To: lancair.list@olsusa.com
Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 23:15:25 -0500
Subject: re: suing
Message-ID: <19990423.231526.3206.0.rcusbob@juno.com>
From: Robert E Grossmann <rcusbob@juno.com>
Mime-Version: 1.0

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Dear Lancair Friends,

Greetings to all of you. I am sure many of us who are building and don't
write very often feel the way I do. This is a fantastic net which keeps
us going by hearing from all of you. I think of all of us as good
friends, even though many of us will never meet in the flesh. Both the
good and the bad are important news to us. Thanks again to Marv.

I am writing to agree with Stu's remarks about suing and to add a thought
or two. If we inside of aviation start suing each other, there will not
be much left. It's bad enough when outsiders who know nothing sue and
juries award damages that hurt the whole general aviation system.
Unfortunately when you sue TCM you are pounding nails in your own
aviation coffin. The manufacturers are hanging on in worse shape than we
are. They need our help, not our revenge at their mistakes. I hope TCM
will be forthcoming with some help for the problems their larger engines
are having. But large lawsuits will put them out of business, not a good
thing for any of us (I fly behind Lycomings right now, but all of us will
be affected negatively should TCM disappear). After watching this
business and being a very private pilot for almost 30 years, I realize
that we need them more than they need us, but we both need each other to
survive. I hope some TCM folks read this board so that they too will see
where we are coming from.

Another point is that I think lawsuits should be for malicious damages,
not honest mistakes.  TCM is unfortunately too defensive (though they
reallly have more to lose that way than by being forthright), but I
sincerely doubt if any of their actions have been designed to produce
defective parts. I know the road to hell is paved with good intentions,
but they are at least not malicious.  Like Stu, I am convinced that more
government regulation will only make things more expensive, not more
safe. Look at the fantastic improvements in computers in just a few
years, especially their reliability.  Now watch as big brother gets
involved, the Microsoft action is just the beginning, and we see this
progress die off and turn into the same static situation we have had with
aircraft design, where only homebuilts are improving the breed.  Also,
what revived the American car industry?... foreign competition, not
government regulation.

Happy flying, Bob Grossmann

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