labor heartland?

By: Spider (Registered ) on 29-09-2007 09:00

That was very well expressed. I too grew up in a staunch Labor family. Growing up, all I heard was how Labor is the only party that looks after the working man but when it was my first time to vote, I started to look around for myself. 
 
My letters to the political parties as a new and interested voter was ignored by all political parties but the Liberals. All I received was a letter from Andrew Peacock whose letter said I would find their policies of which I found none but hey, they atleast responded so I voted for him. 
 
Then came the state election between Greiner and Carr which saw a parliament held to ransom by three very egotistical Independent members. I looked around and saw how much work had been done for the western suburbs of Sydney. I listened to the ALP say that they only look after the western suburbs but it not the ALP that fixed the broken down railway, or put money into hospitals and more. 
 
Once again, it was only the Liberals who responded to any of my approaches so yet again, I voted Liberal who were the only one's who wanted to respond.

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left of labor

By: kiley (Registered ) on 30-09-2007 06:51

Thanks Spider.  
 
My point was that Labor had shifted so far right that they were now were Liberal was ten years ago. I'd never vote Liberal. Ever. 
 
My politics remain staunchly left. It's just the party I once voted for shifted right.

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No more labour heartland

By: Denice (Registered ) on 03-10-2007 20:07

This is how I grew up, with my parents telling me the ALP was the workers' party, the only party that looked after the ordinary man in the street, etc - the sentiments expressed mirror exactly my experience growing up. However, in later life - starting with Gough Whitlam and followed by Bob Hawke, Paul Keating and Wayne Goss - my parents became disillusioned with the ALP and began to seriously question that their "beloved party" (as my father used to say) was still representative of the worker. My father cast his last vote a few days before he died of cancer and he very happily admitted he wanted to do so because for the first time in his life he was not going to vote ALP but voted Liberal instead, such was his disappointment in the party which supposedly was for the worker but which, in his opinion, had failed the worker.

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