The new 7 wonders of the world

[This is in response to a blogger who wondered who authorised the organisers of the 'new 7 wonders of the world'.]

The organizers have authorized and empowered themselves. In a democracy we are allowed that and we cannot grudge them on being original about the idea. However, what is not democratic is that it is not a one-person-one-vote affair. Apart from being able to vote again and again using different e-mail ids, you can also pay and buy the right to vote. So the whole exercise is a sham. Nevertheless, as the 7 ‘winners’ would have a lot to gain by way of tourist publicity, we might want to vote because we do not want to miss the propaganda benefits that the monuments we like would gain. It is a shame that the channels in India, while naturally calling for a vote for Taj Mahal, is not mentioning the Angkor Wat, a great edifice in honour of the Indian culture.