Well, if you want the ultimate in hightech, go with a 270 or 300 WSM. If you want something that will put down deer and elk in a hurry, and is reliable and very well priced, go with a 30-06. It may not be as flat shooting as others, but know your ballistics and you'll be fine. Last weekend I took a full size cow elk at 550 yards with my 30-06. See my post in the elk section under; "My 05 WA elk hunt!".
The 180 grain Trophy Bonded BearClaw from Federal entered behind the front shoulder, took out the heart, through the chest cavity, broke the offside shoulder and went through the other side. At 550 yards that's pretty dang good for the "old 30-06".
Another guy shot a different cow with his 270 WSM. He handloads and was using the Nosler Partition tips. He shot it at 390 yards and it hit a rib as it entered the chest cavity. The bulley fragmentated all to hell (didn't even touch the offside ribs) but it sure made a mess of the lungs. The cow was down with 2 seconds after the shot. Likewise with mine. No personal experience with it, just this last weekend.
Two weeks before I shot a 350 lb black bear using 165 grain Sierra GameKings (also federal) at 250 yards. The bullet went through the entire chest cavity and lodged underneath the skin on the offside shoulder. For as dense as those bears are it was perfect. The bullet mushroomed awesome and seemed like it retained a lot of the weight.
Spend the money on a good scope and know your ballistics and it's one heckuva reliable cartridge.
Michael~All Gods creatures welcome... right next to the mashed potatoes and gravy.