Go here to vote for the new Seven Wonders of the World.
And feel free to help me complete my ballot - I am going with La Tour Eiffel, the Statue of Liberty, the Great Wall of China, the Taj Mahal, and Stonehenge, but that leaves me two short.
Voting closes Jan 1, 2007, so Act Now!
OT: RB said you might need help pulling this stuff together if you were to do that thing I'm nagging you about. If so, whistle.
Posted by: clarice | February 23, 2006 at 08:58 PM
Joe Biden's ego? Future generations will marvel that it was constructed by mortal men.
Posted by: Crank | February 23, 2006 at 08:59 PM
Petra and Easter Island statues + your list substituting Pyramids for Statue of Liberty or Eiffel Tower.
Posted by: Squiggler | February 23, 2006 at 10:12 PM
Ring of Kerry in Ireland and the Sistine Chapel in Rome
Posted by: maryrose | February 23, 2006 at 11:11 PM
Petra is certainly way up there on my list.
2007 may be way too soon, but pending eventual excavation, the tomb of Qin Shi Huang Di, China's 1st Emperor will surely rank among the top 7 -- not as much for the famed terra cotta army which I'd personally give a 7 on its own, but for the map of China with liquid mercury waters his mausoleum now appears to have contained in fact, not simply ancient lore.
If time allows, I'll try to find a more interesting link, because the entire complex of trenching and mound is exponentially larger than most folks imagine.
Posted by: JM Hanes | February 24, 2006 at 12:16 AM
Bush's election in 2000 has to rank right up there. Deus ex machina, and all that.
Posted by: Karl Maher | February 24, 2006 at 12:24 AM
I don't like most of the finalists. But of the list the only 5 I chose were the Kremlin, angkor wat(spelling)chichen itza and the great wall.
I think for something to be a true wonder it has to survive the test of time. I ignored the pyramids, because I see it simply as a dirt moving effort, the great wall was that, but it was a dirt moving effort spread over an entire nation, and executed over a long period of time. The Wall is a Wonder not becaust itself, for the most part, survived so long, but because the idea of the wall survived as long as it did, nowadays find a bunch of people to do one thing over a long period that aren't military.
Angkor wat is a completely useless creation built and designed only for faith. Thats amazing.
Chichen itza (which I assum includes the temple of the moon) is phenomonal, and the Kremlin is a work of beauty that is not only long lived, but beautifuly designed.
Though I think in truth if the list was a little more thorough, onl chichen, and angkor would still be on my list.
also would be nice if there were encyclopedic references for each of the entries, so that people could directly link to background information.
Posted by: Wickedpinto | February 24, 2006 at 12:38 AM
Deus ex machina, and all that.
Or vox populii, vox dei depending.
Posted by: Rick Ballard | February 24, 2006 at 12:48 AM
How did I skip the pyramids? Ahh!
Clarice - I'm thinking about it.
Posted by: TM | February 24, 2006 at 01:07 AM
Tom
This might not be a bad place to start, if you're looking for Inspiration.
A preliminary googling hasn't turned up the aerial rendering of the entire, valley-sized site, I'm looking for (and know I've seen somewhere), but here are a few related items:
A picture of the Burial Mound and an Index of available info (scroll to bottom of each page for pix).
These two sites start out from the 1940's Gaussman photo, which has retains a certain air of Mystery to this day.
I must be on the right track when the most Popular guy in the world is casting a vote for my choice -- with his feet of course.
Posted by: JM Hanes | February 24, 2006 at 01:22 AM
Somehow I have a hard time getting excited about putting the Eiffel Tower & the Statue of Lib. on this particular list. Certainly they were wonders at the time they were built, but seem less astonishing now, where a site like Macchu Picchu seems more wonderous now, than it probably did at the time.
Photos don't begin to do the Peruvian site justice, and I suspect that anyone who has ever actually been there would attest to the utterly unique effect it has upon the psysche -- remote & sheer, yet also self-contained, gentle & protected. It's just magical, in a way that even stands out from the other extraordinary locations on this exclusive list.
Posted by: JM Hanes | February 24, 2006 at 01:44 AM
Bamiyan, still.
The Netherlands.
A man, a plan, a canal, Panama.
The Internet, wonder of wonders.
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Posted by: kim | February 24, 2006 at 07:09 AM
I've only been to four of the nominees - the Sydney Opera House, the Eiffel Tower, Statute of the Liberty and the Acropolis, all worthy of a vote. My mother who has traveled the world and perhaps seen 80% of the spots says Machu Picho is by far the most impressive place she has been.
Posted by: Jane | February 24, 2006 at 08:24 AM
BTW you might add this place to the list:
http://www.michaeltotten.com/archives/001054.html
Posted by: Jane | February 24, 2006 at 08:31 AM
Mt. Rushmore.
Posted by: Baggi | February 24, 2006 at 08:43 AM
How about the World Trade Center? Just because it's been destroyed by barbarians doesn't make it ineligible as a wonder. This happened to many wonders. If the Tour Eiffel goes tomorrow, it should still qualify. And it would be nice to record the facts clearly once and for all. How about those Buddha statues in Afghanistan? I think I see a theme here ...
Posted by: Robert Speirs | February 24, 2006 at 08:45 AM
Upon completion, China's Three Gorges Dam would have to be included.
Posted by: spongeworthy | February 24, 2006 at 08:59 AM
How about the Great barrier reef? If you aren't a diver you are missing 3/4 of more of the world.
Posted by: Gary Maxwell | February 24, 2006 at 09:39 AM
Tom,
There is the world's largest church
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_of_Our_Lady_of_Peace_of_Yamoussoukro
and there is Hong Kong Airport
http://www.airwise.com/airports/apac/HKG/HKG_07.html
The Tokyo Airport was built on a man made island.
Near and dear to my heart is our one habitat that is not on the earth: the International Space Station
Cheers, AJStrata
Posted by: AJStrata | February 24, 2006 at 11:02 AM
Or, on a smaller scale, the Alhambra and its gardens:
http://www.gardenhomearchitects.com/Alhambra-The_Lions_Courtyard.jpg
Posted by: Patrick R. Sullivan | February 24, 2006 at 11:55 AM
JM Hanes
You are correct about Machu Picchu
I was there 2 years ago and it is indeed a marvel to see in person. I've also been to Giza and there are no photos that prepare you for the sheer size and weight of the pyramids
Posted by: windansea | February 24, 2006 at 12:08 PM
I haven't seen her in awhile but how about the young Sophia Loren?
Posted by: Barney Frank | February 24, 2006 at 06:54 PM
Angkor Wat? The Forbidden City?
Cheers from South China...
Posted by: Lonnie | February 25, 2006 at 11:19 AM
The 21 on the list are fairly hopeless. The Great Wall and the Pyramids are about all that really, really deserve to be there.
What about the Chunnel? Manhattan? Tranquility Base?
Posted by: Kevin Murphy | February 27, 2006 at 02:43 PM