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

investment intact . The B shares , however , have early-withdrawal charges and s

o-called 12b-1 fees , used to pay brokers ' commissions . The costs of A and B s

hares tend to even out after eight years . The emergence of C shares , according

 to fund executives , recognizes that many investors still resist paying commiss

ions to buy mutual funds . C shares thus charge only an annual fee . The biggest

 advantage of C shares is that they give investors the freedom to change their m

inds about where they want to keep their money without paying a penalty . Any in

vestor who tends to be uncertain about his or her fund investments will understa

nd how comforting it is to have that freedom . William E. Chapman , the executiv

e vice president for marketing at Kemper Mutual Funds , which is adding C shares

 , said he thought they would appeal to investors in the same way some motorists

 prefer to lease a car rather than buy . Leasing , he noted , might be a better 

deal for a motorist who wanted the car for only a couple of years . While only a

 few companies have offered level-load shares up to now , that is changing . Jus

t last week , Kemper and another major fund groups said they were getting into t

he level-load business . The Calvert Group , which runs a family of social inves

tment funds , added level-load shares to its stock and bond funds . Kemper said 

it was combining two groups of funds and , henceforth , 21 funds would offer inv

estors three kinds of shares . The shares are similar to those offered by many c

ompanies that sell funds through brokers . These are the Kemper offerings : Clas

s A shares . The investor pays a maximum upfront commission or load of 5.75 perc

ent . The amount is deducted before the money is invested . Class B shares . The

re is no upfront load . However , an investor who leaves the fund before the end

 of six years will pay a declining withdrawal charge , which starts at 4 percent

 and goes down to zero . ( If you leave after six years , you pay no withdrawal 

charge . ) The investor also pays an ongoing 0.75 percent a year charge , known 

as a 12b-1 fee ( used to pay brokers ) , plus a 0.25 percent service fee a total

 of 1 percent . At the end of six years , the B shares convert to A shares and t

he 12b-1 fee is dropped . Class C shares . There is no upfront sales charge or w

ithdrawal fee , only an ongoing fee totaling 1 percent a year . This is composed

 of a 0.75 percent 12b-1 charge and a 0.25 percent service fee . Kemper says the

se `` pay as you go '' shares are advantageous for investors who are likely to s

tay in a fund for only three or four years . An investor who stayed in a level-l

oad fund for 10 years would wind up paying more than an investor in either an A 

share or B share fund . As for brokers , C shares will give them their commissio

ns over a period of years , instead of when they sell a fund . Some fund officia

ls hope the greater ease of selling level-load shares will encourage brokers to 

accept delayed payments . ( The mutual-fund industry also has created a D class 

share , which is a lot like a C class , or level-load , share . However , a D sh

are could also carry a small upfront sales charge . But that 's a story for anot

her day . ) At Calvert , Vice President Steven J. Schueth said his company adopt

ed level-load shares to help brokers compete with no-load funds , which sell by 

mail or phone and have no sales charges . `` The concept of level-load is not on

ly here to stay but it is a trend that will pick up speed over the next couple y

ears , '' Schueth said . Chapman said Kemper felt it was important , in a compet

itive market , to give investors as many choices as possible . However , the lev

el-load business may have potential hazards for investors and fund companies . T

he danger to the investor involves full disclosure . The level-load share allows

 a broker to say : `` This fund has no sales charges . '' But it willn't be the 

whole story . The broker also must tell the investor : As long as you are in the

 fund , you will pay at least a 1 percent yearly charge , on top of the fund 's 

regular management fees . The danger to the fund company is that level-load inve

stors will make too much use of their freedom to go in and out of the funds . So

me observers have suggested these movements , especially during periods of marke

t crisis , could require fund managers to hold cash to meet redemptions and poss

ibly to sell securities into a declining market . That could prove costly to oth

er shareholders . At Kemper , Chapman agreed level-load shareholders might be qu

icker to change than others but said he did not think it would be a problem for 

managers . A recent study by Lipper Analytical Services Inc. of how bond-fund in

vestors behaved during April lends some credence to the idea that level-load sha

reholders are likely to flee faster than other shareholders when markets encount

er turbulence . With interest rates rising and bond values falling , investors t

ook more money out of bond funds in April than they put in . Lipper 's study fou

nd that level-load investors were the most active group of redeemers , compared 

with investors who held A or B shares . Clearly , one of the major marketing the

mes of this age is to give people more choices whether it is ice cream , yellow 

pages or mutual funds . The new level-load shares give investors a chance to cha

nge their minds without paying a penalty . And that 's a great choice .

 WASHINGTON Quick . Name the inspector general at the Department of Transportati

on . Name one at any agency . Known mostly to government bureaucrats and congres

sional oversight committees , the average `` IG '' is an anonymous person lookin

g over the shoulders of mostly anonymous government decision makers , regulators

 and contractors . It 's one of those nameless , faceless , but very powerful jo

bs in Washington . But A . Mary Schiavo , 38 , inspector general at DOT since 19

90 , is making a name for herself , especially with the Federal Aviation Adminis

tration . In the last year , the IG 's office at DOT has changed its focus from 

auditing obscure DOT contracts and programs to overseeing major programs and inv

estigating safety-related issues . She says the new areas were `` big holes '' i

n past IGs ' patrolling of the department 's halls . Though her staff has been r

educed , Schiavo has issued 2,456 audit reports and has reeled in 149 indictment

s and 95 convictions aggressive growth in the number of cases being pursued . Mu

ch of this attention has gone to the FAA . Subjects include : How the FAA makes 

sure that only approved parts are used in aircraft maintenance and repair ( Schi

avo 's high-profile `` bogus parts '' investigations ) ; security at airports ; 

a delayed computer modernization program ; aircraft and pilot inspections ; and 

how the FAA manages its fleet of vehicles ( she believes poorly ) . It 's not th

at the FAA disagrees with all her findings . But it has complained about the qua

lity of some of her work . The agency also points out that there has never been 

a crash of a major airliner related to `` bad '' parts and has sent her a 67-pag

e response saying it continued to `` non-concur with many of the recommendations

 . '' And she was overruled by the Office of Government Ethics on a finding she 

made in a controversial case involving whether Frank Lorenzo , fallen airline em

pire builder , should fly again . Schiavo , a licensed pilot and a seasoned pros

ecutor ( most of her predecessors were auditors ) , is unfazed . `` We don't jus

t want to be the time and attendance cops , '' she said . Sen. Wendell H. Ford ,

 D-Ky. , an influential member of the Committee on Commerce , Science and Transp

ortation , has put the brakes on the nomination of Ricardo Martinez as National 

Highway Transportation Safety administrator . Using one of the Senate 's most ti

me-tested delay tactics , Ford placed a `` hold '' on Martinez 's nomination , w

hich the Clinton administration advanced several months ago . Mark L . Day , a s

pokesman for Ford , had no comment on the delay ; administration officials backi

ng Martinez were similarly mum . That hasn't stopped the rumor mill . Speculatio

n within the administration and on Capitol Hill is that Ford , who is from the b

ourbon state , believes Martinez will be tough on drinking and driving due to hi

s experience as an emergency-room physician in California and Georgia . Others s

uggest a deal is in the making between Ford and Transportation Secretary Federic

o Pena over doing a few things for Delta Air Lines Inc. in Kentucky . What kinds

 of things ? No one 's saying . `` He wanted to get Pena 's attention , and he g

ot it by holding up Martinez 's nomination , '' one government source said . And

 the DOT gets the award for press release of the week . Its Maritime Administrat

ion , which is filled with knowledgeable old sea dogs , described the design on 

a new commemorative flag as `` an eagle , perched on a red , white and blue shie

ld , and a fouled anchor . '' And what does `` fouled '' mean ? Especially with 

an eagle nearby ? `` Twisted , '' said a Maritime spokeswoman . As in a rope dra

ped around the anchor .

 WASHINGTON `` The Flintstones , '' a $ 45 million dinosaur that hired no fewer 

than 36 screenwriters and stars John Goodman , Rick Moranis , Elizabeth Perkins 

and Rosie O' Donnell , isn't just awful . It bombs itself into the Stone Age . A

s Fred Flintstone might have put it : yabba-dabba-boo . After faithfully duplica

ting the TV show 's familiar opening sequence in which Fred Flintstone ( Goodman

 ) knocks off work , howls for joy , slides down his Bronto-crane tail and foot-

shuffles away in his prehistoric car the movie suffers immediate comic extinctio

n . Leadenly directed and almost soberly scripted , it never captures the campy 

brightness of the original series the herky-jerky animation , the wacky sound ef

fects , the distinctive character voices and that cheesy laugh track . In the th

ird-rate plot ( and there 's no telling who among the Flintstone 36 came up with

 this gem ) , scheming boss Cliff Vandercave ( Kyle MacLachlan ) and his comely 

secretary ( Halle Berry ) promote unsuspecting Fred as a vice president , then f

rame him for embezzlement , intending to abscond with the ill-gotten profit . Fr

ed , enjoying a life of unprecedented luxury , is obliged to fire Barney ( Moran

is ) and watch his friend sink into poverty before realizing his mistakes . If t

he performers are imitating their cartoon forebears , it is barely apparent . Go

odman 's sweat-induced , growly offerings completely bypass Fred 's lovable , pi

gheaded innocence . The actor never attains Fred 's gravelly timbre . And with h

is blond-dyed hair and zombielike demeanor , Moranis seems more like a zoned-out

 Warhol groupie than Fred 's perky buddy . The greatest asset of Perkins 's Wilm

a is that Perkins looks the part . O' Donnell 's dead-on Betty Rubble giggle is 

the funniest thing in the movie , but it merely underlines how bad everyone and 

everything else is around her : The child actors who play Bamm-Bamm and Pebbles 

are completely forgettable . Fred 's pet dinosaur Dino , with its chintzy eyes a

nd unconvincing animatronic gyrations , looks like a low-budget Muppet . And eve

n Elizabeth Taylor , trundled out to play Fred 's insulting mother-in-law , fall

s disappointingly short of imperious . She isn't exactly helped by the mediocre 

bones the screenplay tosses her way . While the movie officially scripted by Ste

ven E. de Souza , Tom Parker and Jim Jennewein labors through its primeval ooze 

, it churns out incessant , dull visual gags , including a Stonehenge-meets-'50s

-America and the `` pigasaurus '' creature under the sink that serves as a garba

ge disposal . It also heaves out unfunny Hollywood `` inside '' jokes : The movi

e opens with a `` Steven Spielrock Presents '' credit ; Halle Berry 's character

 is named Sharon Stone ; George Lucas 's `` Tar Wars '' is playing at the local 

theater . When , inevitably , Fred locked out of the house by his pet saber-toot

hed tiger thumps the door and yells `` Wilma ! '' , it doesn't bring `` The Flin

tstones '' to a triumphant close . It just sets the audience free . `` The Flint

stones '' is rated PG .

 TOKYO Hushed and respectful , wearing our best suits , nervously reviewing our 

lessons on imperial etiquette , we stood stiffly at our assigned spots on the th

ick green carpet of the elegant reception chamber . Suddenly , the rice-paper do

ors slid open , and muffled steps could be heard coming down the long palace cor

ridor . `` Remember , '' an earnest gentleman from the Imperial Household Agency

 hissed , `` this is a social occasion . '' Well , sort of . With final preparat

ions underway for their 16-day royal visit to the United States next month , Jap

an 's soft-spoken Emperor Akihito and his wife , the even softer-spoken Empress 

Michiko , invited a group of American journalists beneath the graceful fluted ro

ofs of the Imperial Palace Friday to share a few sips of royal tea and a few wor

ds with royalty . Before the tea party , the reporters were required to attend a

 one-hour lecture on court history and protocol by the vice grand master of cere

mony , who sternly adjured us not to carry cameras , recorders or even notebooks

 into the royal presence . Throughout the 40-minute session with the emperor and

 empress , an extremely uptight corps of courtiers and palace bureaucrats kept p

rodding and poking at us to make sure we stood only in the right places and spok

e only at the right times . And yet the handsome , stylish imperial couple radia

ted such regal charm and aplomb that they managed to give the imperial tea the f

eeling of a `` social occasion '' after all . Relaxed and natty in his trademark

 double-breasted suit , with a pure white handkerchief folded into three perfect

 peaks in his breast pocket , the gray-haired Akihito now in his sixth year on t

he Chrysanthemum Throne , embodying the world 's oldest ancestral monarchy seeme

d considerably more at ease than he had at a similar occasion four years ago . E

ven when the conversation turned to delicate political matters , the 60-year-old

 emperor was unfazed . He spoke an ordinary , easy-to-understand Japanese sharpl

y different from the arcane court language employed by his royal ancestors . Aki

hito was asked , of course , about the decision by Japan 's political leadership

 to cancel a scheduled imperial visit to Pearl Harbor . That stop was removed fr

om the royal schedule for fear of a political backlash from right-wing elements 

here , who insist Japan owes no apology to the United States for World War II . 

In reply , Akihito noted calmly that he is a strictly symbolic monarch under Jap

an 's postwar constitution . The elected government decides his travel schedule 

, he added , and he of course will do what the government tells him . The empres

s , meanwhile standing across the room in a pale green kimono with wispy orange 

and white wildflowers painted along the lavish obi , or belt put on an even more

 impressive performance . The past year or so has been one of the most trying fo

r Michiko , 59 , since her marriage 36 years ago . In an unprecedented display o

f public `` disrespect , '' the empress was criticized in several national magaz

ines . The complaints were minor , even trivial but they were considered shockin

g in a nation that reveres its royalty . The empress collapsed last fall and los

t the ability to speak . Court officials blamed this mysterious malady on `` dee

p sadness '' because of the bad press . It has been only a matter of weeks since

 Michiko fully regained her speech . But she did just fine Friday , chatting eas

ily , if softly , in clear English with just a few worried glances over her shou

lder at the official interpreter . It would be bad form not to mention a violati

on of the ground rules to quote what their majesties had to say . Let it suffice

 that they are aware of current economic friction between the world 's two riche

st nations and hope their trip in June will help ease tension in the U.S.-Japan 

relationship . Both emperor and empress spoke fondly of previous trips to the Un

ited States . Akihito said he still has vivid memories of a visit to Washington 

decades ago , when he first saw the beautiful array of national monuments lined 

up along the Mall . He also recalls an auto trip through the vastness of norther

n Wyoming , when the royal motorcade passed only two other cars in the course of

 a four-hour drive . In the entire Japanese archipelago , there is nothing appro

aching such wide open spaces . But if the royal couple handled this social occas

ion with grace , the phalanx of ladies-in-waiting , stewards , palace bureaucrat

s , maids and butlers spent the afternoon in a twitter making sure every detail 

of the tea party was exactly in place . Some 40 minutes before the session was t

o begin , we were ushered into a large and tastefully opulent room where the gre

en carpet was offset by a high ceiling of polished blond cedar and walls made of

 rice-paper shoji screens that muted the sunlight outside to the soft glow chara

cteristic of older Japanese homes . We were told precisely where to stand , prec

isely where to clip on our name tags and precisely how to greet the royal couple

 ( with Western-style handshakes rather than Japanese-style bows ) . As the empe

ror and empress approached each of us , a courtier with a booming voice called o

ut an identification . This introduction focused on the things that matter in Ja

pan , group affiliation and title , with the individual 's name thrown in as an 

afterthought : `` The Washington Post newspaper , bureau chief , Reid-san . '' B

ut as we sipped our tea from delicate china cups , stirring the liquid with ster

ling spoons bearing the 16-petal chrysanthemum crest that only the imperial fami

ly can use , the royal couple seemed to make everything copacetic . `` I wish we

 could get together more often , '' the empress said and sounded like she really

 meant it .

 TOKYO Japan 's Cabinet Friday approved the schedule for Emperor Akihito 's stat

e visit to the United States next month , but canceled , as expected , a planned

 visit to the Pearl Harbor memorial in Honolulu . The Pearl Harbor stop sparked 

political controversy here because some right-wing nationalists fear an imperial

 visit would be construed as an apology for the sneak attack on Dec. 7 , 1941 , 

that pulled the United States into World War II . As a compromise , the Cabinet 

decided Akihito will stop at the Punch Bowl military cemetery in Honolulu , wher

e he will lay a wreath in honor of American war dead . Akihito and Empress Michi

ko will spend four nights in Washington during the 16-day trip , from June 11-15

 . They will be the guests of honor at President Clinton 's first state dinner o

n June 13 . The royal couple will also visit Atlanta ; Charleston , S.C. ; Charl

ottesville , Va. ; New York ; St. Louis ; Denver ; Los Angeles ; and San Francis

co .

 TRAVNIK , Bosnia-Herzegovina Lt. Gen. Michael Rose , the commander of U.N. troo

ps in Bosnia , took a delegation of NATO officers to meet Gen. Mehmed Aligic ear

lier this week . At the appointed time , the Bosnian Muslim general burst into t

he room , sucked in his formidable gut and jerked his right hand into a snappy s

alute . Nonplussed , Rose extended his arm to shake Aligic 's hand . The U.N. co

mmander , a by-the-books British officer , does not salute a man with no hat . B

ut Aligic Bosnian rascal , lover of women and drink , gloriously incorrect and o

ne of the most successful military leaders of the mostly Muslim Bosnian army ref

used to shake . The NATO commander for southern Europe , U.S. Navy Adm. Leighton

 Smith , stepped in and saved everyone a bit of face , participants in the meeti

ng recalled . Looser American rules allow hatless salutes . Aligic , his salute 

returned and his pride intact , settled into his seat and the meeting began . Th

e fleeting standoff in this beautiful Bosnian town , which reclines along the La

vsa River valley like , Nobel Prize-winning novelist Ivo Andric once wrote , `` 

the pages of a half-opened book , '' dramatized a yawning gap in understanding b

etween officers of the U.N. operation here and the military men of the warring B

osnian factions that have brought Europe its bloodiest conflict since World War 

II . Denizens of different cultures and different worlds , using different maps 

to fight different wars according to different rules , they can neither shake ha

nds nor salute when they meet . The ramifications of this gap in perception are 

significant , affecting everything in Bosnia from the peace process in Geneva to

 cease-fire agreements on the ground . It is one of the reasons why what seems t

o be a step toward peace in the United Nations ' eyes can , in other eyes , turn

 out to be a stumble toward more war . Rose , born 53 years ago in Quetta , then

 a British colonial garrison town in what is now Pakistan , cites the Prussian m

ilitary thinker Karl von Clausewitz to sum up his evaluation of this conflict . 

`` The war , '' he said with the firm belief of a former war college commandant 

schooled in the unassailable logic of NATO strategy , `` has long ago reached it

s limit of exploitation . '' Aligic , 47 , part Turkish vizier , part Communist 

commissar , trained in the arts of protracted struggle in a culture where Occide

nt and Orient collide , where black marketeering verges on virtue and tending th

e graves of ancestors constitutes a duty , begs to disagree . `` We don't make w

ar here on the basis of West Point , '' he said . Rose predicted , for example ,

 that his masterpiece , a successful cease-fire around Sarajevo that rode on the

 back of a NATO ultimatum last February , would spread rapidly across Bosnia . I

nstead , it was followed by a decision by Bosnian Serb military leader Ratko Mla