Board 8 > What four monuments are on the United States Monuments Mt. Rushmore? +TIEBREAKER

(+) Yeah! (+)

If it's big, American, famous, and a manmade monument to something American, it will probably count

Well, OK, but this definition excludes a lot of stuff. Is the Empire State Building a monument - it was built for commercial reasons. Same with the Golden Gate Bridge. Do they count, or is it only structures built to be icons?

I think if a foreign person views it as a big American man made monument, regardless of intent it qualifies for this Rushmore

im keeping it pretty loose for this one to make it interesting so that Washington/Lincoln/statue of liberty/Mount Rushmore doesnt dominate (although I think it will regardless)

ZenOfThunder posted...

I think if a foreign person views it as a big American man made monument, regardless of intent it qualifies for this Rushmore

im keeping it pretty loose for this one to make it interesting so that Washington/Lincoln/statue of liberty/Mount Rushmore doesnt dominate (although I think it will regardless)

Noteworthy: I'm a foreign person and I consider the White House to be a monument. IE something I would go to, just to see, if I were to go to the US
Empire state building, golden gate bridge, hoover dam, all monuments to me

Yeah I would vote the White House if it's eligible tbh

"Joe Biden is in there. maybe he's takin' a mean shit"

...in that case that changes things quite a bit.

starting with the white house. world trade center would also have a huge reason in that case too since, while a major tourist attraction in its own right, had its collapse signal a massive global shift.

hell you can probably include some parts of disney world but maybe not considering these aren't uniquely american anymore. and coca cola museum ain't big enough for the next super american thing i could think of.

oh yeah, i can't think of a stadium that'd be big enough here but i mean, football and baseball would be the gimme options. but at that point we're having a question of is it best as a representative as a man made monument, tourist attraction, or does it even matter.

I did not consider Disney World but that might be the right answer

i think it's gotta be very "american," be recognizable worldwide as "american" and be something people would travel to america just to see

I think you could make an argument for Cinderella's castle even though that isn't inherently "american" in nature and you can find copies of it outside of America

realistically even when I'm being liberal with the rules you still mostly get the same options. Statue of Liberty, Lincoln Memorial, Washington Memorial, Mount Rushmore, Liberty Bell. Maybe Empire State Building and Golden Gate Bridge fly up the list with looser rules. White House definitely gets elevated there as well. Hollywood sign starts looking like a more solid pick.

You could argue McDonald's Arches but I would throw that out for not being a specific monument

You're also going to still have purists who won't deviate from the core monuments so it would be an uphill battle to start arguing for Yankee Stadium against the true greats

PS I would throw out Disney World because that's not one solid monument but a collection, you'd need to pick something in Disney World like the Walt statue or the castle

My issue with 'White House' is that it's a place where actual things happen and work is done. To me a monument should be like a showpiece. Something that only exists to be looked at.

If you're going to argue for a stadium, it'd be Fenway Park or Wrigley Field

The Washington Monument votes are weird imo

I feel like that's one that iconic by name but who actually cares about it

Mount Rushmore
Statue of Liberty
Washington Monument
Hollywood Sign

Johnbobb posted...

The Washington Monument votes are weird imo

I feel like that's one that iconic by name but who actually cares about it

big pointy thing look neat

yeah, i was thinking Epcot Cener or the castle but those have other countries with them so it feels significantly less "American." and it's funny that in a nation so full of sports we don't have one clear "this stadium is THE ONE" and it's viewed as just tourist attraction for each state.

KamikazePotato posted...

My issue with 'White House' is that it's a place where actual things happen and work is done. To me a monument should be like a showpiece. Something that only exists to be looked at.

in fairness it's also where trips and tours are had too. traditionally it wasn't unusual for that to be part of a tourist attraction.

I voted for the Washington Monument because it's instantly recognizable

And it had a cool scene in Spider-Man: Homecoming.

do you guys think if the Washington Monument wasn't in a pre-existing tourist hotspot that people would still give a shit

say, for instance, it was built in Mount Vernon, where I don't think a lot of people go unless they are history diehards

would people flock to see a random obelisk still?

I mean people travel to the middle of nowhere to see faces in mountains

Mount Rushmore
Statue of Liberty
Washington Monument
Lincoln Memorial

Washington Monument
Lincoln Memorial
Statue of Liberty
Hollywood Sign

I refuse to vote for Mount Rushmore. I went there a few years ago as part of a family road trip, helping my parents move, and not only was it fairly disappointing, we ended up staying at a pretty crappy motel because everything around was somehow booked.

Statue of Liberty
Mt Rushmore
Petroglyphs
Pearl Harbor

Nominate: Sports Stadiums.

Statue of Liberty
Mount Rushmore
Washington Memorial
Hollywood Sign

ZenOfThunder posted...

say, for instance, it was built in Mount Vernon, where I don't think a lot of people go unless they are history diehards

would people flock to see a random obelisk still?

We actually had a field trip to Mount Vernon in Elementary School. Mount Vernon is actually still a pretty common destination. We also went to Ferry Farm where George Washington was born. Both of which are pretty popular places for people to visit. Not just diehards to history. Fun fact: Walmart tried to buy the land around Ferry Farm at one point.

Anyway this is an interesting question. Of course we first have to decide what IS a monument. Because there's a difference between Landmarks and Monuments. The dictionary defines it as thus: a statue, building, or other structure erected to commemorate a famous or notable person or event."

That's pretty different from a landmark, which I'd argue for example the Hollywood sign is. Hollywood Sign is a landmark, and would probably be on the Mt. Rushmore of American landmarks.

The Statue of Liberty is probably the most obvious choice for this list. It was a symbol that greeted immigrants when they first arrived on Ellis Island. Her famous words "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free" though words we haven't always lived up to, are words we've always aspired to.

Next, I would say the Lincoln Memorial. From there, Martin Luther King Jr. gave his famous "I have a dream" speech. It's featured on our money. It's on the other side of the Washington Monument. And I believe it's the most visited American monument at 7 million people per year. (By comparison, i believe only just over half a million visit the Washington Monument!)

Third, would be the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, which is the second most visited memorial, just behind the Lincoln Memorial at almost 6 million people!

For the fourth, I almost want to say the World War II memorial, but I feel it's still too new. And I feel like though fewer people visit the Washington Monument, it's extremely recognizable. And it overlooks so many major memorials. Though it also feels weird to list three monuments that are placed so close together. Mount Rushmore itself is pretty impressive, and gets around 2 million visitors per year (that's more than twice the population of South Dakota, where it resides!) At the same time, I feel like putting it on there when it's on stolen land is a bit iffy, and might just keep it off. Between the Washington Monument and the World War II memorial, I feel the recognizability of the Washington Monument earns its place. Some people probably aren't even aware of the World War II memorial (though they should be!)

Lincoln Memorial
Statue of Liberty
Vietnam Veterans Memorial
Washington Monument

Mount Rushmore
Lincoln Memorial
Washington Monument
Statue of Liberty

I knew I should have changed my Super Metroid vote to Street Fighter II, the discourse around the latter got to my head. I still would to get Donkey Kong Country on the Rushmore!

Mount Rushmore
Statue of Hollywood
Washington Memorial
Hollywood Sign

warning non-american vote

Statue of Liberty
Hollywood Sign
Grand Canyon
Golden Gate Bridge

being born in a country where the most iconic location in the country is either an opera building or a bigass red hill in the middle of nowhere, and would be comfortable with describing the latter as a natural monument, i'm going to cheat and count the grand canyon for this lol

i'd kind of like to see what people would actually say for australia or new zealand here

UF8 posted...

i'd kind of like to see what people would actually say for australia or new zealand here

Sydney Opera House
Kangaroo Palace
Bloomin' Onion
Vegimite

Thorn posted...

i propose the McRib

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/4/461ceaa5.jpg

NFUN posted...

so true

Statue of Liberty
Lincoln
Vietnam Vets

Mothman Statue

how could we all forget...

It sounds like quite a few people are going beyond the official National Monuments to vote for anything that is an attraction or an unofficial monument, so....

9/11 Memorial
Statue of Liberty
St Louis Gateway Arch
Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota

Mount Rushmore
Statue of Liberty
Lincoln Memorial
Washington Monument

ZenOfThunder posted...

im keeping it pretty loose for this one to make it interesting so that Washington/Lincoln/statue of liberty/Mount Rushmore doesnt dominate (although I think it will regardless)

If you didn't want Washington/Lincoln to be such obvious picks, you shouldn't have changed it from "landmarks" to "monuments".

Statue of Liberty
The Hollywood Sign
Mount Rushmore
Washington Monument

I voted for the four things mentioned here I could visualize just reading the name. I'm sure all your memorials are nice but yeah.

Statue of Liberty
World War II Memorial
Vietnam War Memorial
Lincoln Memorial

ZenOfThunder posted...

manmade

Seanchan posted...

Grand Canyon

UF8 posted...

Grand Canyon

I wonder how long it took them to dig that

Bitto posted...

Statue of Liberty
Washington Monument
Mount Rushmore
Hollywood Sign

easy

Replace Washington Monument with White House.

Mount Rushmore
Statue of Liberty
Washington Monument
Lincoln Memorial

Bitto posted...

Replace Washington Monument with White House.

Oh yeah, agreed, I can visualize that better. I had the exact same list.

MZero posted...

I wonder how long it took them to dig that

I looked up National Monuments and that came up!

Statue of Liberty
White House
Mount Rushmore
Hollywood Sign

Statue of Liberty
White House
Hollywood Sign
Independence Hall

Statue of Liberty
White House
Lincoln Memorial
Washington Monument

cyko posted...

It sounds like quite a few people are going beyond the official National Monuments to vote for anything that is an attraction or an unofficial monument, so....

Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota

May as well vote for "Casey, IL" as a whole lol as that town has like 15 world records of biggest things

Xtlm posted...

May as well vote for "Casey, IL" as a whole lol as that town has like 15 world records of biggest things

As someone who lives nearby and has visited the town, I should probably show my support for it

Wanglicious posted...

that's a rough poll and situation.

Mount Rushmore
Lincoln Memorial
Washington Monument

only 3 on that list that sprung out as 'yeah these are seen and used in things.'

take out Lincoln and Washington Memorials. new 4 will go:

Mount Rushmore
Empire State Building
Statue of Liberty
White House

first is still vocabulary.
second is frankly one of the best NYC tourist items overall considering you end up being near so many other things that matter and you can actually go inside. so everyone who visits for a first time ends up seeing it and deciding if they go inside.
third is more of a legacy thing because ever since you couldn't go inside it lost a ton of value for tourism beyond pics on a boat.
fourth is probably the best known symbol of America.

Aw I missed Super Nintendo day. Sads. Also, I thought DKC2 was better than the first in every way, so it's weird that the "consensus" was to go with DKC.

I'd still say the Statue of Liberty is the best known symbol of America, more than the White House, which doesn't even have its own emoji.

When Planet of the Apes did their stinger ending, you don't see the White House or Mount Rushmore sticking out of the ground