Panama Canal

Time Lapsed Video of Panama Canal. I can't imagine the amount of energy required to pump water to lift the ship up. Every day. It's absolutely incredible. And President Theodore Roosevelt, the man who proclaimed "to speak softly and carry a big stick," started it all. Many workers have suffered in the building of this canal. Some Americans have criticized the president for his expansion of constitutional power as well as his willingness to advance American imperial interests and invoke the Monroe Doctrine.

It's still better, though for commerce's sake, to have a shortcut than to travel around to Cape Horn, or transport goods over land (which amounts to a fraction of what a large ship can carry).

via Boing Boing