WE PERISH FOR LACK OF KNOWLEDGEMillions of people from across the globe joined in what was essentially a huge publicity stunt, voting via the Internet to choose a new list of the Seven Wonders of the World, announced Saturday.
And the seven winners, announced on the seventh day of the seventh month in the year '07, were: The Great Wall of China, the ancient city of Petra in Jordan, the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Machu Picchu in Peru, the Maya ruins of Chichen Itza in Mexico, the Colosseum in Rome and India's Taj Mahal.
And the seven winners, announced on the seventh day of the seventh month in the year '07, were: The Great Wall of China, the ancient city of Petra in Jordan, the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Machu Picchu in Peru, the Maya ruins of Chichen Itza in Mexico, the Colosseum in Rome and India's Taj Mahal.
BLACK FOLKS, HOW MANY HAVE YOU BEEN TO?
The lucky seven represented a collection of mystical, centuries-old places and more modern constructions of limited transcendence — chosen in a decidedly unscientific poll.
"We are celebrating the cultural diversity of our world," proclaimed actor Ben Kingsley, co-host of a glitzy ceremony late Saturday in Lisbon's Stadium of Light, where the winners were announced amid highly orchestrated fanfare.
"We are celebrating the cultural diversity of our world," proclaimed actor Ben Kingsley, co-host of a glitzy ceremony late Saturday in Lisbon's Stadium of Light, where the winners were announced amid highly orchestrated fanfare.
DIVERSITY? BLACKS ARE ONLY REPRESENTED BY ONE LOCATION
The popularity contest was the creation six years ago of Bernard Weber, a Swiss filmmaker and self-styled adventurer. Nearly 200 early candidate sites chosen by Internet balloting were scaled down by a panel of experts to 21 finalists, each from a different country, from Greece's Acropolis to the Statue of Liberty.
Online and telephone call-in voting on the finalists began a little over a year ago. Nothing prevented repeat voting by fans, citizens, governments, tourism agencies, you name it.
Online and telephone call-in voting on the finalists began a little over a year ago. Nothing prevented repeat voting by fans, citizens, governments, tourism agencies, you name it.
DID WE EVEN GET TO VOTE?
Weber promoted the project with flashy appearances in hot-air balloons, on camelback and inside a blue blimp, traveling to each of 21 final candidates.