Latham was a problem the party bought on its self, we are over him[I am a party member] however in no way could we fail to use dreadfull AWB and workchoices and still claim to be worthy of goverment.
IR reform, true fair reform is a plank Labor will use and must, roll back will not do it.
AWA,s are going to have to one day compete with union agreements but will be around forever.
Just a true life issue one of my close anti union friends got single time for good Friday and easter Monday, now wants to join a union? its illeagle to not pay him overtime but after years of anti union gloating do I tell him?
Yes in time fair go mate still means something .

sneeky,
It would seem that not for the first time, you have summed things up beautifully. Labor must move back to advocating on behalf of ordinary working families, if the think that they deserve to govern.

Shonga I suspect you wish a Labor goverment as much as I do however we are like it or not in a place we richly deserve to be in OPERSITION.
We took Simon Creans mate Latham and he lead us into todays wilderness with policys that those working class Aussies you talk of did not follow, they in fact in large numbers voted for Howard ,first preference.
In fact it will be third time conservative voters who we need to win back to our side, some we made, and will never get back.
Labor will never get back in power with a plan to be a Robin Hood goverment.
The lights on the hill burned in a different time that familly now own 2 homes and do not think they are working class.
We will have a Labor goverment that rules for ALL Australians unlike this shameless goverment ruleing only for some.

Belly,
You are correct about one thing, that is I would like to see the first Labor Government since 1975. However the Labor Party then had a swweeping range of policies for change. The current Labor Party either does not have same, or it is hiding them. Whitlam at least believed in change, had the policies, and was prepared to sell them. Beazley is Labor's anchor, polls suggesting Labor are ahead of the coalition still have Beazley at a low approval rate.

If the Labor Party wants to govern, it will need to come back to the centre left, or stay in Opposition perpetually.

No joy in agreeing Kim is our problem today, you however devalue Hawk and Keiting both did far better than the self proclaimed best Prime minister we ever had.
My actist youth saw me a member of sack, the mob who tried to help Kerr get as much free grog as he could drink.
Relality has however set in , there are not enought center left voters left in Australia to EVER elect an ALP goverment.
Our path to the lodge is via the middle of the road only, no other way will unseat Johny short bottom.

Belly,
So what do you think middle of the road is, if not centre-left? We have had Hawke, Keating and Howard, all right, and ultra right politicians, who have sold of the countries silver, e.g Commonwealth Bank, Quantas, etc. We now should give another direction a go, if sold correctly, it would work, the ALP is just as much backed by big business as the coalition is these days, and tend to serve their masters well.

It is time for the ALP to again represent the unrepresented, the working class, who have had no representation since 1975. The right wing of the ALP is indistinguishable from the Liberal party, which is why you hear "there all the same" comment in shopping centres.

Working families need a party who will represent their needs, if the ALP stays the way they are, I will not vote for them again as long as I live.