Voting for 7 New Wonders of the Old World

The wife got me to get online and vote for what is the Seven Wonders of the World. When she first broached the subject to me over our morning breakfast, my mind reeled as to what I would say are the seven wonders of today's world.

She had a web site from the article she just had to share with me while I was trying to get through the NYTimes' Week in Review (Frank Rich, MoDo, and yes even Friedman – the NYTimes is flat), so later when I sought refuge at my laptop I went to the site to vote.

And what do I find? What is the collection of wonders for which I get to vote? A bunch of old stuff that supposed to still be wonders. Will wonders ever cease? I was amazed. I was agog. They were certainly not the things that rolled through my mind when my wife just had to share what she was reading. I never read the article she read although I did manage to get through Rich's piece about the Bushies going to the mattresses. (There is no use my linking to it since it's behind the NYTimes wall.)

I also read a very interesting post by one Craig S. Smith and Greg Myre, but more about that later (I hope).

Anyway I went and voted on what I thought was the Seven Wonders of the World. The first that came to mind was the internet. That "Wonder", we have not even come to know the full extent, wasn't one of the choices. I had to choose from a bunch of old buildings – or stuff like old buildings. Some wonder.

Anyway, I chose the following:

1. The Acropolis – not because I thought it was a wonder, but because I thought Greek culture was a wonder on modern civilization.
2. The Alhambra – I don't even know what it is. There's are a lot of clubs named after it but I had to have seven and this is the seventh one I chose.
3. Colosseum – (that's the way they spelled it) I chose it because of the importance Rome not because of its actual structure.
4. Eiffel Tower – Not because I think it's a wonder, but the use of steel reinforcement in construction has changed the world and skyscrapers are a wonder. Its straight lines that somehow invoke a curve are a wonder.
5. Great Wall of China – If it wasn't a "great" wall then it wouldn't be great. No doubt it was a wonder to behold for centuries, but still a wonder of the world? Come on, give me a break.
6. Stonehenge – I had to have seven, so I included it. It's very old. In fact, it's older than time itself – recorded time, that is. And no doubt, when it was constructed by ignorant people – ignorant now not then – it was quit a wonder, but now it comes up wanting. Once again, I had to have seven to I included it in my vote.
And 7. Statue of Liberty – I voted for it not because I thought it was some wonder of construction but rather because of what it represented: America. This great experiment of civilization we call America is on going. The phenomenon is happening right now. We are a blend of all peoples. This thing we call individual rights and personal freedom – given the current state of world affairs – is not to be taken lightly and a wonder into and of itself.

And so that is my seven wonders. I would have chosen the internet, television and radio, airplanes, maybe atomic power, but not a bunch of old structures, but that's the way the mind works when someone – over a bagel, cream cheese, and a couple of bloodies – suddenly tosses out to you: what are the Seven Wonders of the World.

So it goes.