The risk for Labor
The risk for Labor is the more it tries to appeal to inner-city Greens voters, the more it alienates the mainstream majority of voters in the suburbs who do not share the Greens’ post-materialist values. It is a classic wedge. Labor’s “light green” inner-city candidates campaigned on asylum-seeker rights, gay marriage and cycleways. Labor was once the party of workers and was motivated by economic opportunity and social progress. Chasing Greens voters is a dead end for Labor. The real danger is losing votes on its right flank. The Coalition is Labor’s real enemy.
The Greens are a hypocritical fringe party. Many of their voters send their kids to private schools while lamenting funding for public schools. They want a fairer tax system while negatively gearing an extensive property portfolio. They worry about coal-seam gas mining thousands of kilometres from where they live. They enjoy trains, trams and buses close to the CBD but complain about motorways designed to alleviate congestion for commuters who can’t afford inner-city homes trying to get to work from the outer suburbs. Many are clueless about Greens policies to close Sydney Airport or introduce death duties. The Greens put emotion before sound policy.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/opinion/editorials/folly-for-labor-to-go-green/story-e6frg71x-1227286785540
Re death duties...I have mentioned this before Pete. I bet many who vote Greens did not know this was part of their policy platform.
However, prior to the last electon they had a re-think on their policies and this one has been abandoned (I wonder for how long).
Here is a good link re what they have changed.. Note the comment about the Greens made by Albanese at the bottom of the article LOL
http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/greens-go-mainstream-with-policy-rework-20121226-2bwl4.html