Wonders! I've got Wonders for Sale!

June 2007 – We are closing in on the final selection date for the 7 wonders of the contem- porary world. The project has gained widespread publicity in all media around the world and I am here to question the legacy and validity of its selection process.

The New7Wonders foundation of the New Open World Corporation (NOWC) is a fantastic idea for a scam. I quite admire these people for trying but the historical community will hopefully scoff and toss aside the worldwide poll conducted by the Switzerland based organism. “Your vote counts! Help make history!” states their website. How is this impartially and objectively accomplished? 21 candidates can be voted for…as many times as you want. All you have to do is vote for the first free time and then pay each subsequent vote. The money is going to charity? Restoring historic landmarks? Promoting the new ones? No! I have no problem with this capitalist pursuit as a concept but when this corporation claims that it will “make history”, I start questioning myself as to how seriously these people take themselves. Surely, we must then also “make history” when we vote for the next has-been on American Idol.

The Corporation website also states impartial and objective terms and conditions such as: “NOWC reserves the right at its absolute discretion to exclude any votes that are cast”. This policy surely seems to strive to prevent fraud and massive bribery/vote-buying by individuals, companies or even governments. As an example, the Egyptian government complained and stated that the Great Pyramids of Gizeh’s nomination is a direct and voluntary insult toward the Egyptian Nation. The private corporation NOWC caved in to the demands and has since automatically elected the Pyramids as one of the new 7 wonders of the world.

Along with the Colossus of Rhodes, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Pharos of Alexandria, the Artemis Temple at Ephesus, the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus and the Statue of Zeus at Olympia, the Great Pyramids at Gizeh were revered as one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world. The term “wonder” referred to the mystical aspect of these locations, the miraculous aspect of such colossal man-made objects and the link with divinity that each one of them provided. It is true that a single man, Herodotus, chose this line up but at least he was a historian. Furthermore, Herodotus had nothing to profit from choosing one monument over another since no one could bribe him to push an agenda and most of these monuments would never have been seen by the common people.

This contest brings large sacks of money to NOWC, a nice plaque and potential tourism for the winning monuments and finally a top 7 that is meaning less due to a complete lack and disregard for methodology. These greedy people do not lack originality but they certainly lack subtlety. I invite you all to boycott or simply ignore this vote and watch the results fade into historical obscurity after the unveiling of the results on 7^th July 2007.

(Pictured: The Great Pyramids at Gizeh, only wonder left standing - The Sydney opera House, new contender)

End.