Useless

So its come to this: after a week of silence on the Ports of Auckland dispute, the Labour Party has come out and confirmed that it is in fact a useless waste of space:

Yesterday Labour industrial relations spokeswoman Darien Fenton, who has been spotted on the picket line at the port, said her party was not taking sides in the dispute.

"We've been hoping that the parties will settle this, that they'll find a way through this."

Ms Fenton said Mr Shearer had been in regular touch with both sides, "and he's in contact with me and we're all discussing it regularly".

"Our strong view at this point is it's not helpful for politicians to get involved."

Its not quite Walter Nash's "neither for nor against", but it amounts to the same thing. Faced with a test of its core values, Labour flunked, preferring to sit on the fence rather than speak up. And as a result, their party's name is now an exercise in false advertising. What does Labour stand for now? It's certainly not labour. Instead, all they offer is an alternative set of political managers, a different set of bums on seats. And this is supposed to inspire people to turn out and vote for them? The only thing it inspires me to do is look for a party that actually appears to believe in something.

But its not just a case of undermining their brand. Labour has just sent a clear message to its supporters that that support is a one-way street. You can support them, but they won't support you. No self-respecting person should accept such a one-sided relationship.