Well, it’s been a while, hasn’t it? While you’ve been off vaping, watching Netflix, subsidising John Lawrenson’s hedonistic lifestyle, and spending 5 hours a day on TikTok, the constant dull screams of our dying planet have been going on in the background. And who better to let the cancerous news cycle make holes in their brain than me, some random dude that works for student media? Luckily, the mental health system in our country is so good, so when I inevitably have a breakdown from how grim everything is, it’ll only take me 12 months to see a therapist.
Firstly, it has come to my attention that some readers weren’t pleased with my coverage of alleged mental, and spiritual, and sexual abuse at Arise Church, as reported by Webworm, myself, RNZ, Stuff, 1News, Newsroom, Newstalk ZB, Critic Te Arohi and NZ Herald. I understand that it may be hard and painful to see these stories coming out, especially if that wasn’t your experience at Arise, and especially if those around you are dismissing criticism of Arise as a conspiracy by the mainstream media against religion. If any of that sounds familiar to you, I would encourage you to open up your mind to the possibility that others can have a different experience from you, and their experience is just as valid as yours. Those outside of Arise who are criticising it aren’t doing it because they are trying to attack Christianity as a theology – they are doing it because they care deeply about the safety of young people in our country, and over 500 vetted and credible reports have indicated that there were many young people at Arise that weren’t safe. I know this is difficult to process, and maybe you don’t want to believe it, but I would strongly encourage you with peace and love to step outside of your bubble and be open to thoughts and ideas from those outside of your immediate circle. Love ya!
The US Supreme Court has ruled that abortion rights for women are no longer protected by the consitituion. The overruling of Roe v. Wade proved to be a deeply unpopular move on the world stage, with world leaders Macron, Johnson, Trudeau, and our own Ardern expressing their disappointment, with Jacinda saying that ‘personal beliefs should never rob another from making their own decisions.’ The move seems to be motivated by religious beliefs in America, which I am hesitant to describe as ‘Christian,’ as the Christian bible never actually forbids abortion at all (in fact, the only punishment for an abortion according to Exodus 21:22 is a fine), and 70% of women who have had an abortion in America describe themselves as Christian. Christianity itself has never had a consistent view on abortion either, with some early Christian writers believing that abortion was morally permissable. Those behind the pro-life movement in the US can probably be more accurately described as Christian facists, because despite only 60% of Americans identifying as Christian, they still believe that everybody should follow their own skewed interpretations of scripture. Around 2000 years ago, a very nice Jewish man in the Middle East told everyone that they should be a little bit nicer to each other – perhaps those who want to take away the rights of women need to ponder on that a little more.
It is not a great time to injure yourself, with the health system in Aotearoa buckling under the pressure of Covid and the flu. While Health Minister Andrew Little told media that the ‘system as a whole is coping,’ it certainly doesn’t seem that way to both those working within the system, and those seeking support with their mental and physical health. The New Zealand Nurses Organisation describes their industry as in crisis, saying ‘decades of poor planning, inadequate funding and outright neglect have led us to a time of absolute crisis in terms of pay, staffing resources and morale across the nursing sector.’ Wait times in our hospitals have increased dramatically, with a Waikato woman who fell off her horse having to wait 11 days for surgery on her broken leg, and Stats NZ are also reporting that mental health is on the decline among our population, with 28% of us reporting ‘poor mental wellbeing.’ All of this comes at a time when all 20 DHBs across the country have been absorbed in to single entity called Health New Zealand, in the hopes that a major overhaul during a time of crisis will be a good thing, somehow. Good luck lmao!
Some other political shit has been going on too, I guess. At the Beehive, Aunty Jacinda has been overseas on a PR run, Luxon is creating his own circular media ecosystem by saying incredibly stupid shit and then apologising for it, and David Seymour is still saying incredibly stupid shit and then doubling down on it. New laws are being passed to try and curb the ‘excessive profits’ enjoyed by our tyrannical supermarket overlords, and Chlöe Swarbrick’s local council backed alcohol harm minimisation bill is picking up momentum after being pulled from the biscuit tin. Closer to home, the local body election cycle is about to begin, with Hamilton City Council hopefuls set to drop thousands of dollars on non-recyclable signage to destroy the planet with, both aesthetically and environmentally. What a joy!
