#18
Post
by stumpjumper » Tue Aug 16, 2005 1:06 am
Howie
If the nasty letter arrives, I'll line up with pants to give you what help I can. I've got a bit of a history with AME and similar govt depts and may be able to give you a hand.
I should also say, Howie, that I apologise for my uncharitable suspicions on first hearing about this forum. I think you actually deserve an accolade for doing something about the lack of debate on important issues of urban development and design in this all too complacent state.
Stop here if you don't want to read another grumble about the govt from me...
Speaking of threatened legal action, I was doing some work with Wirrina around the time the HMAS Hobart was to be scuttled off that resort.
Noticing that stuff all was being done to promote the event, and because I used to scuba dive and because I am obviously not busy enough with my own work, I registered hmashobart.com and started lobbying SATC (state tourism body) to make something of the event - armed forces golf day at Wirrina, chain of divers down to the sea floor with cameras videoing the sinking ship, school projects based around the Hobart's career, a yachting regatta, and a huge bbq on the shore after the great event. I was told that the event was not the sort of thing that SATC would get involved with, and that risk management would preclude most of what I had proposed anyway. SATC was spooked by the building demolition in Canberra a few years back in which a young girl was killed by flying debris, although the chances of flying debris from the pyrotechnics used in sinking a wreck is absolutely minimal.
Anyway, Wirrina was fairly broke at the time, so with no govt support available I gave the idea away. As it was, the govt finally sank the ship on the second Tuesday in November. I had to laugh - Melbourne Cup Day. The actual sinking was during the race. Result, zilch publicity to launch a potential attraction for the state. There was also a 3km 'exclusion zone' for everyone including media around the sinking, so there wasn't even any good vision of the event.
Similar events (wreck sinkings) in Canada, USA and Western Australia had attracted record numbers of private water craft to watch. Recently, the sinking of the HMAS Brisbane attracted record waterborne crowds and publicity north of Brisbane.
Apart from ensuring that the event got no publicity, SATC complained about me registering hmashobart.com, and informed me that in any case, I could not have got copyright even if they had allowed divers to film the sinking, because AME owned copyright of all vision relating to the sinking, even though there was none.
I'm constantly in awe of the commercial nous of those who spend our taxes.
In spite of the above, I am generally a positive guy. I borrowed some gear last year and dived on the Hobart. A great dive, even if the current is somewhat strong down there. They wouldn't sink it in the more placid gulf because of risk considerations... there I go again - I'll shut up.
