The Surprising Truth About Marriage in New Zealand

Nathan Seiuli of PILLAR @PILLAR_NZ reviews the opening weeks of New Zealand's 2026 election campaign, from sparsely attended launches and signwritten buses to a fresh wave of hoarding vandalism.

Nathan argues that damaging election signs is not political expression but vandalism of privately funded property, and warns that rising identity politics is pushing public debate towards emotion and tribalism. He makes the case for parties campaigning everywhere, even in neighbourhoods they are unlikely to win, and highlights the principle of subsidiarity: whoever wins on November 7, the greatest influence on people's lives and communities remains themselves.

He also reflects on serving at a volunteer-run community kitchen in Ōtara.

Chapters
0:00 Sparse crowds at campaign launches
1:39 The return of the campaign bus
2:51 Hoarding vandalism: not free speech
5:11 Where's the creativity?
7:10 Rising tribalism & praying for leaders
8:20 Identity politics & subsidiarity
10:12 Serving at an Ōtara community kitchen

#NZElection2026 #NZPolitics #Election2026 #CommunityService
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University of Otago international relations expert Professor Robert Patman assesses the Russia-Ukraine war as it heads into another northern winter, and explains why the outcome matters for New Zealand.

Professor Patman says Russia's slow, grinding gains in the Donbas have come at enormous human cost, leaving the front close to stalemate until Ukraine's recent breakthrough near Lyman. He looks at how drones are changing the war, from Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries to Russian missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian cities meant to break morale. He argues diplomacy has gone nowhere because Mr Putin will only accept a "land for peace" deal on Russian terms, and warns that European support is starting to crack as pro-Russian populist parties gain ground. Closer to home, he says New Zealand has a direct stake in Russia's defeat because of the precedent it would set for China over Taiwan and the Pacific, and notes rare cross-party agreement here against the invasion.

Chapters
0:00 Russia's summer push in the Donbas
2:10 Why the Donbas matters to Putin
3:03 Drones, refineries & a new kind of war
5:34 Ukraine's growing self-reliance
6:47 Why peace talks have stalled
8:10 Cracks in European support
10:07 Trump, China & Putin
12:02 NZ's stake: Taiwan & the Pacific
14:21 Rare political consensus at home

#Ukraine #Russia #NewZealand #Geopolitics #Taiwan


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- (NZ) Text: 8168 with the keyword: RHEMA

Who do you think you are, and does it decide how you vote?

Andrew Urquhart explores identity and politics with policy analysts, theologians, practitioners and everyday New Zealanders. He asks which groups we belong to, from iwi and hapū to whānau, culture and church, and whether those groups shape the way we vote.

Contributors weigh up the history of tribal voting in New Zealand, from class-based loyalties under first past the post to the more fragmented MMP era. One analyst argues voters are now less loyal to parties but more tribal about ideology, and warns of a growing habit of treating opponents as evil rather than simply wrong. Others question single-issue voting, unpack the compromises Christians face when no party matches all their values, and reflect on why every vote carries the same mana.

Episode 1 of 5, asking what's broken in Aotearoa New Zealand, whether politics can fix it and who's fit for the job ahead of Election 2026.

Chapters
3:10 Talking politics & religion
4:24 Who's your tribe?
5:49 Iwi, whānau & belonging
6:37 Voting like your family
7:39 Tribal voting then & now
14:33 The single-issue trap
18:45 Every vote, equal mana
21:53 Faith & common ground
24:33 Can government fix it?
25:31 Should there be a Christian party?
28:47 Closing thoughts

#Election2026 #NZPolitics #Identity #TribalVoting

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