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May 22, 1994 â€" C Â¥ Sn en M Mt!‘ is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a error, that portion of the advertisi spucooewrbd the eroneous wm.mnmmhmm,fillmbod\amdbr.h?flnbulu\oedfinadudswnviwibep:{dbr atthe appiicable rate. The mm@lbummwmmsmInnweflollypoqnpfiulm.ndmfiimguodt or services at the wrong , goods or services may not be sold. @E@reymowbwlmefianlu(wfim. Ian Oliver Publisher â€" For every economic guru who takes one position on an issue, there are just as many who will forcefully argue the other side. Little wonder, then, why most countries are in a monetary morass. The Oakville Beaver‘s ‘Pages of the Past‘ feature which runs on page 6 every Friday, pointed out this week that it was 20 years ago when the local riding associations for the federal Liberals and Progressive Conservatives chose their candidates. For the Liberals it was Dr. Frank Philbrook and for the Tories, it was Terry O‘Connor (now judge O‘Connor) the incumbent MP for what was then known as the riding of Halton. Both men were quoted as saying that inflation was going to be the main issue in the coming election campaign. At the time inflation was seen as the main reason for all the ills then plaguing Canada. Lick inflation and you solve the economic malaise, both men reasoned. The problem was that both the Liberals and the PCs, were coming at the issue from different positions. In 1974 it was people earning more money and using their charge cards as bulwarks against inflation. In 1994 it‘s people trying to pay down debt, keep a job and buy nothing until it breaks. _ where there are no wrong or correct answers. It‘s basically a freeâ€"forâ€"all when you put a bunch of number crunchers together in a room. To be fair, economists are really not number people, that‘s the reserve of accountants. Economists are on a higher plane, a loftier fiscal perch. Their job is to try and guess what impact various economic plans will have on a compaâ€" ny, country etc. Economics is one of the few disciplines, and we use the term lightly, You may recall that this was the election where Tory leader Robert Stanfield said wage and price controls were the only sure ways to stop inflaâ€" tion from making Canada a Third World country. Liberal leader Pierre Trudeau said that was foolhardy and argued for strategic government spendâ€" ing and voluntary wage and price restraint. The electorate savaged Stanfield on the wage and price control issue, electing Trudeau....who soon went before the people on television saying that wage and price controls were needed after all. So much for telling it like it is, so much for dealing with inflation. Flash forward two decades where we see that inflation has now reached a 33â€"year low. This follows months of mortgage and interest rates that reached lows also not seen in more than 30 years. Still, unemployment is remaining relatively high, taxes are crippling Canadians‘ buying power while provincial governments and Ottawa deal with rising deficits and accumulated debt. One economist was quoted this week as saying the only negative in this ‘good‘ news is that although inflation is low and interest rates relatively staâ€" ble, there is still high unemployment and no income growth as taxes rise. And in an amazing statement of the obvious, the economist concludes that this means Canadians don‘t have any extra money to spend which is bad news for the economy. Only one thing hasn‘t changed. Government is still spending. One constant 467 Speers Road, Oakville, Ont. L6K 3S4 845â€"3824 Fax: 845â€"3085 Classified Advertising: 845â€"2809 Circulation: 845â€"9742 or 845â€"9743 The Oakville Beave mrySu wgd :t4s7 Speers Rd., Odtvib.nsumdma Lid. gmnpdswuhnnwwhkh clu Connection, Etobicoke Kingston This Week, Lind Stouffville/Uxbridae Tribune, Milton Cansdian Champion, Mississauga N M Ramn eP am Economist and Kingston This Week, umfi“ cm Stouffville/Uxbridge Tribut on Canadian Champion, Mississauga j Newmarketâ€"Aurora Eraâ€"Banner, North York Minor Oakville Bum Orilh Todny Oshawa/Whitby This Week, P:Iubomug This Week, Richmond HilV All luhlpublshodlnttwbakvlese is protected by copy An aver rupr'l'):uaionhwhobovhpan mu% fimy omeone once saidâ€"â€"perhaps it was our Premier Bob Rae addressing _ a group of union at a friend in need is a fnend indeed. Indeed, there are people out there who believe that a friend is someone special and cherâ€" ished, someone forever near and dear, someone loyal, trusted and true. Then there‘s Mike Correll. Mike Correll is a 54 yearâ€"old entrepreneur who, according to a recent report from Atlanta in The Wall Street Journal, has built a robust business based on the premise that successful men simply don‘t have time to make friends. But they‘ve got the bucks to buy ‘em. Mr. Correll saw this need among these men, he saw this gaping niche in the marketplace and, like so many successful business tycoons (and dentists), when he saw the void, he began wildly filling it. He became a professional friend finder. Now, if you‘re an overâ€" worked, timeâ€"tight, lonely male executive desperately in need of a buddy, coveting a comradeâ€"â€"or even if you‘re just some wealthy worm who couldn‘t find a friend if the marriage of Roseanne Barr Arnold depended on itâ€"â€"you can call Mike Correll and he will set you up with a friend. For a fee, of course. As high as $1,200 per pal. "It‘s tough to admit," said John Heagy, an Atlanta real estate executive who corralled Correll‘s services, "but men have a very difficult time estabâ€" lishing relationships with other men, other than for business Cash and carry friends idea could be the hit of the ‘90‘s reasons..It‘s not," Mr. Heagy lamented, "like the days at the fraternity." Ahh, from here to fraternity. So, enter Mr. Correll, with his "leather portfolio jammed with photos of groups of men he has pulled together." Hire Mr. Correll and you can flip through the photos of these "regular guys...guys who enjoy talking about the meaning of life over a beer..." Hire Mr. Correll and he will do what he is paid to do: "Put the right men together." In Mr. Heagy‘s case, Mike (Matchmaker) Correll was bangâ€"on successful. He helped the real estate executive find a group of guys who are currently training to climb the Matterhorn in the Alps. ; According to Mr. Correll, in his line of work, the secret is to help jocks find other jocks, libâ€" erals find other liberals and "hellraisers" find other "hellâ€" raisers."" One naturally wonders how these overburdened executives ever find time to track down Mr. Correll. Mr. Correll says some businessmen do indeed seek him out, but for the most part, he finds them. He scours newspaâ€" per articles and such to find the names of Atlanta‘s business elite, then he shows up at their homes asking if they would like to pay him a fat fee to have him find them a friend. Does this man have nerve, or \ 1 SW s e Recently, thumbing through a thick religious bookâ€"â€"or was it Bartlet‘s Familiar Quotations?â€"â€" I discovered that in The Holy Bible, it is written that "a faithâ€" ful friend is a strong defence: and he that hath found such an one hath found a treasure." what? To date, Mr. Correll insists, no one has let their dog loose on him and no one has called the cops or tried to have him committed. Granted, a few, like Allen Teasley, an associate viceâ€"president at Dean Witter Reynolds Inc., thought Mr. Correll was completely bonkers. Perhaps the best endorsement for Mr. Correll‘s business comes from Brad Doss, owner of an Atlanta construction firm, who used the matchmaker to find friends who share his passion for philosophy: "If you‘re going to buy friends," Mr. Doss conâ€" tends, "this is a good group to buy." Nevertheless, Mr. Teasley considered the concept, signed on and found the bungeeâ€"jumpâ€" ing buddies for whom he‘d been longing. Wise business types, myself included, see Mr. Correll‘s comâ€" mercial enterpriseâ€"â€"and other similar venturesâ€"â€"thriving in the future if they are astutely adverâ€" tised and, of course, properly positioned in the marketplace. Looking into my crystal ball, I see entire chains of friend finders. Pals R Us! Bargain Buddies! Cheap Chums! And I see slogans emerging, like: "The Best Bosom Buddy Bucks CAn Buy!" Or: "We‘ve Got Friends You Haven‘t Even Used!" Talk about progress. Now a treasure can buy a faithful friend.