- Over the past decade, the volume of federal student loans tripled, reaching $85 billion in new loans last year, according to a new book by Anya Kamenetz, "Generation Debt." Nearly a quarter of college students are using credit cards to pay some of their tuition costs, she writes.

- The median income for men under age 44 was significantly lower in 1997 than in 1970, after adjusting for inflation, according to a long-term analysis by the Census Bureau in the late 1990s. For those over 45, incomes barely held their own during that period.

- The entry of women into the workforce in those decades has helped push median family incomes up over time. But even when men and women are included together, younger workers (age 25-34) are earning well below what they did in 1970. And at all ages, evidence suggests that families are putting in more hours of work to make their household incomes rise.

- Even with extra time at work, median family income has barely budged since 1995 for householders below 45, up about 5 percent after inflation through 2004.

- Those aged 45 to 54 did better, with family incomes rising 23 percent during that period, according to the numbers released last week from the Federal Reserve Board.

That's quite contrary to what was being charged by supporters of a federal bankruptcy law that went into effect last October.

For years, those proponents argued that billions of dollars were being lost because people were simply being allowed to walk away from their debts.

''As retailers, we have seen first-hand the dramatic effect bankruptcy has had on both consumers' finances and on our ability to serve the public," wrote Steve Pfister, senior vice president for government relations of the National Retail Federation, in a letter to House members as the bankruptcy bill was being debated.

''These filings ultimately cost the tens of millions of households we serve hundreds of dollars each in unseen costs every year. Unfortunately, many of those losses are the result of misuse of the law by irresponsible, higher-income filers," he added.

On the day President Bush signed the bankruptcy bill, he said: ''In recent years, too many people have abused the bankruptcy laws. They've walked away from debts even when they had the ability to repay them."

The law now requires people to get credit counseling before they can file for bankruptcy protection.

The premise behind this provision is that by forcing people to get counseling, it will show that many bankruptcy filers in fact have enough money left over after taking care of their essential expenses to repay creditors.

I spent several years reporting on bankruptcy, and I saw no evidence (academic or anecdotal) to support claims that scores of people were gaming the system.

Now, in the first analysis of the tens of thousands of people who have undergone credit counseling since the law passed, the bankruptcy attorneys association found that nearly all (97 percent) of the debtors truly couldn't pay their debts.

The association examined data provided by six large and small credit counseling firms from a cross-section of the country.

All of the firms have been authorized by the US Justice Department's executive office for US trustees to provide the required prebankruptcy counseling.

In total, the firms that were surveyed counseled 61,355 consumers.

Four out of five filers felt forced to seek bankruptcy protection because of a job loss, catastrophic medical expenses, or the death of a spouse, according to the report, ''Bankruptcy Reform's Impact: Where Are All the Deadbeats?"

Fewer than 1 out of 20 consumers (3.3 percent) were candidates for paying off what they owe under a debt management plan (DMP), the report indicated.

With a plan, a debtor makes one monthly payment to a credit-counseling agency.

The agency then distributes the funds according to a payment schedule they've worked out with the person's creditors.

Creditors may agree to lower interest rates or waive certain fees if you are repaying through a DMP, although this is happening less as more people sign up for such plans.

Typically it takes about 36 to 60 months to repay debts through a DMP.

The highest estimate of consumers' being able to make repayments under a credit counseling DMP was 5 percent, with the low being in the 1 to 2 percent range, according to the report.

''The masses of expected deadbeats who were supposed to be identified under the new law and forced into debt management plans have not materialized," the association's report concludes.

Only about one in five (21 percent) of those seen by a credit-counseling firm were identified as racking up debt due to ''circumstances within their control."

In many of those cases, people said they didn't fully appreciate how credit card fees and finance charges could put them deeper and deeper into debt.

OK, if you must, call the latter folks deadbeats. It's hardly a revelation that if you buy something on credit and you don't pay the bill off the next month, you're going to be charged interest.

With the low minimum payments required, it's easy to amass a lot of debt over time. We all know this.

But I do sympathize with people who experience a major disruption to their income or become financially ruined by uncovered healthcare costs (a growing and disturbing trend in America).

It is for these people we have bankruptcy protection.

There is at least something good to come out of the new law. If you're looking for a reputable credit counseling agency -- even if you aren't filing for bankruptcy -- I'd suggest you choose one that is now certified by the trustee program. At least then you'll have less of a chance of dealing with a deadbeat agency.

To find an agency on the list, go to www.usdoj.gov. In the search field type ''approved credit counseling agencies."

Moreover, to turn insult into injury, the press at times is secretly paid to write articles that would justify governmental actions even if they constitute blatant violations of human rights, as it has been found even with the foreign press reporters. The waging of an ongoing war in both Iraq and Afghanistan has now drained the financial assets of the U.S. government to the very detriment of the American people. As a result, millions of Americans suffer from lack of health care benefits, while their health deteriorates even to the point of death.

The destruction of the infrastructure of Iraq along with the massacre of tens of thousands of innocent civilian Iraqis, amounting to women, children, the elderly and the sick, along with pregnant women as well, has been minimized. The lies told to the American people on how the Iraqis have been "liberated" from the tyranny of Saddam Hussein, need to be challenged. A national referendum in Iraq needs to be conducted and all Iraqis from age of 15 to 95 must be allowed to participate under proper international supervision.

This referendum should consist of one question: Do you feel you were better off under Saddam Hussein when you still had your own homes, enjoyed the presence of your parents, spouses and children as well as friends? ……... Or, do you feel you are better off now under American domination with your homes destroyed, your parents, spouses and/or children killed or maimed, as well as with several of your friends killed or maimed for life? The whole world would be interested to hear directly what the Iraqis themselves have to say without any interference or manipulation from the outside.

Belligerent and Dangerous Policies

Very often the same questions are raised over and over again: When is the United States going to learn that in a war every one is a loser and no one a winner? Was not the Vietnam War experience enough? Is American diplomacy going to be always one based on guns, bullets, military involvements and wars instead of healthy dialogues and respect for others? It is very obvious that the United States would not hesitate to wage a war against Iran unless it brings this Asian nation under American political control. Why should the USA demand Iran not to have one nuclear weapon when this American nation has already more than 70,000 nuclear weapons and it is still manufacturing more?

In accordance with the philosophy of this American government, the United States can launch a pre-emptive strike against any nation on earth even without warning. Would it not then be natural for every country to equip itself with the most devastating weapons possible as way of counteraction against the United States? Moreover, since the United States manufactures and sells more weapons than all the nations of the world combined, it means that this American nation pollutes our air and water very badly with toxic wastes that is causing two millions of people incur cancer every year in the USA alone. Why is it that when the whole world wanted to take drastic action to curb air and water pollution from our planet, the USA was virtually the only dissenter?

It is very obvious that this capitalistic nation is concerned merely with the financial interests of big corporations and nothing else matters, not even the very health and life of the American people. Its top priority is to cater to special interests. This explains why the present U.S. government especially continues to cut significantly the budget on health care and education as to spend more and more money on corporate interests, generally headed by the weapons industry, the construction companies and the oil enterprises. In fact, every year the budget for the military and the waging of wars keeps on going higher and higher, while the budget on the vital needs of the people keeps on going lower and lower.

All of this explains why the American people in general and of the whole world at large tend to feel overwhelmed and powerless. But there is always hope. We learn from history that when good and evil struggle against each other, initially evil tends to take the upper hand until all of a sudden it disintegrates and collapses. Regardless of the vicious governments nations might have had, people always ended up getting what they viewed as positive and constructive. Like U.S. President Eisenhower said in his farewell address to the U.S. Congress, "all people of all countries want peace, only their government wants war."

Looking for a Hopeful Future

We should look with hope into a positive and constructive future where people could live together peacefully, where education and health care will be available for every human being, and where the protection of the environment will become a top governmental priority. People everywhere need to unite in generating positive and constructive energy until peace, as well as harmony, respect and justice will become a tangible reality for everyone. We need to become more involved in public affairs. We must do our best to replace every single politician by a statesman. Some historians described a politician as one who takes interest in one group to the exclusion of others, while they described a statesman as one who takes interest in all people without exception.

The current belligerent American government will one day be replaced. The question is when. It may still take quite a time until the change is effected and by then only God knows how many people, both American and non American alike, would have suffered unnecessarily. The present turmoil in so many global areas is bound to continue as long as the USA and other major powers continue to use violence to solve some of the crucial problems the world faces. We know that violence begets violence and more violence begets more violence. The military, by its very nature, is structured merely for destructive purposes, even though once in a while it might have been used to help in some natural disasters for a very brief period.

At this stage of history, which has become characterized by so much violence, suffering and death, the United States needs a president that has the mind, the courage, the determination, the wisdom, the understanding, the compassion, and the common sense of both U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower and U.S. President Jimmy Carter, the sooner the better. The nation and the whole world, as a matter of fact, need a new direction where the vital needs of the people will occupy top priority in every governmental endeavor.

Charles Mercieca, Ph.D., President International Association of Educators for World Peace. Dedicated to United Nations Goals of Peace Education, Environmental Protection, Human Rights & Disarmament. Professor Emeritus, Alabama A&M University.

The congressional elections this coming November is the last chance for for Americans to reaffirm the separation of powers that is the basis of their civil liberties. Unless the voters correct their mistake of putting both the executive and legislative branches in the hands of the same party and deliver the House or the Senate to the Democrats, there is nothing on the domestic scene to stand in the way of more power, and less accountability, being accumulated in the executive.

The Democrats have been a totally ineffective opposition and might not inspire any voter response other than apathy. Rather than vote for a cowardly party that is afraid to defend the Constitution, voters might simply not vote at all.

In this unfortunate event, the only check on the Bush regime is its own hubris.

Bush's ill-fated invasion of Iraq has set in motion forces beyond his control. On February 23 the Asia Times reported that America's Pakistani puppet, Musharraf, is "losing his grip." Some Pakistani provinces are already beyond Musharraf's control, and the remainder are rioting against "Busharraf" as Musharraf is now known. The infantile American press misrepresents the riots as responses to the Danish cartoons of the Prophet Muhammed, but in fact the target of the riots is the American puppet.

By invading Afghanistan and Iraq and by threatening Syria and Iran, Bush has taught Muslims everywhere that they owe their humiliation to the Western controlled secular governments that suppress their aspirations. They are realizing that their power resides in Islam and that this power is suppressed by secular governments. Busharraf is probably dead meat, and when he goes so does the US military adventure in Afghanistan.

When Bush attacks Iran, the US army will be caught between the Iraqi Shia and the Iranian Shia and will be decimated in fourth generation conflict, so aptly described by William S. Lind. If a few thousand Sunni insurgents can tie down 10 US divisions, imagine the fate of US forces trapped in a Shia crescent.

The collapsing power of the US hegemon is everywhere evident. It is evident in the inability to successfully occupy Iraq or even Baghdad. It is evident in the growing military cooperation between North and South Korea, and it is evident it the revolt in the Indian government against Prime Minister Singh's nuclear agreement with the US. Indians say this agreement subjects India to US hegemony and represents America's attempt to block India's pioneering research on thorium as a nuclear fuel. Opposition parties have told Singh that if he signs the agreement, they will bring down his government.

The entire world now recognizes that America has lost its economic power and is dependent on the rest of the world to finance its budget and trade deficits. The US no longer holds the cards. American real incomes are falling, except for the rich. Jobs for university graduates are scarce, and advanced technology products must be imported from China. The US is a rapidly declining power and may soon end up as nothing but a tinhorn dictatorship.

Texas health officials did "just a quick test and they don't check for the proteins in ricin," Salinas said.

The mystery powder spilled onto Kelly Heinbaugh's hands as she unwrapped a roll of quarters in her dorm room on Thursday. She said she'd used five other rolls of quarters her mother had gotten from the same bank and none had powder in them.

The a 19-year-old freshman and her roommate were both evaluated for possible exposure to ricin and cleared at a hospital.

Roughly 400 residents of the Moore-Hill dormitory were evacuated Friday night while hazardous materials crews sanitized the area where the substance was found.

Salinas said it was unclear whether the FBI would continue its investigation into how the substance ended up with the coins.

If it was put there as a joke, Salinas said "it was an extremely bad joke."

The agency said it was seeking to revoke the exemptions of three organizations but did not name them, pending an appeals process. Charities are generally prohibited from campaigning for candidates, although they can take stands on issues.

The internal revenue commissioner, Mark W. Everson, devoted much of a speech to a civic group yesterday in Cleveland to the subject.

"We've seen a staggering increase in money flowing into campaigns, and the question is whether all this money is encroaching upon and polluting the charitable sector," Mr. Everson said in a telephone interview before his address. "We saw a disturbing amount of political intervention in charities in the last election cycle."

While pointing out the extent of the problem, the agency published more guidance for nonprofit organizations, including examples of what is permissible and what is not. Mr. Everson warned that the agency would be more aggressive in addressing prohibited political activity as election campaigns moved into full swing.

"You have the ever-increasing influence of money in politics and the fact that charities are subject to much less regulation than campaigns for parties," he said. "Those two things come together to create an opportunity that is at variance with what the statute limiting political activity by charities allows."

Advocates for nonprofit groups praised the report, saying it was unusually clear and straightforward.

"They're getting information out early this year, before we get into the heat of an election year," said Liz Towne, director of advocacy programs for the Alliance for Justice, which has urged the tax agency to provide better guidance. "By releasing data on their findings, they're moving toward more transparency."

Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, which has filed dozens of complaints about churches' political activities, said, "It's no longer possible for critics to say the IRS is blind or toothless, because this announcement is a pretty major indication that they are serious about educating charities and about imposing appropriate penalties."

The complaints by the group include one on July 15, 2004, against Jerry Falwell Ministries, saying falwell.com had endorsed President Bush and urged readers to donate $5,000 to the Campaign for Working Families. Such activities are illegal, Mr. Lynn said, and the Web site was quickly changed.

Almost half the tax-exempt groups under examination are churches. Churches played a pivotal role in the 2004 elections, and the Republican Party, in particular, harnessed their influence to register, educate and deliver voters. Both parties are cultivating churches for future elections. Democratic senators have been courting the Rev. Rick Warren, who draws more than 20,000 people a week to his Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., and the North Carolina Republican Party made waves when its leader sent an e-mail request for church directories.

Of the 47 complaints against churches under investigation, 37 were found to have merit. The agency found that three had no merit, and seven examinations were pending. Over all, 82 of 110 examinations have been completed.

All Saints Church, a liberal Episcopal church in Pasadena, Calif., is among those awaiting a decision. The agency began an investigation after a former pastor gave a sermon in which he imagined a debate among Jesus, President Bush and Senator John Kerry and in which he criticized the Iraq conflict.

A lawyer for All Saints, Marcus Owens, said he did not know the status of the investigation.

"The IRS agent assigned to All Saints doesn't even return my calls," Mr. Owens said. "The IRS sent an inquiry and then an examination letter. It has never done anything further."

Mr. Owens also represents the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, whose chairman, Julian Bond, gave a speech in July 2004 sharply critical of Mr. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney. The NAACP declined to cooperate in the following investigation, and Mr. Owens said it had not heard from the IRS since early last year.

Mr. Owens, who formerly led the unit in the agency responsible for overseeing tax-exempt groups, said he had concerns about the report.

"I wonder whether or not all the 50 or 60 organizations they identified as having engaged in illegal political intervention really did have significant issues," he said. "That having been said, give me an hour and my computer and I can sit down and give the IRS 200 good audit leads on questionable political activity."

Last month, a group of religious leaders representing Christian and Jewish denominations filed a complaint against two large politically active churches in Ohio, Fairfield Christian Church and World Harvest Church, and their leaders, the Revs. Russell Johnson and Rod Parsley.

The churches, which deny wrongdoing, said the IRS had not contacted them since then.