# Construction workers dig shortcut through the Great Wall of China **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 6, 2023, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/construction-workers-dig-shortcut-through-the-great-wall-of-china/989699 "2023-09-06T16:57:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2023, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/construction-workers-dig-shortcut-through-the-great-wall-of-china/989699/1 "2023-09-06T16:57:18Z")
Gee, they dug out a road so they could drive through. They do appear to be Chinese so at least foreigners won’t be blamed. It’s already dubbed “The Great Short Cut”. [https://www.foxnews.com/world/vandals-busted-great-wall-make-shortcut-creating-irreversible-damage](https://www.foxnews.com/world/vandals-busted-great-wall-make-shortcut-creating-irreversible-damage) ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2023, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/construction-workers-dig-shortcut-through-the-great-wall-of-china/989699/2 "2023-09-06T23:14:05Z")
In so many ways that is both an outrage AND something that makes perfect sense. I mean, we drill through mountains so as to avoid making windy roads up and down a mountain, why not put a hole through a ginormous wall rather than have to go around? There is a bit more logic there than for most vandalism. But yeah, not cool. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2023, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/construction-workers-dig-shortcut-through-the-great-wall-of-china/989699/3 "2023-09-06T23:26:43Z")
Somewhere out there, the ghost of Genghis Khan is mumbling “shit, why didn’t I think of that?” ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2023, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/construction-workers-dig-shortcut-through-the-great-wall-of-china/989699/4 "2023-09-06T23:31:14Z")
Why not? I mean, it is very long and parts of it are in crappy shape, falling down. It has had roads cut into many times in history. Hadrian’s wall has quite a few roads cut thru it. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2023, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/construction-workers-dig-shortcut-through-the-great-wall-of-china/989699/5 "2023-09-06T23:46:33Z")
You don’t understand. They didn’t get a permit! ---
**Author:** ![Section\_Maker\_Jupe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/section_maker_jupe/32/1424_2.png) [@Section\_Maker\_Jupe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Section_Maker_Jupe)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2023, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/construction-workers-dig-shortcut-through-the-great-wall-of-china/989699/6 "2023-09-07T15:12:58Z")
Sounds like they just widened a pre existing low spot? Perhaps an old gate opening was there? Looks like a sort of crummy dirt wall to me. "Excavators were used to excavate the original gap of the ancient Great Wall into a large gap, so that the excavator could pass through the gap,