Vote Bill Shorten last

I live in the federal electorate of Maribyrong. In the old  days, it was a semi-rural seat that switched back and forth between the conservatives and Labor. Moss Cass, noteworthy for being Minister for the Media at the fag end of the Whitlam regime, took the seat in the late 1960s and it's never looked  in danger since.

Which is a bad thing. Maribyrnong was held by Bob Sercombe, one of the serial under achievers of Australian politics, from 1996 to 2007. The factions gave Sercombe the bum's rush and inserted Bill Shorten as member. This simply confirms that the factions select the member for Maribyrnong, not the voters. It's now the sort of seat where, as they say, you could put up Billy the blacksmith and he would win. You could probably say if the voters are that dumb, they get the member they deserve

I will declare my interest. Bill Shorten was an Australian Workers Union (AWU) official who exploited the Beaconsfield mine disaster to the hilt, using the private jet of Dick Pratt, a man who like to have a bet each way, to traipse around Australia. Bill never did anything as common as to perform manual labour. It's said the hardest day's work he ever did was collecting dues from the fruit pickers. I, on the other hand, was a paid up member of the AWU when I was a plant operator and trades assistant on the Panawonica iron ore mine in the Pilbara. I don't believe Bill comes from a background of wealth and privilege. He did go to Xavier, Melbourne's top Catholic boys school, but as with many boys,  paying the fees meant their families had to make economies.

Bill is a master manipulator. If the HSU's Kathy Jackson is to be believed, he is quite capable of crudely putting on pressure to get his way, but that shouldn't amaze anyone with experience of union and ALP politics. What I object to is that Bill hasn't actually achieved anything in the Parliament. His financial services reforms have a long way to go before they are law. Bill floated for a few days a joint ticket with Kevin Rudd  for the Prime Ministership, but it sank like a lead balloon. Where's his legislative record?

I have met Bill Shorten. In my opinion, he has the personality of a piece of wet blotting paper. The frightening thing is that he is likely to be Prime Minister one day. The way to stop him is to vote Bill Shorten last.