In General Motors Recalls, Inaction and Trail of Fatal Crashes

Almost 50 years ago Ralph Nader published Unsafe at Any Speed, an indictment of the safety record of the automobile industry and General Motors in particular.  Last week, reports the New York Times, General Motors recalled nearly 1.4 million cars in the United States, saying that the ignition switches on Cobalts and other brands can shut off a car’s engine and electrical system, and disable its air bags. At least 13 deaths have already been linked to the problem, which the Times called, “a decade-long failure by G.M. and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to address a problem that engineers and regulators had been alerted to years ago.”