BEYOND THE BELTWAY 1997; And You Thought Things Were Strange Here . . .
You say you've got a handle on the Asian economic crisis and the 1998 congressional races but remain consumed by a feeling of emptiness? And you learned more than you wanted to this year about the Mir space station and Princess Diana but less than you need to about the rest of the world? Fear not. Here, boiled down from wire dispatches, was the real news of 1997.</br></br>OSLO -- A Norwegian court ruled that beer-spitting members of a faux-hillbilly band were engaging in legitimate artistic expression.</br></br>APPLETON, Wis. -- A woman sued her former psychiatrist for malpractice, claiming he convinced her she had 120 personalities -- and then charged her insurance company for group therapy.</br></br>HANOI -- A drop in the price of python meat caused economic difficulties in Vietnam's southern province of Ca Mau.</br></br>NICOSIA, Cyprus -- British Royal Marines were barred from training on Cyprus after police found three of them sitting naked outside a pub singing "God Save the Queen."