Corvair-"Unsafe At Any Speed"

As a teenager, I worked for my Dad one summer, at the Highway Users Federation For Safety And Mobility (say THAT three times fast!)-mostly in the mailroom.

The offices at 1776 Massachusetts Avenue in Washington were frequented by one Ralph Nader, back when he was known more as a consumer advocate than as a politician. We’re talking about 1974-75.

All I remember was a disheveled man in a crumpled suit who would stick his nose into the mailroom from time to time. I had to ask my co-workers who he was. Meeting him was not a thrill, but rather a curiosity.

Although I have to say that I believe Nader is a “space shot” (waaaay beyond the moon) politically, one has to admire his tenacity to successfully attack General Motors, at the time THE most powerful corporation in America.

It was on this date in 1966 that The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act was signed into law. This wide-sweeping legislation was a direct result of Nader’s book, “Unsafe At Any Speed”, which mercilessly attacked GM and the Corvair, citing numerous examples of safety concerns, including items like the STEERING WHEEL COMING OFF WHILE DRIVING (most likely an inconvenience for both the driver and anyone unfortunate enough to be a passenger at the time)

GM’s initial response to the scathing book was to discredit Nader himself-hiring private investigators to follow him and dig up dirt. Unfortunately for GM, what they found was a workaholic who didn’t drink, smoke or chase women. Nader made a name for himself with the publication of that book-and consumers still owe him a debt of gratitude.

Here is a TV commercial for a 1965 Corvair-enjoy:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59voKreB2j8

The irony is that these cars, soon the butt of jokes following the expose’, ended up becoming collectors items as their scarcity made them valuable following GM’s wise decision to cease production.

A sense of social responsibility should exist in the corporate boardrooms of America. Unfortunately, the primary motive is greed—often at the expense of the safety of consumers. No one would advocate excessive government regulation, but those who are critical of the bureaucracy should at least understand that both laws and entire agencies exist as a direct outcome of the abuse of capitalistic freedom by companies who allow the gleam of profits to blind them to the obligation to build and sell SAFE products to their customers.

The lesson of Ralph Nader—at least in this instance ---is that ONE person can make a difference.

This one did.

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