I don't know what is," she By Margaret Zack Staff Writer Two former waitresses at Hooters Restaurant in the Mall of America have settled their claims of sexual harassment for undisclosed terms. Whitney Miller, 25, of Edina, and Laurie Dobosenski, 25, of Burnsville, settled their lawsuits Friday. They and another former waitress, Tami Schoellermann, 19, of Minneapolis, sued Hooters in April. They alleged that managers sexually harassed them, encouraged them to have sex with them and required that they wear sexist, revealing attire. Lisa Gray, attorney for Hooters, said of the settlements, "We are very pleased.

We are always willing to Lori Peterson. Peterson said she terminated her relationship with Miller and Dobosenski when they decided to appear on national TV programs such as "Hard Copy." Peterson said she felt that the appearances would exploit the women and diminish the importance of the issues and hurt upcoming cases. The two women then represented themselves in the settlement discussions, Gray said yesterday. Peterson said, "If they are happy address the issues and resolve them amicably. It is in everyone's best interest to do so." She said she hoped that five other suits against the restaurant could be settled also.

Five cases are set for a pretrial hearing Nov. 2. One of the defendants in the fifth suit will have a hearing Nov. 10 on a motion to be removed from the case. In April when the suits were filed, Miller, Dobosenski and Schoellermann were represented by attorney Mill IflflJ Minnetonka couple donates $30 million building By Maureen M.

Smith Staff Writer One and a half years after Miranda Paffel was found severely beaten and unconscious in a roadside ditch in Shell Lake, investigators say they may be close to arresting a suspect. Crime lab tests and investigative findings were turned over to the Washburn County District Attorney's office on Tuesday. Yesterday, investigators and court officials refused comment, other than to say the case is being reviewed. "The investigation has yielded a considerable amount of information and physical evidence," Washburn County Sheriff Terry Dryden said in a prepared statement. "Much of the information has been corroborated." There may be "sufficient evidence for charges to be brought," Dryden said in turning over results of the investigation to District Attorney J.

Michael Bitney. On May 15, 1992, Paffel, then 9, was at the beach with friends, wandered away and was found unconscious in a ditch several miles outside Shell Lake. Every bone in her head and face was broken, except her lower jaw. She was in a coma for several weeks Miranda Paffel has recovered from a beating that left the 10-year-old from Shell Lake, near death last year. Now authorities say they appear close to making an arrest in the case.

at North Memorial Medical Center in Robbinsdale, and then slowly re-learned how to walk, talk and recognize family members before returning home in July 1992. She suffered permanent brain damage but was able to attend school last year. Investigators interviewed more than 50 people and considered several suspects. A $10,000 reward fund was established this year. An FBI profile indicated that the suspect may be a heavy drinker and probably was acquainted with Paffel.

The profile takes into account circumstances such as the manner of the assault and where the victim was left, Dryden had said in April. This article contains material from the Associated Press. business. He founded and operated lQ Miles Homes from the early 4 until he sold it in 1972. Thejiter- mans' own the Towers a reaf estate management and investment' firm.

They are patrons of the arts and'-sV medical science. The New York building, to be known1 5 as Fiterman Hall, was dedicated last week with the Fitermans on hand toN turn over the keys and receive the'i'' praise of dignitaries from the univer-? sity, the state legislature and city goti 'r eminent And after the ceremony, the- 'j" Fitermans went to City Hall for an audience with Mayor David Dinkins. He said he could not recall how much he paid for the building in 1978. "It's a beautiful building and in excellent condition," said Rodin. "It didn't take much construction to make it usable." Classes for 3,000 students began there last month.

The site is an historic spot for higher education in America. It's where Kings College, later Columbia University, was chartered by the King of England in 1754. Columbia moved uptown long ago. Miles Fiterman was a pioneer in the do-it-yourself home construction By Gregor W. Pinney Staff Writer Looking for space for its burgeoning student body earlier this year, the Borough of Manhattan Community College approached Miles and Shirley Fiterman, of Minnetonka, about renting a 15-story building the couple owns on the Lower West Side of New York.

After some discussion, the Fitermans decided to give the building to the college. The building on West Broadway has been appraised at $30 million, making iAhe most valuable ever given to a community college in the United States, said spokeswoman Rita Rodin of the City University of New York, of which the college is a part. The Fitermans had no previous connection with the college or the university. "It's something Shirley and I wanted to do for a long time," said Fiterman in a phone interview from a vacation in Rome. "We wanted to do something for education and here was our opportunity.

"We have enough financial resources for ourselves and our family, and there comes time when you've got to think of somebody else.".