Summary: You would be wrong if you thought that the reason Australians speak the way they do is because they are drunk all the time. Wrong, but not entirely wrong... Apparently, Australians speak the way they do because their ancestors, the first British settlers who set foot on the red dirt down under, were drunk all the time! Dean Frenkel from Victoria University in Melbourne claims that the unique Australian accent is derived in part from the well-established fact that early Australians frequently got drunk together and their alcoholic slurs shifted national speech patterns. Eventually the slurring pronunciations were so widespread that they were handed on naturally from parents to children. Interestingly, despite its alcoholic origins, a recent survey confirmed that the Australian accent is one of the most attractive in the world. Fair dinkum!! Meanwhile, the world continued to lurch from one ridiculous story to another: * A cracker that survived the sinking of the Titanic in 1912 sold for about $23,000 at a British auction, earning it the title of "world's most valuable biscuit." * A man dressed as Star Wars character Chewbacca was arrested in Ukraine for allegedly violating campaign laws with his support of Darth Vader. * An Italian man made the most of flood waters in Sicily by donning his Speedo trunks and taking a swim down the street. * A Chinese panda sanctuary shared a video of people performing "the happiest job in the world" -- a panda nanny. * A British man put his yoga skills to use in a bowling alley by having a friend roll a ball down his back for a slow-rolling strike. Call us this Sunday night between 10pm and midnight during the live broadcast of THE BIGGER PICTURE on 866-870-5752 (or 866-870-KRLA). Let us know what you're thinking about the state of the world we live in today!
