The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, January 6, 2004 - 7A ECONOMY Continued from Page 1A personal financial situation, which in turn led them to look for more discounts during the shopping season. "Smaller than anticipated discounts as well as greater concerns about their financial situation caused con- sumers to become more cautious spenders," Curtin said. "Retailers viewed the increasing optimism (in the nation's economic growth) as a reason to cut discounts, and as a result caused consumers to reduce their pur- chases." Fornell added that his research indicates the level of dissatisfaction customers feel toward the products they buy did not change before the holiday season. When customer satisfaction - which is based mainly on the quality of goods, but also on factors such as prices - remains the same, people usually do not buy more or fewer goods than in previous months, Fornell said. Business School Prof. Aradhna Krishna said another reason for the lower-than-expected holiday sales is that consumers are increasingly buying gifts when they are on sale, which is often before the start of the holiday shopping season. "The Christmas shopping season is not as big as it was" in years before, she said. BUDGET Continued from Page 1A "Michigan's financial aid won't take a cut," Courant said. When it comes to academic programs, several deans said they hope expenditure reductions will not affect the education students receive, even if class sizes grow and certain courses are canceled this term. "Students will not see a change in instruction;' said Associ- ate LSA Dean Phillip Hanlon. He added that the most likely effect of funding recisions will be that-certain facilities in need of maintenance will have to go a little longer without repairs. As during previ- ous expenditure "It's a lot easier to n cutbacks to LSA, te administrators will to not give them th protect certain departments from equipment.' major cuts, Hanlon said. Departments in the highest demand - such as economics, political science, communication studies, psy- chology and English - will likely receive smaller expen- diture reductions than other disciplines. In fact, Hanlon said, "One thing we're going to continue in the winter is add more instruction when enrollment surges in the course." Regarding a $3.8-million, 1.7-percent cut for the term, Hanlon said LSA will also limit its faculty hirings and "pull some ... funding mid-year" from research ini- tiatives. The LSA policy of safeguarding certain high-demand courses is common among academic units. For example, the Medical School will not be able to cut cer- tain programs and treatment initiatives, as the availability of its clinics is determined by patients' needs. In addition, the Medical School will maintain normal hours for the majority of its facilities, as building opera- tions hinge on the needs of patients. The only medical facility whose hours are "flexed" to save money is the Taubman Medical Library, acting Medical School Dean James Woolliscroft said. He added that most of his school's cuts will come in the form of delaying faculty recruitments where they are not critical to certain programs - as opposed to not upgrading equipment or rolling back building hours. "It's a lot easier to not hire somebody than to not give them the appropriate equipment," Woolliscroft said. Similarly, Karen Wolff, dean of the School of Music, said she would consider not refilling vacant faculty positions or scaling back the number of admitted stu- dents before she opted to cut hours in her school's prac- tice facilities. Echoing other administrators, Wolff and Woolliscroft added that they have not solemnized any specific program cutbacks. For the Medical School and other academic units, the majority of program rollbacks will come over the next couple weeks, with the hardest-hitting cuts occurring next term, when Granholm is expected to prolong funding recisions to higher education. "The students are not going to feel an impact imme- diately," said Brent Dickman, assistant to Law School Dean for not hire somebody than e appropriate - James Woolliscroft Acting Medical School Dean Finance and Planning, refer- ring to law stu- dents. "This cut now was a one- time give-back for this year, but it's also recur- AP IPHOTO Hard-line Likuds yell and clap their hands in disapproval as Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon speaks yesterday during a committee meeting of his right-wing party. In a break from conservative factions, Sharon has insisted that a peace deal with the Palestinians entail the dismantling of Jewish settlements in the West Bank. Amid crticism,Sharonpushes to dismantle settlements for peace plan ring." Dickman added that the Law School may hold off upgrading its facilities and dip into its discretionary fund in order to cover the latest recisions. The Law School is facing a recision of $500,000, or 1.7 percent of its overall budget. Because the latest round of funding cuts do not come as a surprise to administrators - Granholm said higher education funding could see cutbacks when the state realized a $920- million budget deficit last year - academic units may be rea- sonably prepared to handle short-term rollbacks in their programs. Several schools, including the Law School and the School of Natural Resources and Environment, will dip into their department savings funds in order to make up for budget recisions. "Rather than using our general funds ... we will use our dis- cretionary funds," said Lara Nelson, director of budget and administration for SNRE, which received a $100,000, 1.75 percent cut last month. Last term, students found that University libraries closed earlier than they had in previous years. Reductions in hours were the result of $2 million in base cuts. But Library Administration Director Bill Gosling said this term's recisions will not affect library hours or staff, although the library administration has been asked to cut $685,000 from its expenditures for the winter. During last year's round of budget cuts, the libraries laid off 15 workers and eliminated 16 vacant positions. TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) - Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon told jeering leaders of his Likud Party yesterday that Israel will have to dismantle Jewish settlements as part of any peace deal and he was prepared to act despite their opposition. Sharon's speech was his first appearance before his party's hard-line central committee since he unveiled his plan last month to dismantle some settlements and unilaterally draw a boundary with the Palestinians if peace efforts remain stalled. He refused to back down yesterday, despite a hail of boos from infuriated committee members who reject a Palestinian state and oppose any removal of settlements. "The disengagement plans are mine and I will carry them out" Sharon declared. Critics remain skeptical of Sharon's seeming conversion from one of the great patrons of the settlement movement to a leader willing to make significant territorial concessions. Though his rhetoric has changed, he has done little to fulfill his obligations under the U.S.-backed "road map" peace plan. Many accuse him of trying to placate the Americans with pragmatic-sounding pronouncements while playing for time in the belief the Palestinians will torpedo any progress before he has to act. Before Sharon's speech yesterday, Palestinian Prime Minis- ter Ahmed Qureia said he had called off plans to schedule a summit with Sharon intended to restart peace moves. Such-a meeting, Qureia said, would be meaningless while violence continues. Top aides of the two leaders have met repeatedly in recent weeks to prepare for the meeting, but Qureia said even those contacts have stopped. 800 feet of Gulf Beach Frontage " 2 Large Outdoor Swimming Pools Sailboat, Jet Ski & Parasail Rentals " Lazy River Ride & Water Slide Huge Beachfront Hot Tub " Volleyball . Suites up to 12 people World's Longest Keg Party " Live Band & DJ Wet T-Shirt, Hard Body & Venus Swimwear Contests g 0 .. BOOK EARLY i ijjj SAVE $$$ LEWIS Continued from Page 1A But it could have been worse. Much worse. Navarre didn't have room to breathe, let alone look for receivers. Every time center Dave Pearson snapped the ball, the Southern Cal. defense blew through the offensive line and swarmed Navarre. The quarterback, who owns a reputation of having slightly less mobility than a tree stump, had to dance out of reach of Trojans players to get his passes off. He was able to scramble away some of the time, including when Michigan went for it on 4th-and-3, and Navarre followed tailback Chris Perry's lead and ran the ball those three yards because there was no time to throw. So before you go blaming Navarre for this one, you have to take a hard look at the offensive line. What had been one of Michigan's top units crumbled. This was the same line that didn't allow a single sack against Ohio State. Even Southern Cal. defensive end Kenechi Udeze said he was "dumbfounded" by how many times the Trojans were able to get to Navarre. It was like trying to stop a flood with mesh fencing. But don't stop with the line. Take a look at the Michi- gan coaching staff, which was outdone by its Southern Cal. counterpart. Navarre said Michigan didn't expect the Trojans to blitz as much as they did. Southern Cal. cornerback Will Poole said the Wolverines "were just not ready for" the Trojans' speed or their blitzing scheme. "They kept us on our heels, and they kept us guessing," Michigan offensive tackle Tony Pape said. "They changed it up on a lot of plays. They had great speed around the edge. They have four great players up front, and I have a lot of respect for them." And that is what it came down to: Southern Cal. The Trojans outplayed the Wolverines. Their receivers won the one-on-one matchups with Michigan's secondary. The offensive line wouldn't let Michigan's defense get to quarterback Matt Leinart, giving the redshirt sopho- more plenty of time and a chance to shine. The coaches made the right adjustments. Michigan made mistakes and didn't make big plays. But much of that was because of Southern Cal., forcing those mistakes and wearing the Wolverines down. The Trojans were faster, more athletic, better. A lot of Michigan fans probably came in expecting to see a suave West Coast team with plenty of firepower but no grit. What a surprise to find that the Trojans had style and sub- stance. "People say the Pac-10 is finesse, but we're not finesse," Poole said. "We've got speed, finesse and we hit" A lesson Navarre and Michigan's offensive line learned the hard way. I understand Michigan fans' need to blame somebody for the loss. You're not accustomed to seeing your team lose this way. Usually, it's missed field goals or blocked punts or multiple interceptions that do the Wolverines in. It's been a while since Michigan lost without beating itself. This time, Southern Cal. turned on its defensive tenacity and got its offense rolling, and Michigan was never really in it. Just when the Wolverines got some momentum going, a Southern Cal. linebacker would burst through for another sack for a loss, or Leinart would launch another perfectly placed pass. Southern Cal. was like the big kid that holds the little FANS Continued from Page 1A The day before the Rose Bowl, University President Mary Sue Coleman spoke at a pep rally held by the association in front of the Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles. The march- ing band and football team also attended, as well as parents of band members and players. The Alumni Association sponsored the official tailgate party, drawing about 8,500 fans, said Catherine Niekro, director of marketing and communications for the Alumni Association. Alumni and fans listened to Coleman speak again during the tailgate as they enjoyed food and live music. Also, fans watched other bowl games on a giant screen television that hung as a backdrop. The athletic department allotted game tickets to the Alumni Association. Still, many of the students who traveled on the tour pur- chased tickets in the student section, Werthman said. But few students could afford spending the amount of money necessary for the tour. In an effort to cut back costs, LSA freshman Taylor Engers rented an RV with eight friends and drove to California. "It was pretty wild at the RV park because they put all of the students together and there was mad tailgating. It was a lot of fun, though" Engers said. "We drove to California. That's an accomplishment in itself," Engers said, who made the drive nonstop in about 40 hours. LSA freshman Adam Winski traveled with friend R.J. Caldarazzo, an LSA sophomore and strength coach for the football team. Despite Michigan's loss in the bowl, the two fans said they enjoyed their trip, which began with skydiving earlier in the week. "It was the best trip I've ever been on, and I had a great time with all of my friends. I'll probably go to every bowl every year," Winski said. For Caldarazzo, the game was especially meaningful because his roommate is on the team, and his father was a starting right guard when he was a senior at the University. "My dad was on the Michigan team during Bo Schem- bechler's first team. He was a senior when Bo had a heart attack the night before the game," Caldarazzo said. His father also attended the game in Pasadena. All in all, the loss didn't seem to dampen many students' spirits. "Of course we were disappointed, but when we were talk- ing about it on the way back, it was just so much fun that you can't even explain it," Winski added. BORDERS, Continued from Page 1A "It's not what we wanted, but it's more than we expected," Kirk said. He said strikers were concerned mainly about wage issues at the downtown store. Currently, a starting wage for a cashier is $6.50 per hour, while a starting wage for a bookseller is $7.00 per hour. Before the strike began in November, Borders employees asked the company for wages of $7.95 per hour. Changes to wages have not been announced. Employees also want to remove a cap on wages for senior employees. Wage caps halt pay raises for veteran , 1 K Basketball Officials Needed!, Why officiate Basketball??? / Very flexible scheduling / We provide all training - first time officials welcome ~ Uniforms provided and yours to keep! ~ Earn $7.00 an hour ~ Meet new friends Training clinics begin on Monday, January 5th, at 7:00 PM at the Intramural Sports Building. Please contact David Siegle at 763-3562 for further information. '~~%A\\ r