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To: Will Lyons who wrote (15756)	10/28/1998 3:28:00 AM
From: Patrick Slevin	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 17305

I agree completely that nothing in economics has a simple answer else we could all do it. You raise a point that I was touching on when you remark about business investment. Precisely the problem; if the average person has less disposable income then the business can borrow all it likes but to what end. Further, the high quality bond may have a high asking price but only the entities with disposable capital would have interest. Similar to today; a "person" buying a hundred thousand dollars worth of bonds is a piker by general standards. I bought $50,000 worth of Midlantic junk bonds several years ago and was like pulling teeth. Sort of like buying 10 shares of stock, it was hard to get the trade done. Of course, I was doing it thru a normal stock house but I've had the same problems doing such trades through a bank. It's a high net worth business and in a down economy that money is not easy to come by for the average person; thus, although the value of the paper will be high the demand should be low. In any event, it's a chicken and egg scenario and as you say has no easy answer. Like the average person, I am more concerned with the health of the stock market and I think it's because it has a close bearing on my day to day life. Bond Market problems have a longer term effect and like the bond market take a while to reveal themselves in everyday life. So although the Bond Market is a fiscal imperative the stock market is as well. Inextricably intertwined, the Fed can't tinker with one without an eye to consequences in the other. But this is all my opinion and everyone has one.