UKRAINE’S BRITNEY VS. TURKEY’S KYLIE
by Wall Street Journal

National Post, (Canada)
May 25, 2006 Thursday
National Edition

This editorial appeared in Tuesday’s edition of the Wall Street
Journal.

Forget bureaucratic Brussels, seat of the European Union. The real
face of European unity was on display Saturday night in Athens,
this year’s host of the Eurovision Song Contest.

It’s the EU through a looking glass. For starters, Eurovision is
relaxed about who gets in. No need to prove democratic or regulatory
bona fides or meet geographic litmus tests. Armenia and Belarus take
part, as does Turkey, which won in 2003. Morocco once competed, and
Israel does every year, this year fielding a gospel group fronted by
Eddie Butler, the Israel-born son of black Jews from Chicago.

Unlike Brussels, the song contest is also a model of democracy and
transparency. Winners are chosen by country-by-country call-in votes,
in which listeners may cast their preference with any nation’s
band except their own. Ukrainian voters gave their highest rating
to Russia, having apparently forgiven the Kremlin’s gas-pricing
policy that threatened to leave millions of Ukrainians without heat
in January. Russian voters returned the affection, giving their
second-highest rating to Tina Karol, Ukraine’s answer to Britney
Spears.

The Turks, remarkably, gave their second-highest score to a historical
antagonist, Armenia. The countries have no diplomatic relations. But
what goes around evidently comes around: Turkey won top marks from both
France and the Netherlands, whose “no” votes to the EU constitution
last year were partly motivated by fears of future Turkish membership
in the bloc. While most bands chose to sing in English, Sibel Tuzun
belted out disco in her native tongue. Call her Turkey’s Kylie Minogue.

Europeans united in particular behind the winning Finnish band Lordi,
which performed, as it always does, in elaborately gruesome monster
costumes. Europeans may not be able to agree on much these days,
but horns and scales, a lead singer with a sonic growl, and lyrics
announcing the “arockalypse” have brought a troubled Continent
together.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress