It's time for real change, for a change.(THE LAST LAUGH)(Column)

Everywhere you go--from politicians to voters to college administrators to squalling babies--someone is crying out for change.

Our economy has gone so far south that it takes a NASA satellite to keep track of things, and voters are awaiting the Change promised by President-elect Barack Obama.

His fix-it list includes making dramatic changes in a few items: the economy, the wars, health care, global warming, the country's self-confidence and of course funding for higher education. He'll need a lot of help and a lot of cooperation to make real, significant changes in these areas. Not just the "lipstick on a pig" superficial ones, but core changes

Real change

Despite living in a society that has figured out how to remove permanent tattoos and in which at least half the couples who promise to stay together '"til death do us part" are lying, making significant, long-lasting cultural change is tough. (Barbara Curry provides some strategies on pages 30-31.) But there is cause for optimism:

* A renewed mandate for efficiency in operations is spreading throughout higher education, corporate America, the federal bureaucracy and even closer to home. The Department of Education is trying to boil the head-banging FAFSA financial aid form down to a document so simple you could fill it out on a coffee break. When you're moving long distances, it's now more efficient to sell your used furniture and buy new (or used) at your new home.

* Another generation has embraced recycling, one more rooted in environmental concerns than in avoiding the eco nomic devastation our ancestors survived in the Great Depression. While we don't yet put newspaper inside our shoes, shopping at and donating used clothes and clutter to thrift stores is enjoying a renaissance today. Shopping on craigslist. com has replaced mall runs and reading newspaper ads. Even refilling water bottles is considered green, not just cheap.