The Ukraine is not known for its open-mindedness, in fact, quite the opposite.

Verka Serdyuchka is a drag queen. He comes from the Ukraine and is the nicest person you could ever wish to meet. Over the years he's produced loads of stuff, met with approval from outside of the Ukraine (even in other Russian countries he's very popular), even IN the Ukraine he's quite popular but it's usually very clandestine support because the powers-that-be in the Ukraine have often had confrontations with him, claiming he's questioning their way of life and disrupting things. He has always carried on regardless. He's a European song contest dream! Everything he ever sings is totally Eurovision. This year he's been CHOSEN to represent the Ukraine in the Eurovision Song Contest. Here is a link which the BBC has reported about how angry the Ukrainian nationalists are about his entry and how they are trying to stop the Ukraine entering this year if they are to be represented by Verka : http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6516927.stm

Here is his entry : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHR491s3iSw

Come on now, make sure you vote for Verka!

If it gets to bad for him he could go to Las Vegas, they are loaded with them. He could most likely stay there and perform for the rest of his life with great reviews.

River

I will be in Europe for the Eurovision Song Contest this year. Oddly, anytime I go to Europe, it seems to be Eurovision time.

Even though I will have my mobile phone with me, I'm not going to vote. I do not want to incur the HIGH charges for using my US based phone in Europe. *shrugs*

I had a good time watching it in London the last time (2003, the year the UK got Null Vote) and this time I will be in Rotterdam. Woo hoo!

Not sure who I want to win... I need to go review the entrants, but a drag queen from Ukraine seems good enough to vote for.

Ahhh Huevon, don't be nasty to Verka!

Here's another link, this got loads of complaints because he sings most of it in, wait for it, Russian!! There is, however, one very nice line in Ukrainian for those of you who want to be purist about it!

Ty napyvsya kak Svynya (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5VHofWZ ... ed&search=)

It's possible, of course, that some former USSR people don't 'get' irony (I wouldn't dream of saying that Americans don't understand irony as we all KNOW they do!)

By the way, my Ukrainian is crap (despite the fact that my father comes from the Ukraine!), my Russian is ok and so, on a personal level, I find the song funny but it possibly doesn't work without translation. Fortunately, I have you honest lot to let me know!

Oh drat... The swedish contestant is a band, the Ark, led by this very nice young man, Ola Salo, who is bisexual - and he is very open about it and politicaly conscious too. He's one of the few male bisexual rolemodels we have. You can't possibly expect me to abandon him?

Hmm, but if I vote three times, twice for Ola and once for Verka it would be alright I guess...