There is an awful feeling of déjà vu with Federal Labor at the moment. Flicking through the Latham Diaries reminds you that when in Opposition and up against a struggling government, it settles for the typical. Whether post Howard or post Abbott, Labor becomes, well, just Labor. Quick to abandon critical policy development and new thinking for what Latham correctly describes as ‘scab picking’ politics, unfortunately this seems to be the DNA of so called modern Labor.