Brindlestyle

  AT THE AQUATIC  - Rob Rendell

Justice of the Peace -     ROB WILLIAMS…   

"I often wonder how much information a Politician uses to make decisions that adversely affect so many people. When they do make a decision they know will hurt, they must have some mechanism that allows them into a state of denial. Otherwise how can they face the people who had faith in them? It really lets us down when politicians make some lousy excuse on why they lack the courage and fortitude to fight for the cause of the people. Political expediency sucks doesn’t it."  More from Rob - below

From Greenie: Ed' Matzenick - Subterranean Homesick Blues 

Here are some facts that may surprise you..

1. The ONLY reason the Jazz Club moved out of the Cairns Yacht Club, (the Aquatic,) after fighting the Government for 5 years, was because our Government considers money above the wishes and feelings of the people whose Grandparents and Parents built this place... 

 3. We know why, it’s because our Government is bankrupt. Not only from a monetary point of view but also morally. Otherwise why sell off the Airports, Schools and any other land and anything that isn’t nailed down.

4. Government is hell bent on destroying this last bastion of Cairns Heritage – The Aquatic.

5. We have the list of perpetrators and Boyle, Bligh, Lucas, MacEnroth, Byrne, Whettenhall and others. These names with photographs make up the prologe to our book.( “At the Aquatic. MkII).

6. The ONLY way to redemption is to stand up and be counted.

7. As the President of the Cairns Tropic Jazz Club Inc. I had to make a decision.

8. That was to stay at the CYC till the last minute and risk my members being involved in a blood bath that may follow when the Aquatic is demolished or

 9. Move to a new venue.

10. For your information we considered 65 possible venues in this City until one night Graeme Davidson appeared in the Yacht Club and offered the Tigers Den as another possibility.

11. I and 5 other Jazz Club Committee had a look. After some discussion we thought this place could be useful although it lacked the History, Area, Dance floor and aspects of the Aquatic Building.

12. We agreed to go there and the Cairns Tropic Jazz Club paid for and built the stage, put in the lights, erected the backdrop and assisted with widening the wooden dance floor to a size that we thought would suffice.

13. We installed our own PA Amp and Speakers, Microphones etc .

14. None of this had anything whatsoever to do with the PALM movement or Ray Elias.

15. We introduced the NCAFC to what we required with regards to servicing our patrons with liquor and amenities and even arranged a barman to help with prices etc. The people at the NCAFL are marvellous.

16. On Thursday 3rd April our people decorated the premises, which we left in place for what we understood was going to be the launch of a country and Western CD the following night.

17. We were surprised when we learned it was “The Official Opening” and knew nothing of your attendance to same. We were not invited and we have never met the Minister for Arts.

18. As far as the Aquatic Building is concerned, I don’t think you understand that there are at least 5,000 people out here including myself who have not had a spiritual closing on this matter.

19. I don’t know if I have dissuaded them not to lay in front of the bulldozers, but many have said they would do that.

20. Many of them also say they are willing to mount a class action against to reclaim the massive losses and mental anguish that we will and have suffered already.

 21. Steve Wettenhall's statement “Let us now put the Yacht Club issue behind us and get on with promoting Cairns as the New Orleans of the Southern hemisphere tropics” demonstrates no concept of our feelings towards this place, which is really a shrine of remembrance for the people who built this City.

22. Like Bjeke Petersen’s demolition of the Belleview destroyed his government, I and my colleges would think the day the destruction of the Historical (CYC) Aquatic brought your government down was poetic Justice.

23. You said you were passionate, let us test that shall we.

24. On ANZAC Day we will be remembering the 150 Aquatic Club members who went to fight in WW1 and WW2 for what they believed in. They went to fight to save this country, their loved ones and their way of life which included the Aquatic Club. They had put their blood and sweat into that..

25. The Aquatic Building was a hub and a lynchpin, for the fabric of Cairns City and the whole of North Queensland.

26. In fact if you care to see what they did in 1917 you will know the dedication, passion and absolute unselfishness of these men and women.

27. As a former soldier myself, I can imagine them joking about the mud up to their waist and likening that to when they used to launch their skiffs into Trinity before they built the ramp. This would have allowed them to help cope with the knowledge that at any moment they or their mates could be blown to pieces by a 3” mortar bomb or downed by an enemy bullet.

28. They mistakenly believed that politicians and government would honour their sacrifices and went unequivocally to fight. 20 of them died.

29. On ANZAC DAY I will be placing a wreath on the beach in front of the Aquatic I invite you to be there. Lest We Forget

Rob Williams j.p.(Qual.) 28 Lake Placid Road Caravonica 4878 Qld. Thursday, 17 April 2008