Everest Captured

Mount Everest is not the majestic, sublime icon it once was, and Jon Stewart and the writers of the Daily Show perfectly nail that sad evolution.

Here’s how their book, Earth: A Visitors Guide To The Human Race describes the mountain everyone wants to say they climbed:

This is Mt. Everest, located on the border between Nepal and Tibet in the Himalayas. At 29,029 feet (sic) above sea level, it is the highest point on earth. Everest was a metaphor for the outer limits of human achievement. Asked why he sought to conquer it, mountaineer George Mallory famously answered, ‘Because it is there.’

“Today, you’ll find this symbol of mankind’s loftiest aspirations gaily festooned with used oxygen tanks, over 100 tons of garbage, and heaping dollops of human waste. If you visit, we’re sorry for the mess. On the plus side, you will find about 120 perfectly preserved frozen corpses for your dissecting pleasure. Feel free to take any or all of them. Including George Mallory … because he is there.

Snap. (h/t Expedition News)