Three-quarters of a century ago, with the Second World War raging in the jungles and high seas of the Pacific, an ex-prime minister sat down to articulate the aspirations for a nation in its gentler years of peace. Having witnessed the ailing United Australia Party he had once led become captive to the sectional interests of corporate elites, Menzies turned to formulate a political credo that would speak to the interests and values of the broad Australian mainstream.