Brian Phillips pits the national anthems against one another:
A series of grueling heats has whittled this number down to 10 finalists, who will compete in four different events:
1. Transcendence of Historical Suffering (Freestyle)
2. 200m Inculcation of Hard-Won Optimism
3. Compulsory Tingliness
4. Volksgeist, the Expression of the Spirit of the People
The above video features the anthem for Montenegro:
How does a nation of 632,000 people — roughly a quarter the size of the borough of Queens — produce an anthem that … I mean, if a mountain range woke up one day, unfolded itself into a race of giant stone men, and marched off to war, each step crushing houses and splintering the Earth's crust, this is what they would sing while they marched. Are you planning to kill Superman? THIS IS YOUR LAIR MUSIC.
Last year the Dish ran an extensive six-part series on the "The Star-Spangled Banner".
The Dish 