Stephen Colbert congratulates New Yorkers on not being terrorized


On Monday's Late Show, Stephen Colbert lit in to the "jerk" who put pressure-cooker bombs in a Manhattan neighborhood, said he was really glad nobody was killed or seriously injured, and took "a second to salute everybody in law enforcement" for nabbing the suspected perpetrator, Ahmed Khan Rahami, so quickly. But mostly he lovingly made fun of New Yorkers, who seemed to have taken the attempted mass murders in stride.
"At this point, can't we assume that any New Yorker buying a pressure cooker is up to no good?" he asked. "No one who lives here cooks." Noting that at least one of the bombs was apparently disabled when two guys stole the suitcase it was hidden in, Colbert said of course it was, "because as all New Yorkers know, if you see something, steal something." New Jersey got its share of ribbing, too. "Rahami should have known that he couldn't terrorize us," Colbert said. "New Yorkers are not fazed by meatheads from New Jersey coming into the city on a Saturday night to make a lot of noise. We're used to it."
"You barely disrupted our lives, okay?" Colbert said to Rahami. "So a block got shut down so cops could look around. That happens every time they shoot an episode of Law & Order. New Yorkers are used to danger — this is a city with a neighborhood called Hell's Kitchen. The official New York City bird is the middle finger." Watch Colbert's salute to New Yorkers, and his one-fingered salute to Rahami, below. Peter Weber
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.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
August 31 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Sunday’s political cartoons include FEMA's new scheme, Gavin Newsom's antics, and a clue in the Epstein files
-
Disarming Hezbollah: Lebanon's risky mission
Talking Point Iran-backed militia has brought 'nothing but war, division and misery', but rooting them out for good is a daunting and dangerous task
-
Woof! Britain's love affair with dogs
The Explainer The UK's canine population is booming. What does that mean for man's best friend?
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclub
Speed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's ills
Speed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, Stallone
Speed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's view
Speed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talk
Speed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'
Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
-
A long weekend in Zürich
The Week Recommends The vibrant Swiss city is far more than just a banking hub
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposes
speed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle