What's the obsession with New Zealand and Ardern? Is New Zealand in a geopolitically conflict-ridden part of the world? Does it have a stake in aggressive diplomacy, or tremendous stakes in domestic politics? It is a prosperous first world country at a convenient location. I know

...that a lot of people like Ardern because she is a good-looking woman who appears to be a sane and sensible politician, similar to Sanna Marin in some ways. I understand that many people want to see more women in leadership positions. That's all fine. (Whether we want "any"

woman in a leadership position just because she is a woman is the subject of another debate, one in which very dangerous tendencies are revealed). But at the end of the day, women leaders and politicians are just that; they play in the game of power, they make decisions based on

their positions and reality. Thatcher, Ciller, Gandhi, Bhutto were women, as well, and each one of them made decisions that many Ardern supporters (or idealizers?) today would disagree with, to put it mildly. I see a lot of people supporting Harris for the wrong reasons, as well.

If you're supporting her because you really like her politics, her consistency, her principled stance, her great achievements, (and it is debatable if she has these aspects; I see an opportunist) that's one thing. But if you're supporting her just because of her gender/identity,

don't turn around and act all disappointed when she doesn't deliver what you expected. It is time we freed ourselves from these cages of the mind before they become cages for all, whether we accept them or not.