(no subject)

[labellementeuse]

Oh, my god.

David Lange died last night.

I was born under his Labour government. So to be honest, I barely remember anything about him as Prime Minister; but he was undeniably one of the most personally influential leaders NZ has ever had, and also my second-favourite former PM (Peter Fraser is my favourite). Also, his policies on nuclear weapons have really, they've shaped the country, it's part of our national identity.

Oh, my god. I'm just... stunned. Shocked.

Comments

[sixth-light.livejournal.com]

Stunned? I mean...he was dying for months. That interview he did last week was reported with all the ominous "probably the last"s you need to know some famous person is not long for this world.

Of course, I am somewhat saddened, because he did define one of the most controversial well-known eras of NZ politics as well as being a charismatic and witty speaker. He will be missed. But I can't say I'm surprised at all.

[labellementeuse.livejournal.com]

I knew he was dying. But I didn't think it would be quite this soon (actually, I thought he'd hang on till after the election at least)- he did</i. just give that interview, which can't be the kind of thing you do when you think you only have, what three weeks to live? it might be interesting to see how this affects the polls. To be honest.