[Leica] Leica Solms LUG LHSA Buyout

[pklein at 2alpha.net (Peter Klein)]

Ted:  I agree that the LUG buying out Leica is whimsical fantasy (and I 
think the original poster intended it as such).  And you're right, there 
are plenty of used Leicas and lenses around.  But still, Leica's troubles 
make me sad.

The Leica has a place in my identity as a photographer.  I've never found a 
camera that suits me as well as a Leica M.  So if it can't be made any 
more, that leaves a void.  Not in my ability to photograph, but in my 
gut.  If they go under completely, I wonder whether others will truly fill 
the niche, or whether the guys with spreadsheets will use it to "prove" 
that there just isn't a market for RFs anymore.

The prospect of Leica going away gives me that same feeling that I get when 
a TV show I like is cancelled because it doesn't appeal to junior-high 
school boys.   Or when I can't get decent clothes in my size because I'm 
not "average." Or when a well-made product is driven out of the market by 
cheaper junk.

Leica is one of the few things left in the world that give the aura of 
"best possible" rather than "good enough," or "not quite bad enough for the 
chumps to send it back."  It saddens me that a Leica may not be not viable 
in the current world. DSLRs may be amazing, but they ain't the same, and 
they cost a lot for something that will be obsolete next month.

Finally, it pains me to see the glee at which some folks here quote market 
economics as if it were Holy Scripture, to justify the demise of 
Leica.  The Market may promote efficiency, but it does not necessarily 
promote quality, and it can be, excuse me, a bitch goddess.  I'm reminded 
of Churchill's comment about democracy--it's the worst form of government 
there is, except for all the others.   :-)

And, yes, I am aware of the shortsightedness and mistakes Leica has 
made.  Still, I hope they can dig themselves out of this hole somehow.  Or 
that somebody buys Leica and keeps it going-- the actual company, not just 
the name as in Voigtlander.

--Peter

At 11:31 PM 2/18/05 -0800, Ted Grant <tedgrant@shaw.ca>:
>But Scott if you already own one, a Leica M of some kind or several, and
>there's thousands of M's floating about the world for at least the next 40
>years, who the hell cares if the mother company goes belly up? All this
>whining, hand wringing by others, save the company buy a bunch of cameras
>crap is rediculous for a company that's been dragging it's ass back in the
>30's, '40's & 50's when it was the greatest. I can't believe some of the
>silly concerns it's almost like if they crash and burn every owner in the
>world will die immediately with them? Nonsense!