Some Thoughts On David Shearer

Some Thoughts On David Shearer

Wellington – Many commentators have written off David Shearer as a possible Labour leader and they are probably right for many reasons.

Some commentators have queried what he possibly has to offer and even though I once felt the same, they are as wrong as I once was.

I first met Shearer following him during the Mt Albert by-election campaign.

Phil Goff had spoken glowingly about the man he had personally parachuted in from Iraq to take over Helen Clark’s electorate, but I just didn’t get it.

Shearer was nice, affable, clearly intelligent and a warm guy.

A person I would have been happy to have a beer with, but he was just a bit too dull and uncharismatic to fit the bill of ``future leader’’ that some were giving him even then.

Shearer romped home in Mt Albert as he stared on in amazement at Melissa Lee’s campaign meltdown in a safe Labour seat.

Typically of Labour (and possibly due to Shearer’s modesty) they did not reveal his strengths until after the ballots had closed at the victory party.

A video was played from various UN peacekeeping missions around the world where Shearer had served and led people. I had read about his career, but I didn’t really understand what it meant.

There were tales of his heroism and calmness in impossibly horrible situations, his ability to deal with most difficult people and scenarios where there were no real winners and the best outcome was the least bad one.

These people were clearly inspired by Shearer, who missed his leadership and while happy for him were bemused at his decision to go and be a back bench MP in a quiet backwater of the world.

That was then I realised Shearer could be a leader and would probably be a good one.

He has the ``back story’’ as they say which wins people over.

Key’s rise to popularity started from a powerful back story. Boy brought up in state house by solo mum, left New Zealand to win his way to the top of the commercial world in New York - manages to remain a nice guy, and despite his riches comes back to New Zealand out of love for the country to save it from its woes.

It would only take an amateur spin master to create an even more compelling back story for Shearer.

The boy from Papatoetoe who left New Zealand to feed the starving in Somalia and bring peace to Rwanda, Liberia, Albania, Lebanon, Afghanistan and Iraq. During all this horror, he remained a humble, nice guy before returning home to save New Zealand from its woes.

If that is not a backstory to compete with Key then nothing else will, but he is currently less than a 10 percent probability to be the next Labour Party leader.

That is politics I guess.

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