I, for one, enjoy the odds and predictions threads, it’s just harmless fun. And if you are voting for songs that you like based on that metric alone (which is what you should be doing) then the threads have literally no bearing on the results of the contest.
The problem lays with “hit-chasing”. If you’re in this contest, especially as a newbie, solely to win …then you’re in it for the wrong reason. We all love a bit of competition, and yes it’s rewarding when a song that you love does well, but the objective of the BJSC is inherently to share and discover new music. Of course it’s also a way of bringing the spirit of the Eurovision Song Contest into your own home all-year round.
Can it be disheartening if a song you love doesn’t receive the same love from others in the contest? Yes. Can it be demotivating if you experience a DNQ streak? Of course. But don’t take it personally. If that happens, the reality of the matter is simply that your entry did not connect with as many people as you would have liked it to and that’s nobody’s fault.
As already stated, the contest is voluntary. It literally has no stakes. It occurs once a month, so if you get bored or feel uninspired there’s always another edition just around the corner. It’s getting quite tiring seeing all of these think-pieces pop up every few weeks because someone is disappointed that they didn’t qualify, or another person is pissed off that they were vetoed. I’m not saying that the process should be immune to tweaks and immalleable …but I can only imagine how the mods must feel having to see it an increasing rate as-of-late when the discourse (the majority of the time) seems to be coming from those who have just suffered a loss.
The more participants there are the better I think, but if you need a break - take it. If you disagree with a placement - voice it! Nobody’s stopping you. But calling for rule changes, questioning the influence of trivial things etc etc is not going to make anyone start performing better. If they stopped bookies from allowing bets on the Eurovision I don’t think San Marino would suddenly swoop in with a winner! :P
I vote for SF1 on Wednesday night pls!