Show Notes
Something in our cultural moment has shifted. Across the globe, people feel disconnected. They’re unsure of where they belong, yet paradoxically more tribal. Education is shaped by ideology. Politics infuses every sphere. We struggle to disagree well. These are symptoms of what Dr Sarah Irving-Stonebraker calls our “Ahistoric Age.” She argues that we are forgetting how to remember. The past is often treated as irrelevant, discarded in favour of narratives of self-fulfilment and self-creation. As our historical understanding dims, so too does our ability to comprehend the present. We become foreigners in our own time. So how might history ground us when it so often divides? Dr Irving-Stonebraker explores what it means to steward history, and explains how recovering lost and overlooked stories can restore a sense of belonging and inheritance. When we can’t remember the past, not only are we condemned to repeat it; we actually lose what holds us together.
More from Maxim Institute Podcast
In this episode of The Select Committee, gang politics have put Labour on the defensive. With Green and Te Pāti Māori MPs under fire for engaging with gang members on the campaign trail, Chris Hipkins is distancing Labour from their actions. Could the controversy cost Labour votes? Next: Labour wants to spend $28 million over four years to help get Kiwi kids off screens and onto sports fields. But will the funding actually get more children outside, or are there bigger barriers keeping kids indoors? Finally, is National making it harder for Kiwis to vote? Labour and the Greens are accusing the Government of voter suppression over changes to election enrolment deadlines and advance voting arrangements. Are these changes simply about making the election run more smoothly, or could some voters miss out? Wrapping the show is our favourite segment: Fantasy Beehive. MP performance is ranked using our highly advanced, completely proprietary technology.
In this episode of The Select Committee, National and ACT have just released their fiscal plans, outlining how they intend to manage government spending and debt. But how do their approaches differ? We look at their plans to return to surplus, the pressure on New Zealand’s finances, and ACT’s proposal to raise the superannuation age to 67. Next: Labour and ACT agree on something! Both parties want to make school uniforms more affordable for families. But should parents have greater freedom to choose what their children wear, or should school boards make that call? Finally, could The Opportunity Party decide who forms the next government? With recent polls putting TOP around the crucial 5% threshold, we examine its potential role as kingmaker—and whether Christopher Luxon could reconsider his refusal to work with the party. Wrapping the show is our favourite segment: Fantasy Beehive. MP performance is ranked using our highly advanced, completely proprietary technology.
In this episode of The Select Committee, we look at the latest Reid Research poll, which has National on 25.9%, raising questions about which, if any, National list MPs could make it back to Parliament—and whether some familiar names could be on the way out. Next: electricity, data centres, dry winters, and nuclear power. We take a look at Maxim’s latest research note, Understanding the Power Struggle, and ask whether we’re thinking about New Zealand’s electricity system in the right way. Finally, are political debates broken? With politicians surrounded by soundbites, social media, and focus-group politics, what would it take to make debates worth watching again? Wrapping the show is our favourite segment: Fantasy Beehive. MP performance is ranked using our highly advanced, completely proprietary technology.
In this episode of The Select Committee, we look at how The Opportunity Party has ruled out some of its biggest policies and laid out five bottom lines. So how workable would they be for each major party? Next: Chlöe Swarbrick wants the Finance portfolio. With Chris Hipkins ruling that out, how much influence could the Greens really have if their polling continues to rise? Finally, we look at tactical voting under MMP. Strategically splitting your electorate and party votes could change the shape of the next Parliament. Would you do it? Wrapping the show is our favourite segment: Fantasy Beehive. MP performance is ranked using our highly advanced, completely proprietary technology.
In this episode of The Select Committee, we take stock as Parliament wraps up for the term. What did the coalition win? We look at Resource Management Act reform, education changes and falling crime rates, and ask how much credit the Government can take? Next: where has it fallen short? We look at fiscal restraint, government spending and the size of the public service—and whether the Government has delivered on its promise to cut costs. Finally, we ask the big question: who came out on top within the coalition? National, ACT or New Zealand First? With the election campaign now underway, which party has made the most of its time in Government? Wrapping the show is our favourite segment: Fantasy Beehive. MP performance is ranked using our highly advanced, completely proprietary technology.