On Wednesday night's Daily Show, Jon Stewart took a step-by-step walk through the legal and moral hurricane GM has found itself in over faulty ignition switches that the company acknowledges have led to at least 13 deaths. His case is pretty damning, because GM's documented actions (or lack of actions) and deadly avarice are so egregious. Stewart also slapped GM for promoting Mary Barra to CEO — making her the first U.S. female automotive chief executive — without telling her of the looming disaster.
Stewart really hit his stride, though, when he looked at how GM's 2009 bankruptcy made compensating victims an optional move for the automaker. "Not only are corporations people, they've got some sort of mutant power that allows them to dodge the consequences of their actions," Stewart said — adding that he can't wait for a "non-corporate person" to try GM's defense in court. He picked on convicted cannibal Jeffrey Dahmer as his test case for absolving liability by declaring "moral bankruptcy" and moving on. It's a cutting analogy, but Stewart's parting shot about Dahmer driving a Ford is absolutely brutal. --Peter Weber
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Today's political cartoons - November 22, 2024Cartoons Friday's cartoons - frozen assets, blazing fires, and more
-
How much of a blow is ICC arrest warrant for Netanyahu?Today's Big Question Action by Hague court damages Israel's narrative that Gaza conflict is a war between 'good and evil'
-
UK gynaecological care crisis: why thousands of women are left in painThe Explainer Waiting times have tripled over the past decade thanks to lack of prioritisation or funding for women's health
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstancesSpeed Read
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2Speed Read
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governorSpeed Read
-
Los Angeles city workers stage 1-day walkout over labor conditionsSpeed Read
-
Mega Millions jackpot climbs to an estimated $1.55 billionSpeed Read
-
Bangladesh dealing with worst dengue fever outbreak on recordSpeed Read
-
Glacial outburst flooding in Juneau destroys homesSpeed Read
-
Scotland seeking 'monster hunters' to search for fabled Loch Ness creatureSpeed Read
