From Newsgroup: nz.politics

Back in 2015, this guy came from the US to NZ on a working holiday,
and ended up getting a job at the CopperfieldrCOs Caf|- inside the
Parliament building <https://www.thepost.co.nz/travel/360788975/ten-years-ago-i-was-american-working-beehive-i-wish-id-never-left>:

One woman stopped when I didnrCOt react fast enough. rCLYourCOre new
here, arenrCOt you?rCY she asked, eyeing me.

My American accent confirmed it.

rCLIrCOll bet you have no idea who I am or what I drink.rCY I shook my
head, which led her to introduce herself. rCLMy name is Jacinda
Ardern, and IrCOll take a flat white on my account, please.rCY At the
time, I had no idea who she was, nor that sherCOd be running the
country three years later and responding to a mass shooting with
such humanity that her face would be projected onto the tallest
building in the world. But in the moment, she taught me something
small and profound about simply introducing yourself when someone
doesnrCOt know you, even when your ego or status tells you they
should.

That was the New Zealand way.

Democracy is such a fragile thing:

I also discovered the importance of speaking up for what you
believe in, no matter the issue. Before my year in New Zealand, I
had never voted in the US. I didnrCOt see the point. I thought my
voice was too small. Working at Parliament in NZ, even from the
service side, made politics feel human. It gave me a front-row
seat to the ripple effects of civic engagement, and to a political
system that, while imperfect, still seemed to function with
decency.

What is happening in the US could happen here, too. All it needs is
someone to sow sufficient disillusionment among the general populace
in the existing system here, just as has happened there.
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