-=> Quoting Paul Edwards to Garry Norton <=-

 GN>  how they operated and was very impressed.  In the course of my
 GN>  work, I have been into many of the dealer rooms of the
 GN>  financial industry based in the CBD in Sydney.  I was lucky to
 GN>  be in one of the biggest dealing rooms on THAT October day in
 GN>  1987.  It was certainly an experience to behold!

 PE> Want to tell us about it?  BFN.  Paul.

 Hi Paul,
	 Well I first heard it was going to be an interesting day in the
 news on my way to work.  Once there it was easy to find an excuse to
 make my way into the dealing room of one of our customers.  For reasons
 of diplomacy and common sence, I wont mention the financial house (but
 it still remains large and important in the Sydney CBD), or who I
 worked for.
	 I knew a female dealer who had always being so calm, cool,
 beautiful and totally professional (actually I thought she was
 wonderful - complete with a nice, slightly aged sports car). Anyway
 I walked in and saw her both crying on one phone and swearing like a
 trooper on another.  I was stunned at the volume of language and the
 general feeling of fear and panic in the room.  This feeling was
 palpable and it occured to me the expression "the smell of fear" was
 very apt!
	 I was not in the financial industry and so didn't appreciate how
 serious things looked at that time. With hindsight it was only a
 serious "market correction", but by lunchtime people really were
 considering their own futures - both professional and personal.  This
 girl I mentioned saw me, took me aside and explained the situation as
 she saw it.  I think it helped her calm down and think rationally.  It
 crossed my mind then as it has ever since, I was probably recieving the
 indepth information in the middle of a crises that her large clients
 were clamouring for.  There was a woman who was updating a series of
 charts being drawn on graph paper.  I sat quietly in a corner and
 watched with inexperienced disbelief as she continued to add new graph
 sheets, continuing the graph line down at an ever steeping angle.
	 All  the time there was this constant sound of panic,
 instructions being given (and mostly ignored I suspect), phones ringing
 and being slammed down again.  I can't be more precise about
 proceedures and actual details for two main reasons.  The first being
 I really didn't understand the full significance of the impact on our
 lifestyles this correction would have.  And second, it was all happening
 so quickly and dramatically I could do little except sit and watch - stunned.
 There were all these people shouting, swearing, smoking, and watching the
 never ending stream of data scrolling down monitors and along wall
 displays.
	 The looks of anguish on most faces of those 50 odd people in
 that room spoke volumes to me that day.  On the way home I concluded
 that I then understood the expression "ignorance is bliss".

	 I would be interested in anyone else's experiences that week,
 or the fall out later.

 Regards,
	 Garry


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