Why Labor
Time and again people ask
Why Labor? Why should they get my vote? What have they ever done for people? Like most questions it can be answered in long form or short form. The short form answer is that there exists in society a battle between ideologies. On the one hand, there are those who believe that all men and women are created on earth as equals and while we are here on the planet we have two obligations – the obligation of looking after each other and the obligation of looking after the planet on which we live. On the other hand, there is a group who believe in a world where there are the haves and the have nots, where if you work hard you will be rewarded more than the person who works less hard. They believe that the individual is paramount and we live in an economy not a Society. Also that your lot in life is determined by the circumstances of your birth. If you are born into a well off circumstance then you deserve that life, born into hardship and poverty, then you deserve that one. This ideological argument is full of intellectual and moral holes. It doesn’t take into account the duty we believe we have to look after all of society for the common good, that the dignity of being part of society is a right no matter the age, gender or circumstance of the individual. This includes but is not limited to the right to have a job and to be decently paid for that job, the right to have access to a first class Education and a first class Health system paid for by the community and which benefits the whole community. We believe that all persons should have the right to own property and that everyone should have dignity during their whole life. Material wealth is a transient thing that can only be utilised whilst we are living, however good thoughts and deeds for the society in which we live are timeless. The sharing of the great wealth of the nation is our goal, for the benefit of everyone. After all, individuals can only live in one house at a time, drive one car, caravan, aeroplane or boat at a time and whilst they are entitled to own each of those material things the gathering of wealth for its own sake is a waste of resources and opportunities for others to live their best lives. The Labor Party was formed as the political arm of the trades unions, to represent the working people in the governing body of Australia. This document describes the history of the struggle to achieve a degree of fairness and Social Justice in Australian Society. It is the long answer to the Question. It is a struggle which is ongoing and which can only be achieved by hard work by members supporting their elected representatives. The whole focus of the Labour movement over the years is as a combination of workers with a common set of values. It is not about individuals and some misguided notions of leadership. The whole movement and their collective values are the prize for all workers. It highlights some of the struggle of earlier working class communities in history. Such history is being repeated as you are reading these words. Examples of these repetitive historical circumstances can be found here. The struggle for a fair society is never ending and the authors of this document believe that the Australian Labor Party will continue to develop policies for all Australians to achieve that fair and balanced society. |
* Authored and Edited by John Collins and Vince O’Grady August 2019
**We are aware that not all cited links are working because of changes to outside url changes. We will endeavor to rectify as best we can. |