Jon Stewart had trouble starting his monologue on Wednesday night as he paid tribute to the slain staff at French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, whose Paris offices were stormed by gunmen on Wednesday.
“Our hearts are with the staff of Charlie Hebdo and their families tonight,” the host of “The Daily Show” said, after a long silence and nervous laughter.
“I know very few people go into comedy as an act of courage, mainly because it shouldn’t have to be that,” Stewart continued. “But those guys are Hebdo had it, and they were killed for their cartoons,” he said.
Stewart said the killing of at least 12 people at the paper’s offices was a reminder that the institutions and politicians he ridicules each night “are not in any way the enemy.”
“It’s still a back and forth between those on, let’s call it, ‘Team Civilization,'” he said.
Watch the clip, courtesy of Comedy Central:
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“Team Civilization” - we’d like to think so. But just look at the images of the Teabaggers at their rallies with their guns, racist signs and (so far just) vile words they say about the President. And their fires are stoked by the words of Fox News, Coulter, Rush, Hannity, Palin, Cruz, etc.
Civilization isn’t defined by borders or nationality. There are members of Team Civilization all over the place. You either belong or you don’t. I hope the curve of history ultimately bends in that direction, but I honestly have my doubts.