I have been doing a lot of research lately on places overseas that I would like to visit/study abroad/WWOOF, and right now New Zealand is at the top of the list based on what I have read. Beautiful environment (and respect for it), low population density, friendly, educated, and tolerant population, great work/life balance, far away from most of the rest of the world...it seems to have everything I'd be looking for in a place to visit and maybe even move to one day. However, to really get a feel for the place I would like to hear from actual residents or people who have visited/lived in New Zealand. Feel free to answer any or all of my questions, as I'd love to hear from as many people as possible!

1) Just how progressive/liberal/open-minded is the population? I know generalizing is sometimes a bad idea, but I was wondering generally what New Zealand society is like in terms of progressiveness. I've heard that Australia's population, for instance, is generally very liberal, yet the government seems to act quite conservatively. Does a similar situation exist in New Zealand? For example, I read that gay marriage was recently legalized there. Was this widely supported by the population, or is there a large, angry segment of the population that is against it, such as in France or America?

2) Related to the prior question, what is the general New Zealander's view on marijuana? From what I've read, marijuana use is high there (excuse the pun), but legalization doesn't seem to be on the horizon. In the United States, marijuana usage has started to become more mainstream and accepted in the past few years, as evidenced by the recent legalization of it in Colorado and Washington state, as well as growing numbers of states looking to decriminalize it or legalize it for medicinal use. However, there is still a very strong and vocal opposition, led mainly by the older, conservative crowd, which continues to spout lies and misinformation about it. Is the split between supporters and opponents in New Zealand generally based on age as well, or do a lot of older people realize the benefits of it too?

3) With regards to foreign policy, the New Zealand government seems to generally support the United States and other western powers. How does the population feel about the wars/occupations in Iraq and Afghanistan? Were New Zealand soldiers deployed to those two countries combat-oriented, or more peace-oriented, such as engineers and medics? What is the general population's opinion on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict? If the United States was to start another war without provocation, would New Zealanders generally oppose it, especially if the New Zealand government wanted to send soldiers?

4) Is what I've read about the great work/life balance really true? Living in America, everything here is about work, work, work. People seem to be obsessed with "being the best," be it in school or at work, and it's not uncommon to hear about college students needing medication and therapy because of the amount of stress their classes cause them. It's also almost a point of pride among many Americans to see who works the most, and the politically-conservative element of the population believes that everything can be solved with hard work (i.e. poor people wouldn't be poor if they just worked harder). It's not uncommon at all to hear about people working 50, 60, or 70 hours a week in some cases, which leads to a population full of overstressed, overworked, and consequently unhealthy (both mentally and physically) people. How long is the typical New Zealand work week? How long is the typical New Zealand school day? Are university students as constantly-stressed as American ones? Is the education system still based on learning, or has it been corrupted like the American system to where a lot of schools simply teach to tests and are only concerned with letter grades, not seeming to care whether students truly learn or are even interested in learning? I am so unbelievably sick of the American obsession with work, and would love to find a place where everything moves slower and people understand the importance of relaxation, hobbies, friends, family, time off, etc.