The Australian Bite
Dogs, words and rescuing kids from traffickers
3 September 2010
Listen and download: MP3
Hi, I’ve been off at a big UN Conference in Melbourne this week, some highlights of which I’ll bring to you next week on the Bite. So this week’s Bite is a repeat program. You’ll hear about an educational DVD helping people in indigenous communities to keep their dogs healthy and happy. Linguist Kate Burridge talks about her recent book Gift of the Gob which gives a very entertaining insight into the many peculiarities of the English language as its spoken in Australia. And you’ll hear from the President of The Grey Man, an organisation devoted to rescuing trafficked children and women from the sex industry.
Healthy dogs mean healthier communities
In Australia’s Northern Territory, dogs are very visible part of indigenous communities. While the dogs have a cultural importance as companion animals, most are not desexed, and many are sick or have skin conditions leaving them visibly itchy and without much fur. Part of the problem is that there are so few veterinarians in rural and remote parts of the Northern Territory. But another factor is education, and to help with that problem video is now being used as a resource to help people improve the health of their dogs. Animal Management in Rural and Remote Indigenous Communities (AMRRIC), has launched the DVD as part of their national education strategy. Executive Officer Julia Hardaker says improving the health of dogs will improve the health of communities as a whole, and she speaks to Penelope Bergen.
Read more on this story on the ABC Rural Northern Territory site here
Find out more about the work of AMRRIC at their website
Gift of the Gob – morsels of English explained
The English language can be a mystery – and not just when you’re trying to learn it as a second language. For example in there are lots of words and phrases -that even native English speakers like myself say, without really understanding why or where they come from. Why, for example, do us Aussies insist on inserting the adjective “bloody” into every second sentence – and even in the middle of words – like absobloodylutely. Where does an expression like “carry on like a pork chop” come from, and how is it that words such as cheers, have moved from something you say as a toast, to something many of us write to sign off at the end of an email. Well a new book by Monash University linguistics professor Kate Burridge, explains these and many other peculiarities of the language by telling us their history. The book’s called Gift of the Gob: Morsels of English Language History, and Kate Burridge joined me in the Radio Australia studios to talk about it.
You can read an article about the author and her work here in the Monash University Magazine
The Grey Man – rescuing trafficked children
The United Nations believes that over a million children every year are trafficked into slavery. It’s a huge figure, and charities and NGO’s all over the world are working to try and reduce the numbers. But one Australian charity has taken matters into its own hands. It’s called The Grey Man and it is a group made up of former SAS soldiers and police. So how do you catch child traffickers? Triple J Hack reporter Kaitlyn Sawrey speaks with the president of The Grey Man who goes by the name John Curtis.
*”The Grey Man” is a military term used by covert action forces. It means someone who operates under the radar, someone who blends into the background.
Music (not in podcast)
Sydney based singer songwriter Bertie Blackman is the daughter of renowned Australian artist Charles Blackman. She’s released three albums, including her 2009 album Secrets and Lies which won Best Independent Release at the 2009 Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Music Awards. This is her brand new single.
Artist: Bertie Blackman
Track: Peekaboo
Album: single only
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