No, you don't get away with that one, Skymutt.  Cuomo made that shepherd remark in a completely different context and you know it.  I serve as a Deacon in my church, and while my Pastors, fellow Deacons and I do refer to ourselves as shepherds, we do not think of ourselves as being "above" our parishoners.  Quite the contrary, we see our leadership role as one of service; hence the term "minister".  And yes, Jesus did use that metaphor on more than one occasion, but He, too, realized that His role was one of service:

"For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give [H]is life as a ransom for many."

Matthew 20:28 (NLT) (emphasis mine)

 "Though [H]e was God, [H]e did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.  Instead, [H]e gave up [H]is divine privileges; [H]e took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When [H]e appeared in human form, [H]e humbled [H]imself in obedience to God and died a criminal's death on a cross."

Phillipians 2:6-8 (NLT) (emphasis mine)

So in answer to your question, no Jesus did not have contempt for His people.

No way that humility is the most important quality in a leader.  Was Patton humble?  MacArthur?  Chruchill?  Who was teaching these leadership development courses? 

With all due respect...you simply don't know what you're talking about.  I have personally studied the life of General George S. Patton, and can categorically state that he was indeed a man of great humility.  You may not think of him that way because of his flamboyant  personality and bombastic leadership style, but one of his guiding principles was always his concern for the well-being of his troops.  That is why he insisted on strict discipline for the men under his command.  He knew that discipline was the best way to increase a soldier's chances of surviving the rigors of combat.  Humility was also the reason he always insisted on leading his troops from the front.  He never asked any of his men to do anything that he would not do himself.

In closing, I leave you with this:

Humility, or the quality of genuine modesty and unpretentiousness, is often disregarded when describing traits of good leaders because it seems to suggest a lack of toughness and resolve essential in an effective leader. However, the humble leader lacks arrogance, not aggressiveness. The will to serve others eclipses any drive to promote self. Humility can even carry a certain spiritual tone, as the leader's activities are free of ego and self-aggrandizement--all in the best interest of the success of many versus the prominence of an individual.

from "Humility As A Leadership Attribute,"
LTC Joseph Doty, US Army
(Article in Military Review Magazine, Sept.-Oct. 2000)

Hopefully, I've given you something new to think about.

Regards,
Scott Perry

P.S.: Just because someone acheives a better outcome than I did doesn't make them "superior" to me.