7 Amazing Holes

The sheer scale of these holes reminds you of just how tiny you are.

1 Kimberley Big Hole, South Africa
Apparently the largest ever hand-dug excavation in the world, this 1097 metre deep mine yielded over 3 tons of diamonds before being closed in 1914. The amount of earth removed by workers is estimated to total 22.5 million tons.

2.Glory Hole, Monticello Dam, USA
A glory hole is used when a dam is at full capacity and water needs to be drained from the reservoir. This is the glory hole belonging to Monticello dam in California and it's the largest in the world, its size enabling it to consume 14400 cubic feet of water every second. The hole can be seen at the top left of the photo above. If you were to jump in for some reason your slightly damp body would shoot out near the bottom of the dam.

3. Bingham Canyon Mine, Utah, USA
This is supposedly the largest man-made excavation on earth. Extraction began in 1863 and still continues today, the pit increasing in size constantly. In its current state the hole is 3/4 mile deep and 2.5 miles wide.

4. Great Blue Hole , Belize
Situated 60 miles off the mainland of Belize is this incredible. Geographical phenomenon known as a blue hole. There are numerous blue holes around the world but none as stunning. A surface level, the near perfectly circular hole is 1/4 mile wide, the depth in the middle reaching 145 metres. Obviously the hole is a huge hit with divers.

5. Mirny Diamond Mine , Serbia
It is an absolute beast and holds the title of largest open diamond mine in the world. At 525 metres deep with a top diameter of 1200 metres there's even a no-fly zone above the hole due to a few helicopters being sucked in. The red arrow in the photo is pointing to a huge truck.

6. Diavik Mine, Canada
This incredible mine can be found 300km northeast of Yellowknife in Canada . The mine is so huge and the area so remote that it even has its own airport with a runway large enough to accommodate a Boeing 737. It also looks equally as cool when the surrounding water is frozen.

7. Sinkhole , Guatemala
A sinkhole is caused when water (usually rainwater or sewage) is soaked up by the earth on a large scale, resulting in the ground collapsing. These photos are of a sinkhole which occurred early this year in Guatemala . The hole swallowed a dozen homes and killed at least 3 people. Officials blamed the monster of a hole on a ruptured sewage pipe.

Malaysia's 2008 General Elections

Penang, Perak, Kedah, Kelantan, Selangor and Kuala Lumpur are now in Opposition hands!

Malaysian voters have backbone!

I'm now very, very curious as to who will take over the Chief Minister post for Perak.  DAP chief has already taken the Penang CM post.  PKR chief has already taken Selangor CM post.  Kelantan and Kedah are under PAS.  This leaves Perak.  

DAP is the opposition party with the largest minority to form the Perak State government.   Will we see for the first time in history a non-Malay as the CM of a Malay majority state (and one with a Malay Sultan to boot)?  Interesting to see how that pans out now especially since after so many decades, the ceremonies and procedures between the CM and the State Royal houses have, because they've always been in Malay hands, become steeped in Islamic practices and rituals.  Throwing a non-Malay CM into the works will now be interesting to see.

With Penang, Perak and Selangor, the three richest states in Malaysia and all next to each other in one continuous strip in opposition hands, gives the opposition for the first time in history a chance to really do something.  They can't be isolated like Kelantan anymore.  Add in Kedah and Kelantan sharing borders with Penang and Perak in the north creates even more interconnectivity between opposition states.  These 5 states together have the resources, money and connectivity to practically go their own way without the need to beg the central government for funds everytime the want to do something, a bane of isolated opposition wards since time immemorial.  Together, Penang, Perak and Selangor hold 50% of the population and 50% of the country's economy.

More significantly, the government has been denied their 2/3 majority.  This means the ruling party now needs to debate policies and constitutional changes in parliament with the opposition parties.  They can no longer change the constitution at will.

"We’ve lost, we’ve lost" - Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, 4.12am 09/03/08