A prep course for the month-long World Cup soccer tournament, a worldwide pheno

nd foreign policy experts who span the ideological spectrum . `` He doesn't have

 the slightest idea of what this country should be doing in the post-Cold War er

a , and neither does his staff , '' said Kim R. Holmes , vice president of the c

onservative Heritage Foundation . `` The president wants to avoid any kind of en

tanglement that can get him into trouble , but he can't avoid the temptation to 

speak out . So he says things on Bosnia , Haiti , Somalia things he 's not willi

ng to back up and he gets in trouble . '' Of course , for every country complain

ing that Clinton is not putting the vast military might of the United States to 

good use , there are those that would object to his exertion of U.S. influence .

 When the president so much as protested the brutal caning of an 18-year-old Ame

rican who had been charged with vandalism in Singapore , he was widely criticize

d in Asia for promoting Ugly Americanism . Likewise , the Clinton administration

 's pressure on Japan to open its markets provoked outrage in Tokyo . `` You 're

 damned if you do and damned if you don't , '' said David Wilhelm , the national

 Democratic chairman .

 COLLEVILLE SUR MER , France Others may not agree , but Raymond `` Buzz '' Davis

 knows the best place to catch the international ceremonies in France next Monda

y marking the 50th anniversary of D-day . `` I 'm going to be home in my easy ch

air watching TV and sipping a martini when all this is taking place , '' says th

e 70-year-old Pasadena , Calif. , man as he puffs on his pipe at the Normandy Am

erican cemetery and memorial above Omaha Beach . Around him swirl parades of gig

gling French schoolchildren , groups of military support personnel and a stream 

of foreign and U.S. visitors to the site that holds the remains of 9,386 America

ns . Most gave their lives on D-day , June 6 , 1944 , when history 's greatest s

eaborne invasion took place . The 175,000 troops who did make it to shore that d

ay were the first members of an Allied juggernaut that rolled into Europe and pu

t an end to Adolf Hitler 's plans for a Thousand-Year Reich . But Davis , a B-26

 bomber pilot who flew his first mission that day over Cherbourg , and other vet

erans of Normandy battles on the invasion beaches of Utah , Omaha , Sword , Juno

 and Gold would rather be out of the action this time . Frank Reitter of Framing

ham , Mass. , another Normandy vet who decided to make his pilgrimage now , agre

es with Davis . `` I figured I better come early because this is going to be a t

hree-ring circus later , '' he says . `` They told me they could get me the appr

opriate badges to get in on the anniversary date , but I said I don't want them 

. I willn't be here . '' Veteran groups , in fact , have been coming and going f

or pre-anniversary gatherings over the past few months to avoid the coming crush

 , says Millie Waters , a U.S. . Army public affairs specialist at the cemetery 

. Plenty of other former invasion participants will be battling for position amo

ng the dignitaries slated to show . The lily-pad pond at the cemetery has been d

rained and its resident frogs removed to seat 6,100 veterans , Waters says . But

 30,000 veterans are expected to descend upon Europe and no one knows exactly ho

w many will appear in Normandy . Certainly there is plenty for the early birds t

o do . Considering the welcoming festivities being held throughout Europe for th

e returning GIs , Brits and Canadians , it is probably safe to say that never ha

ve so few been entertained by so many . Six hundred events are being held in Nor

mandy alone , the rural region that was the first area to be liberated in France

 . Once more fleets of ships are to fill the English Channel and airplanes dot t

he sky . Fourteen U.S. . Naval vessels will be anchored off the French beaches o

n Monday . The day before , an international flotilla with several of the Navy s

hips will escort England 's royal yacht with passengers President Clinton and Qu

een Elizabeth II from Portsmouth , England , across to the Normandy coast . Flyi

ng overhead will be an international collection of military aircraft . On shore 

15 heads of state , including Clinton , the queen , and French President Francoi

s Mitterrand , will congregate next Monday for a French-sponsored observance on 

Utah Beach . Clinton 's busy official schedule also includes sunrise services ab

oard the aircraft carrier George Washington ; a visit to Pointe du Hoc , the bea

ch cliffs scaled by the U.S. Rangers , and an afternoon ceremony at the American

 cemetery . Two of what promise to be the most popular events involve re-enactme

nts of a couple of casualty filled D-day actions . On Sunday , 600 members of th

e 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions , along with an Italian combat infantry team

 , will jump over Amfreville , simulating the leap by wind-scattered paratrooper

s during the invasion . But most eyes will be on a jump earlier that day by a gr

oup of geriatric gladiators . The three dozen Americans range in age from 68 to 

84 and are original unit members who leaped into that bottomless night . On Sund

ay and Monday , members of the 75th Ranger Regiment will give a demonstration of

 the rope climb up Pointe du Hoc , a 100-foot precipice climbed by the Second Ra

nger Battalion under German fire in 1944 to destroy artillery trained on the inv

asion beaches below . ( Optional add end ) All of which means major transportati

on problems for the quiet Norman countryside . Except for official vehicles all 

traffic will be blocked from the beaches on the anniversary day . Even the early

 visitors are causing problems at places such as the American cemetery . On one 

recent weekend , 13,000 cars showed up , packing the small parking lot and spill

ing onto the side roads , says Phil Rivers , cemetery director . `` It was the w

orst traffic jam we ever had . '' Veterans groups in the United States warned me

mbers via newsletters of potential problems , adding that even those who made it

 to some of the ceremonies could be relegated to back-of-the-crowd status . The 

U.S. military , sensitive to this criticism , has said that all veterans will be

 designated VIPs and receive preferential seating . Dignitaries ordinarily given

 that label are to be called ODVs , or Other Distinguished Visitors . VIP status

 or not , Davis is completing his tour and heading home . `` You wipe it out of 

your mind , '' the former pilot said of the cost of the war . `` There are those

 who dwell on it , but not me . '' Distributed by the Los Angeles Times-Washingt

on Post News Service .

 ( c ) 1994 , Newsday World Cup sponsors are gambling $ 500 million on advertisi

ng rights despite Americans ' past indifference to the world 's most popular spo

rt . Coca-Cola , Canon , McDonald 's and Snickers candy bars are among the 19 bu

sinesses spending as much as $ 20 million each for sponsorship rights to the soc

cer championships , which start next month . This is the first time the World Cu

p will be played on American soil . Time Warner , meanwhile , should make at lea

st $ 35 million , according to one analyst , from the licensing and merchandisin

g rights to sales of World Cup apparel and merchandise , which are expected to t

op $ 1 billion . More than 100 American companies have agreements with Time Warn

er to produce World Cup merchandise . The jury is out over whether all this mone

y is well spent . `` These companies are more like pioneers than sponsors , '' s

aid Brandon Steiner of Steiner Sports Marketing , a Manhattan-based consulting f

irm . `` One day soccer will be big in this country , but not this year . You go

 out on the street and you stop 25 people , and I guarantee 20 of them couldn't 

name a single sponsor . That 's where the World Cup is today . '' But do sponsor

s really have to win the hearts and minds of Americans to succeed ? Probably not

 . Most have a larger , worldwide audience in mind . `` The attention of the spo

rting world will be focused on the World Cup , '' said Robert Baskin , public re

lations director for Coca-Cola . `` The games are sold out . You can't book flig

hts into the U.S. during the finals . The World Cup is bigger than the Olympics 

, especially the final games . The scale of this is going to be a real eye-opene

r for Americans . '' In this country , `` it 's a niche play , '' said Walter St

aab , chairman of SFM Media Corp. , media buyers based in Manhattan . `` There a

re certain segments of the population who love soccer and they could be very muc

h involved in the World Cup if it was marketed correctly . '' `` There 's an imm

ense Hispanic audience that is slowly being tapped into , '' says Bryan Murphy ,

 publisher of the Westport , Conn.-based Sports Marketing Newsletter . `` The sp

onsors will probably be very happy if they keep in mind who 's going to watch . 

The World Cup is not going to draw everybody like the Super Bowl , but it 'll dr

aw a lot . '' ( Begin optional trim ) The tournament will last from June 17 to J

uly 17 , with games played at nine sites nationwide . An estimated 1 million peo

ple nationwide are expected to attend the games and spend $ 4 billion on hotels 

, restaurants , shopping and other activities . For sponsors , the games pose un

usual challenges . Because soccer doesn't have time-outs and game breaks like fo

otball or baseball , World Cup TV broadcasters ABC and ESPN will show the games 

without commercial interruptions . As part of an agreement between the broadcast

ers , World Cup '94 and FIFA , the international soccer federation , commercials

 will only be shown during the pre- and post-game shows and at halftime . Names 

of the major sponsors will be displayed in 9-minute intervals on top of a game c

lock in the lower right hand corner of the screen . But that doesn't mean there 

's any shortage of soccer-related commercials and promotional tie-ins : Soccer b

alls are flying in new TV spots by Coke and Adidas ( starring U.S. goalkeeper To

ny Meola ) , among others , and in a contest by Gillette and a soccer gear givea

way by Energizer batteries . McDonald 's is hosting a `` McSoccerfest '' tournam

ent in the nine host cities . Wheaties boxes will offer trading cards with Reebo

k 's soccer endorsers . General Motors will be the exclusive advertiser in a spe

cial World Cup edition of Newsweek . On July 16 , the eve of the final match in 

Pasadena , Calif. , Coca-Cola will run two hours of entertainment and commentary

 from the World Cup games on TNT . Called `` Big TV , '' the telecast is similar

 to one it made in conjunction with the Super Bowl . ( End optional trim ) The i

nternational and U.S. groups organizing the World Cup have designated levels of 

sponsorship , including `` official sponsors , '' who pay $ 17 million to $ 20 m

illion for advertising rights , including billboard space on the playing fields 

in full view of TV cameras during the 52 games ; `` marketing partners , '' who 

pay up to $ 10 million for ads on one side of the World Cup playing fields , and

 a variety of less expensive regional sponsorships . All together , the companie

s are spending nearly $ 500 million . In addition , each TV `` gold '' sponsor i

s rumored to have paid ABC nearly $ 3.5 million for game exposure throughout the

 52 matches and for an undetermined number of 30-second spots during halftime an

d the pre- and post-game shows . Lesser `` silver '' sponsors paid an estimated 

$ 2 million to $ 2.5 million for a similar package that does not include game ex

posure . The World Cup 's final game is expected to grab as many as 2 billion vi

ewers worldwide , compared with 750 million for the 1993 Super Bowl . A `` gold 

' advertising package costing $ 3.5 million includes three 30-second TV spots pe

r game over 52 games . That comes out to approximately $ 22,000 per spot . By co

mparison , a 30-second spot during last year 's Super Bowl cost $ 900,000 .

 `` The husband works two jobs ; the wife works two jobs ; the kid works at McDo

nald 's ; and the dog stays home and watches TV . '' That vision of families sur

viving on low-paying , part-time jobs was delivered by Ted Bloom , business agen

t for New York Teamsters Local 810 , during a recent demonstration at the Statue

 of Liberty . The 250 Teamsters , protesting trucking companies ' demands to emp

loy part-timers at cut-rate wages and benefits , laughed at Bloom 's black humor

 . But it delivered a chilling point . The number of `` involuntary '' part-time

 employees those who want full-time jobs but can't get them has almost tripled s

ince 1970 , growing to 6.3 million people last year , according to the U.S. Bure

au of Labor Statistics . Almost one out of every five employees more than 21 mil

lion have part-time jobs , including 2.7 million who work at two or more part-ti

me jobs . Part-time workers are usually paid about 60 percent of the hourly scal

e of full-timers and often don't get any fringe benefits . As more employers rep

lace full-time workers with part-timers , the trend is emerging as a hotly conte

sted issue in union negotiations . The recent national trucking strike revealed 

the deep-seated fear felt by union members over the threat of employers hiring t

housands of part-timers . The trucking companies wanted the right to hire part-t

imers who would be paid about half the current union scale to work in freight te

rminals . The workers ' opposition to part-timers is generally credited with bei

ng the element that kept the Teamsters strike solid in the 24-day-long trucking 

walkout . Analysts noted that the Teamsters were the first major union to confro

nt the subject of part-timers on the picket line . Management negotiators eventu

ally conceded they didn't realize how sensitive the issue is to workers until th

ey blundered into it . They withdrew their demand to use part-timers . `` We won

 on the key issue by not letting them change good full-time jobs to low-wage , p

art-time jobs , '' said Teamsters president Ronald Carey . `` We stood up for th

e American Dream . We drew the line , not just for Teamsters members , but for a

ll American workers . '' Eileen Appelbaum , associate director of research at th

e labor-oriented Economic Policy Institute in Washington , said , `` This is the

 first recovery where involuntary part-time ( jobs ) rose through the recovery ,

 up until July of 1993 , and total part-time is still growing . '' Applebaum ass

erted that if the Teamsters lost on the part-time issue , `` it would be a clear

 signal to employers that they could even more rapidly substitute part-time for 

full-time employment . '' Yet Michael Gordon , a Washington-based lawyer who is 

an authority on pensions , cautions that society can't mandate full-time jobs . 

`` The business community has made the decision , due to automation , due to com

puters , that they can get along without all sorts of full-time workers , and th

at is the way to be profitable and competititive , '' Gordon said . He noted tha

t the shift to part-time work is a worldwide phenomenon . The International Labo

r Organization estimates there are 60 million part-timers one out of every seven

 workers in the industrialized nations . Still , the conflict over the use of pa

rt-timers is likely to continue at the bargaining table . Analysts agree that un

der certain circumstances , part-time jobs can be attractive , particularly for 

college students and those supplementing a pension or a comfortable family incom

e . `` You take one job at a restaurant offering 20 hours a week . For one perso

n , who has someone at home ( with another salary ) , filling that job is volunt

ary , '' said Tom Nardone , a Bureau of Labor Statistics economist . `` The same

 job filled by somebody living on their own is involuntary . '' ( Optional Add E

nd ) The Teamsters ' largest employer , United Parcel Service , already employs 

one of the largest blocks of part-timers in the nation . Slightly more than half

 of UPS ' 165,000 Teamsters employees are part-timers who start at $ 8 an hour l

ess than half the scale , including benefits , of a full-time worker . UPS first

 negotiated part-timers into the Teamsters contract 32 years ago , but up until 

1982 paid them wages comparable to those of full-timers . In 1982 , the starting

 wage for UPS part-timers was set at $ 8 and hasn't been increased since . The c

ompany says that 85 to 90 percent of the part-timers are college students , most

 of whom work from 10 p.m. until 2 a.m. . Barry Glassner , author of `` Career C

rash : The New Crisis and Who Survives , '' a book that examines the impact of c

orporate downsizing , said that companies enjoy an immediate bottom-line benefit

 by moving to part-time workers , but at a serious cost to the long-term health 

of the U.S. economy and society . `` We want stronger families , but if you have

 the family members never together because everybody is holding part-time jobs o

n different shifts to make ends meet , you are not going to have a strong family

 , '' said Glassner , chairman of the sociology department at the University of 

Southern California . `` While the companies are saving money , in the long run 

they may not be . They are losing experienced , trained workers , the most compe

tent work force , and over the long haul that loss is going to be costly . ''

 ( c ) 1994 , Newsday World Cup sponsors are gambling $ 500 million on advertisi

ng rights despite Americans ' past indifference to the world 's most popular spo

rt . Coca-Cola , Canon , McDonald 's and Snickers candy bars are among the 19 bu

sinesses spending as much as $ 20 million each for sponsorship rights to the soc

cer championships , which start next month . This is the first time the World Cu

p will be played on American soil . Time Warner , meanwhile , should make at lea

st $ 35 million , according to one analyst , from the licensing and merchandisin

g rights to sales of World Cup apparel and merchandise , which are expected to t

op $ 1 billion . More than 100 American companies have agreements with Time Warn

er to produce World Cup merchandise . The jury is out over whether all this mone

y is well spent . `` These companies are more like pioneers than sponsors , '' s

aid Brandon Steiner of Steiner Sports Marketing , a Manhattan-based consulting f

irm . `` One day soccer will be big in this country , but not this year . You go

 out on the street and you stop 25 people , and I guarantee 20 of them couldn't 

name a single sponsor . That 's where the World Cup is today . '' But do sponsor

s really have to win the hearts and minds of Americans to succeed ? Probably not

 . Most have a larger , worldwide audience in mind . `` The attention of the spo

rting world will be focused on the World Cup , '' said Robert Baskin , public re

lations director for Coca-Cola . `` The games are sold out . You can't book flig

hts into the U.S. during the finals . The World Cup is bigger than the Olympics 

, especially the final games . The scale of this is going to be a real eye-opene

r for Americans . '' In this country , `` it 's a niche play , '' said Walter St

aab , chairman of SFM Media Corp. , media buyers based in Manhattan . `` There a

re certain segments of the population who love soccer and they could be very muc

h involved in the World Cup if it was marketed correctly . '' `` There 's an imm

ense Hispanic audience that is slowly being tapped into , '' says Bryan Murphy ,

 publisher of the Westport , Conn.-based Sports Marketing Newsletter . `` The sp

onsors will probably be very happy if they keep in mind who 's going to watch . 

The World Cup is not going to draw everybody like the Super Bowl , but it 'll dr

aw a lot . '' ( Begin optional trim ) The tournament will last from June 17 to J

uly 17 , with games played at nine sites nationwide . An estimated 1 million peo

ple nationwide are expected to attend the games and spend $ 4 billion on hotels 

, restaurants , shopping and other activities . For sponsors , the games pose un

usual challenges . Because soccer doesn't have time-outs and game breaks like fo

otball or baseball , World Cup TV broadcasters ABC and ESPN will show the games 

without commercial interruptions . As part of an agreement between the broadcast

ers , World Cup '94 and FIFA , the international soccer federation , commercials

 will only be shown during the pre- and post-game shows and at halftime . Names 

of the major sponsors will be displayed in 9-minute intervals on top of a game c

lock in the lower right hand corner of the screen . But that doesn't mean there 

's any shortage of soccer-related commercials and promotional tie-ins : Soccer b

alls are flying in new TV spots by Coke and Adidas ( starring U.S. goalkeeper To

ny Meola ) , among others , and in a contest by Gillette and a soccer gear givea

way by Energizer batteries . McDonald 's is hosting a `` McSoccerfest '' tournam

ent in the nine host cities . Wheaties boxes will offer trading cards with Reebo

k 's soccer endorsers . General Motors will be the exclusive advertiser in a spe

cial World Cup edition of Newsweek . On July 16 , the eve of the final match in 

Pasadena , Calif. , Coca-Cola will run two hours of entertainment and commentary

 from the World Cup games on TNT . Called `` Big TV , '' the telecast is similar

 to one it made in conjunction with the Super Bowl . ( End optional trim ) The i

nternational and U.S. groups organizing the World Cup have designated levels of 

sponsorship , including `` official sponsors , '' who pay $ 17 million to $ 20 m

illion for advertising rights , including billboard space on the playing fields 

in full view of TV cameras during the 52 games ; `` marketing partners , '' who 

pay up to $ 10 million for ads on one side of the World Cup playing fields , and

 a variety of less expensive regional sponsorships . All together , the companie

s are spending nearly $ 500 million . In addition , each TV `` gold '' sponsor i

s rumored to have paid ABC nearly $ 3.5 million for game exposure throughout the