Crossing the 'dutch' to get 'hutched'

This phrase appeared in The Age, accompanying a small cartoon. 

This text has a dual purpose in primarily entertaining its audience and, on a less explicit level, encouraging them to perceive a contentious issue in a more casual context. The idea at hand is the legalisation of gay marriage in New Zealand.

This classic equilibrium employing elements of humour is a stylistic technique which enables writers to put forth a potentially unsettling or contentious topic within a context that fosters a more relaxed tone for it to be explored. Humour can be extremely pervasive and effective in its ability to strip one's defences towards a taboo subject and functions exceptionally well to do so in this example.

To infer the location of where this event has taken place, the author has opted to change the spelling of the words 'hitch' and 'ditch' in order to reflect the way in which New Zealanders pronounce the 'I' vowel sound. These lexemes are also commonly used colloquialisms used synonymously with 'to get married' and to describe the expanse of water separating Australia and New Zealand, respectively. These lexical items render the register of the text as relatively informal. This contributes to the overall casualness of the text and furthermore encourages the audience to consider the issue of gay marriage in a different light.

“Ditch” lessens the magnitude of the distance between Australia and New Zealand both geographically and culturally. In this context, its connotation aren't pejorative, in fact they render distance as practically insignificant, as though New Zealand shores are nothing but a step away from out east coast. Through this logic, the author is contending that it is only fitting that Australia follow suit to New Zealand and legalise gay marriage.