Eurovision's Conchita: The Face that Launched a Thousand Russian Rants

  by Nomad

Austria's entry in the Eurovision Song Contest has created quite a controversy. In fact one Russian politician has called for a boycott and for the singer to be banned from this year's program. What does this really say about Russia today?

Eurovision Song Contest

Most Americans have probably never heard of the Eurovision song contest. It's kind of a shame. Then again, most Americans probably wouldn't appreciate the fun of it. 

That aspect of the long running song contest is a little hard to describe. Not a lot of people take it very seriously- as a contest of real talent. Practically every year, the best performer is passed over for something a little more trite, or silly or bland. It can be so cheesy that it borders - and often goes beyond the borders- on farce. 

Nevertheless, Eurovision pretends to take itself very seriously. And it is certainly entertaining. Since it began in 1956, the basic formula has been the same. Each member country (including for some peculiar reason, Israel and Turkey.) submits a song to be performed on live television and radio and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition.

The elaborate voting process nearly always falls along predictable political lines, with nations throwing their votes to their national pals, instead of the best performance.
Cyprus votes for Greece but Greece never votes for Turkey. Germany- with it large Turkish population- generally votes for Turkey. Macedonia never votes for Greece and so on and so on.
Talent isn't really much of a factor in the voting process. 

For that reason, the results provide a good argument about what's wrong with the idea of European Union. 

In spite of that, it's fun to watch.. in a weird sort of way.

Even before the contest kicks off this month, one candidate has already caused a stir. You only have to look at the photo above to understand why.

Gender-bending singer from Austria, Tom Neuwirth, (stage name: Conchita Wurst) could never be accused of taking himself too seriously. In one interview, he revealed that his look was only a way of getting attention. (Implying perhaps- in a rather covert way - that talent alone won't do it at the Eurovision contest.) 

His over-the-top get-up is what Kim Kardashian would look like after two weeks on a testosterone skin patch.

Soccer Violence: Fatal Flying Toilet Bowls in Brazil and Horse Punching in Bristol

by Nomad

In the world of soccer- better known as football outside the US, the support of fans very often reaches a fevered pitch. The possibility the things will get out of control is always on the minds of the authorities. In two unrelated incidents yesterday, things not only got out of control, they became dangerous and bizarre.

Compassion and Concern

by Nomad

Victimhood Chutzpah: SUV Driver Sues Family After Fatal Cycling Accident

by Nomad

A Canadian driver has opened a legal case in an Ontario Superior Court against the family of a teenage accident victim. Demanding compensation of over $1 million, she claims the tragic event has lessened her "enjoyment of life." 

In Hebrew, there's a good word for it. Chutzpah.  It means "extreme arrogance, brazen presumption." 

What other word can express the audacity of the motorist, who after hitting and killing a teenage bicyclist, has now decided to sue the estate of the boy's family for over $1 million? That takes a hell of a lot of nerve.

The Ottawa Citizen reports that lawyers for Sharlene Simon filed the claim last December in Ontario Superior Court, alleging that she “has sustained and will sustain great pain and suffering,” including “a severe shock to her system.” On top of that, according to the court documents, Simon's  "enjoyment of life has been and will be lessened.”

May Day: America's Induced Amnesia of International Worker's Day

by Nomad

All around the world, workers are celebrating their own special holiday. Noticeably absent will be American workers. Since its creation, International Workers' Day -if it is ever mentioned at all- has been portrayed as some kind of Communist propaganda tool. 

In fact, it is as American as apple pie. 

As if any more proof were needed that the American public has been brainwashed by the ruling class, there's the example of May Day, otherwise known as International Workers' Day. 

It's a pity that so few Americans are aware of the historical origins of the worldwide May Day celebrations and protests. It is something that America should definitely be proud of.  The struggle for worker rights is ongoing and the lack of American participation has always been a handicap to the worldwide labor movement. 

Stranger still, those who are aware of the workers' holiday might assume it was a product of a Communist country like the Soviet Union or Cuba or China.  

However, the birthplace of this idea was Chicago back in 1886. Declared two years earlier, it was also the day in which an eight-hour work day was established as a standard. Here's a good source for that history.

At its national convention in Chicago, held in 1884, the Federation of Organized Trades and Labor Unions (which later became the American Federation of Labor), proclaimed that "eight hours shall constitute a legal day's labor from and after May 1, 1886."

On May 1, 1886, more than 300,000 workers in 13,000 businesses across the United States walked off their jobs in the first May Day celebration in history.

Today, May Day is celebrated all over the world. In fact, May 1 is a national public holiday in more than 80 countries. except in the US. 

Take at look at this: