Anybody else find it odd that the Rio Christ Statue is one of the new "7 Wonders"

[edhopper]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/main.jhtml?xml=/travel/2007/07/09/etsevenwonders109.xml
I understand that this was a worldwide poll and the results can get skewed. But this is like that poll a couple of years ago that had Ronald Reagan as the Greatest American of All Time.
I can see why every other candidate and choice was part of this. But except for that fact that the statue is of Jesus, and it's pretty high up, what qualifies this as a Wonder? It's not the biggest statue in the world. It's not a particularly good sculpture. There are other bigger and better statues all over the world (The Statue of Liberty for one.)
My guess is that certain Christians (not all, this is not Xian bashing) so need to subjugate every thought to their religion that they voted over and over again to make this a Wonder.
I don't see why it was even included in the list.

BTW. this was a bit of a rant, but I had a WTF moment when I saw this.

[MousePlayingDaffodil]

1. Maybe it was just a lot of Brazilians . . .

. . . who voted over and over for it?

Not everything is a Christianist conspiracy.

[tanyev]

2. Jesus got a brazillion votes!

[malaise]

5. Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah

must have been Bush's base who remembered his mangled English. :rofl: :rofl:

[Coventina]

28. Humor aside, that's exactly what happened. The Brazilian gov't

encouraged their people to vote for it as a national pride thing.

And, they did!

[BlooInBloo]

51. hee!

[Tinksrival]

26. Are these people Brazilians?

:shrug:

[edhopper]

33. Boy,

is that a mediocre piece of sculpture!

[Javaman]

35. pretty tiny if you ask me...

as compared to the other "wonders". This one isn't really much of a wonder at all. More of an odd occurance.

[icymist]

47. What makes this statue wondrous?

Now if it were ten times the size and straddling two mountains, that would be a wonder. If it had a geyser inside it that spouted hot, gaseous water from it's mouth every hour, then that would be a wonder.

I know, I know.... the mere fact that so many people voted this mediocre statue as one of the wonders of the world....that alone is...well bewilderment!

[shain from kane]

3. Graven images are popular.

[papau]

4. It is an amazing image to this Christian - but would not make my top 7 list - but

I can see how the emotional impact is enough to pick up a lot of votes.

[laruemtt]

6. i just can't believe why the

grand canyon was not even on the list?!!!

[ccpup]

7. the grand canyon?

oh, you mean that big, dusty hole in the ground? :eyes:

[laruemtt]

10. yeah, that one. actually, there were no

natural sites at all. says a lot about where our anthropocentric populace's perspective on everything is. big hurdle to bridge if we're going to get people working on fixing global warming.

[MousePlayingDaffodil]

11. These were man-made "wonders" . . .

. . . Not natural wonders.

[laruemtt]

12. i thought it was "7 Wonders of the World" and

did not specify natural or man-made.

[MousePlayingDaffodil]

13. Well . . .

. . . you thought wrong.

[laruemtt]

16. well,

first time for everything... ;-)

[MousePlayingDaffodil]

18. In all seriousness . . .

I believe this contest was supposed to find the modern-day "successors," as it were, to the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, which, you will recall, were all man-made. So it make sense, I guess, that the only choices presented to the online voters were also those that were man-made.

[laruemtt]

20. i understand now. thanks for clarifying. n/t

[Subdivisions]

30. Here is a link to the 7 Natural Wonders of the World:

http://www.cnn.com/TRAVEL/DESTINATIONS/9711/natural.wonders/

Funny. It lists the harbor in Rio, rather than the statue, as one of the seven natural wonders.

[laruemtt]

31. ah, thanks. that's more like it! n/t

[whistle]

8. It would never have won had the Republican Jesus been on the list

http://www.muttmansion.com/ds/archives/001988.html

[Lasher]

9. Selections were impacted by national pride and international respect.

Many jeered when the Statue of Liberty was announced as one of the candidates. Portugal was widely opposed to the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

http://www.amherstdaily.com/index.cfm?sid=43206&sc=60

The whole world hates us. :-(

[Odin2005]

14. That's exactly why polls like this one are BS

I remember a couple years ago when they were doing the Greatest American poll and I screaming and cussing when Reagan was chosen as the greatest American. These kinds of things should be left to historians, the average Joe is too influenced by nationalism, recent politics, and current events. If that list would of been made before Bush destroyed this America's reputation the Statue of Liberty would be on that list.

[Mike Daniels]

38. Never mind that the Statue of Liberty was made in France

I would also imagine that the US still has more people clamoring to get inside our borders than Portugal does.

[genie_weenie]

15. Oh Jesus! Making a big statue should no longer quailfy as a wonder

of the world. New wonders are the Golden Gate Bridge or the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge in Japan.

But I'm sure the online vote for the jesus statue was cracked and cheated ala Barry Bonds allstar vote

[ClassWarfare2008]

49. Well, I doubt it was the Freepers this time.

Those Fundie Fuckwits wouldn't vote for a Catholic built statue, JC or not.

[genie_weenie]

55. It's a blatant lack of understanding of what makes

a "Wonder" of the World. It's not content, although the issue gets muddled since Authority figures for most of history have had god on their side, it's the engineering accomplishments that are the most impressive things.

Hence for example:

The arch in St. Louis
The Eiffel Tower
The Chunnel
The Golden Gate Bridge

etc..

[ThomWV]

17. In Cool Springs, West Virginia There is a plywood "Indian TeePee" Way Up On A Hill

Some idiots carried about a thousand pounds of wood and nails up the side of an almost vertical rock face and built this eye-sore of a replica "Indian TeePee" along with some sort of fake log fire and some other junk too. It is hard to immagine just how difficult it was to build that mess; doesn't make it a world wide wonder though.

[edhopper]

19. I think my point,

is not that it was a Christian conspiracy or that we needed an "American Wonder". It's that this choice lacked any of the aesthetic or historic values that all the other choices had.
I think people voted for it solely because it was a big honking Jesus. If it was a big statue of Simon Bolivar or Julio Iglesias on the mountain, it wouldn't have gotten a mention.
I can think of half a dozen better choices for the list. And not based on my own criteria, but based on the criteria of every other choice on the list. And these would include religious and even Christian sites. How about the Sistine Chapel for example. Or the Leshan Buddha.
http://www.cycnet.com/cms/2004/cycenglish/picturechina/index_pics/200508/t20050830_31220.htm

[MousePlayingDaffodil]

21. I thought that this . . .

. . . was your point: "My guess is that certain Christians (not all, this is not Xian bashing) so need to subjugate every thought to their religion that they voted over and over again to make this a Wonder."

And MY point was, the identity of the statue as that of Christ is likely incidental, and that if it were indeed a statue of Julio Inglesias, a bunch of nationalistic Brazilians would have still voted for it over and over again.

Maybe the Sistine Chapel would have made the list in lieu of the Rio statue if, for instance, Italians cared as much for this stupid online contest as (I suspect) a bunch of Brazilians did.

[edhopper]

32. I see your point, but

I have no data on how many votes came from Brazil. I don't have the stats for Brazil vs Peru, where Machu Picchu was chosen. You may be right that this was nationalistic. But then, why did Japan and Britain, with far more internet users, not make the cut.
I think the overwhelming reason for this vote was it's a big honking statue of Jesus.

[DrDan]

22. and the pyramids dropped . . .

the 7 "wonders" of the world - includes a statue - but not the pyramids . . .

why do I have th feeling bushco was involved . . .

[Lasher]

27. I'm confused about the pyramids

The pyramids of Giza, the only surviving structures from the original seven wonders of the ancient world, were assured of retaining their status in addition to the new seven after indignant Egyptian officials said it was a disgrace they had to compete.

http://www.amherstdaily.com/index.cfm?sid=43206&sc=60

So, now there are eight 7 wonders of the world?

:wtf:

[Perky]

23. A lot of catholics in Brazil

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

37. A lot of Brazilians in Brazil. Brazillions of them, in fact. -nt

[Perky]

40. I set you up for that didn't CPD...

yuck-yuck

[slj0101]

24. Oh, FFS.

This is the second thread I've seen devoted to the topic. It's just a freakin' statue. A lot of people live in Brazil. The statue of Christ Redeemer is one of the most recognizable landmarks in the world, especially in South America. The "new" 7 wonders vote is yet another meaningless poll.

This is not some vast Wingnut conspiracy.

[edhopper]

29. Again, let me state,

I do not think there is any conspiracy involved. I think many people voted for this on their own. But I think they vote based on their feelings to get a big honking statue of Jesus on the list. Not they they though it was a "Wonder".
I know the poll itself is meaningless, but what it says about the thoughts and motivations of some people is not.

[Tanuki]

25. Yep. To me (a Christian) it was a completely unworthy choice.

How a mediocre piece like that could beat out Angkor Wat and other breathtaking constructions around the world trivializes the whole concept of "7 wonders." At the risk of sounding elitist, I suppose it is just a commentary on the level of education, sophistication, and aesthetic values of the people who voted, but this project was presumptuous and ill-conceived from the start.

[TlalocW]

34. Is Andre the Giant still the 8th Wonder of the World at least?

eom

TlalocW

[MazeRat7]

36. I "wonder" how they got it up there... does that count ? -nt

[Ino]

39. What a bunch of BS!

This statue is only 105' tall. The Giant Cross of Effingham is 198' tall! Plus it has Commandment Tablets with Rock-Shaped Speakers! Someone dropped the ball here.
:sarcasm:
http://www.roadsideamerica.com/tips/getAttraction.php?tip_AttractionNo==4116
http://imgred.com/

[applegrove]

41. I think the statue mixed with the local scenery is stunning. I always have

been stunned by the juxtaposition. Beautiful. And it isn't as though some of the others on the list were not religeous icons. I just like it and am glad it made it on the final list.

[truebrit71]

42. I prefer the local scenery that wears thongs...

....but that's just me... ;-)

And yes, the local scenery down there is stunning!!! :evilgrin:

[applegrove]

44. Well I'm a woman so I would never go to the beach to see the scenery.

I just like the geological.

[SoCalDem]

43. Ohhhh Jesus!!

[maxrandb]

45. One of the neatest things when

my Navy ship pulled into Rio was using Jesus as a Navigation Aid.

During the Sea and Anchor Detail Brief, the Conning Officer was reviewing the track for entering port and said; "When Jesus bears 220, we'll come right to course 256 for 5 minutes"....

[Aristus]

46. I always liked Christ Of The Andes better anyway:

http://cache.eb.com/eb/image?id=4006&rendTypeId=4

[KAT119]

48. Yes, very odd-1 could vote many times =X many xtians/churches etc.

Amazed the Vatican wasn't in the running if specific religions qualify....

[liberalEd]

50. Who cares

Yet another pointless list.

Why seven anyway? What's wrong with five, or ten, or 50?

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

52. I think Christ the Redeemer is considerably bigger than the Statue of Liberty.

And I'm not particularly impressed with the SoL as a sculpture. I prefer the smaller Parisian one personally.

[edhopper]

57. The Statue of Liberty is

151 feet tall NOT including the base. The big honking Jesus is 105 feet. Are you including the hill it is on?

[spoony]

53. What is this? "Post stupid things about Christians" day?

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

56. I can't believe Chichen Itza made it.

Fucking God damn Yucatec Mayans had to ruin the list for everybody.

[The Stranger]

54. There's no wonder in that.

:wtf: Anyone can build a fucking statue these days.