Just came from the taping of tonight's Daily Show with Jon Stewart on 11th Ave in Manhattan where the guest was Malala Yousafzai was the guest.
What an honor to be in this young woman's presence. I came to see Jon Stewart and got an incredible bonus - Malala.
She's only 16 but her maturity and worldy view were on full display. I watch Jon Stewart's show religiously and I've never seen him subdued and in awe with a guest like Malala. He's interviewed the likes of Obama, Clinton, O'Reily, Kramer and others, but tonight in his words it was deeply humbling for him to have as his guest the youngest Nobel Peace prize nominee.
I know Jon Stewart can find laugh lines in serious situations, but tonight all he could muster was "adopting her", and "coming from New Jersey..." in response to Malala's description of the heavenly beauty of the Swat valley in Pakistan. Stewart even returned after the conclusion of the show to let the audience know humbling an experience it was for him.
Malala talked about two ways in which nations resolve differences - (i) war, or (ii) dialog. She interjected with another - education. She talked about educating the Talib who would come to kill her. She articulately sounded off to Jon Stewart how the classroom is a great equalizer, where rich and poor students rub shoulders and where you learn to tolerate differences and respect. Physics, Chemistry, Biology and such, she said is not the only things you get educated about. You get educated about how to live with others.
I encourage you to watch at 11 PM tonight on the Comedy Channel for the show. You can get it on the web too at the Jon Stewart Comedy Central page.