In this setting, one's annoying and the other's infuriating.

I don't understand the draw.

This is like laughing at a quadriplegic for not being able to walk.

I didn't get past the beginning of the infinite number of monkeys thing. I wondered why it was there. Well, you can't roll strikes every time,eh?

before anyone actually thinks lethal injection just makes you go to sleep:

April '97.....".....Texas newspapers recently reported a freakish accident. A lady, while hospitalized, was accidentally injected with one of the three poisons used to kill prisoners in the state's death chamber. The horrible way she died, convulsing in pain and screaming that she was burning, shocked the readers. Efforts have been made to convince the public that lethal injection is a painless and humane way to kill human beings. This news report forces us to rethink that view

"Lethal Injection is not humane nor "painless" as death penalty advocates claim. Potassium is a metallic inert chemical. Potassium chloride is the salt of potassium after it's reacted with hydrochloric acid. It's an essential mineral in small doses, ingested like eating bananas. It's essential to muscle tone and action. That's why people who become dehydrated from working in the sun too long have severe muscle cramps, because their electrolyte balance is thrown off by potassium loss. It's the first to go when one sweats profusely.

"In large doses, injected intravenously, it would burn and hurt horribly, because it's a salt and because it instantly throws off the chemical balance of the blood with which it comes into contact. It makes all muscles lock up in extreme contraction that would hurt unbearably. It wouldn't get to all muscles when a prisoner is being killed with it, however. Since the heart is a muscle and it pumps the blood -- the minute that massive dose of potassium salt hits the heart, one would be history and that would be as far as it would travel.

"In lethal injection, three chemicals are used to kill. First, sodium pentothal (its trade name) or thiopental sodium (its chemical name). Then one minute later they inject pavulon. One minute later the potassium chloride. Pentothal is a short acting barbituric acid (barbiturate used in anaesthesia) and is commonly called "truth serum" as it's used in narcoanalysis. It knocks one out. It's a hypnotic. Pavulon is a curare' derivative which locks up the lungs so one can't breathe.

"So, while the helpless man strapped to a gurney is knocked out by the thiopental and can't draw a breath because of the pavulon -- he certainly can't scream in pain when that burning potassium is injected and sends his heart into a crunching excruciating cramp.

"Ah, but the woman in the article didn't have any thiopental or pavulon beforehand. It hurt so bad she sat up in bed and screamed, seizured violently, then died. But she wasn't strapped down to a gurney, either. The inmates they're killing would scream too, IF they were able. They'd sit up and scream, IF they weren't strapped down and if their lungs weren't seized by pavulon. But they do gasp. Every one of them has. It's all they can do.

"'It looked as if he just went to sleep' -- that's how it's designed to look, to make it more palatable to the observers and those who're doing it. While it looks that way, it certainly isn't that way for the inmate they're killing. Looks are deceiving!

"All three of these drugs are acidic with pH higher than 6. God only knows what chemical reactions occur as they're mixed together in one's bloodstream. It probably burns so terribly that one feels as if he's being injected with fire right out of hell......"

I have two thoughts when listening to Karl Pilkington...

1. That is incredibly funny

2. Oh my God, how could any human in the year 2006 be THIS INCREDIBLY STUPID!?!

Of course, it does make me feel a little better about the intelligence of Americans...

In response to thomasmccay list of quotes. He misses the point that when you are under anesthesia you can't feel anything. Example, in a dentist office the dentist uses local anesthesia to knock out one of the many nerves. The dentist can then extract a tooth with no pain. While in general anesthesia they knock out all the nerves, which is done in lethal injections. The sensation of pain is not transfered to the brain because the sodium gates in your nerves are blocked. Hence no pain. You could hit them with a bat and they wouldn't feel a thing. I am not going to argue with you on the fact of how humane any death sentence could be, but it's a fact that they don't feel anything.

Ha! I turned it off part way into the monkeys on type writers thing. Read it again, I didn't get past that part of the vid. Having lived in the US for a long time, I get zero joy from listening to half brains.

What do you mean by list of quotes? What did I quote regarding this vid? Nothing at all. That seems to be a weird response, Mr. Willow. I don't understand you.

I'm not sure if it's my current mood or not... but it strikes me that a gap of intellectual understanding this vast... would be nearly impossible to span.

I would be more than happy to laugh if I were sure that this state of being was uncommon.

I am not however.

I'm not sure about the whole 'lethal injection not being painless' thing.

I'm pretty sure that high levels of potassium cause muscle paralysis rather than spasm. Plus, if the patient is anaesthetized with barbiturates as you claim, then they wouldn't be conscious to experience anything anyway.

I think if one assumes that Pilkington is actually as stupid as he sounds or that these two people are truly unaware of how ridiculous they sound, one is missing the point.

Having followed the Ricky Gervais podcast featuring Karl Pilkington and an avid fan of Gervais' other work, it's pretty clear that every word and gesture and pause is meticulously crafted to seem convincing. People mention to me when they see The Office (the original British one starring Ricky Gervais) that it seems so improvised and naturalistic... when I tell them that everything is scripted and rehearsed, they are shocked. The same goes for the podcast and this clip which seems to be an actualization of one of their radio conversations. It's worth mentioning that Karl Pilkington is Ricky Gervais' radio producer, having worked on and backed a number of his shows in the past. A successful radio producer not understanding the infinite monkey typewriting or thinking to solve overpopulation all people should die at 72 and then have a gestating baby be born from the corpse? Nuh uh. It's all an act, and it's a brilliantly written and performed one.

I find that not everyone digs the humor here, but to take it seriously or assume anything about either of the characters (characters they are, despite the fact that they are using their real names) based on what you see/hear is just a mistake.

Personally I think the creativity and commitment to the role of Karl Pilkington's character is astounding.

Well, dumb ass me, I didn't realize these guys were actors playing roles. I will have to watch the whole thing now.

I almost never watch TV so I was unaware of these guys.

Um, hello I'd hate to go into sterotyping here but 1) This is BRITISH COMEDY. 2) Most of those who are commenting are Americans 3) The stereotype is that if its not spelt out in black & white, Americans just dont get it 4) British Comedy is into subtleties & toilet humour - sometimes at the same time 5) Americans are known worldwide for having no sense of irony.

Please guys, dont remind the rest of the world that Americans have no idea of any kind of humour other than obvious...

Well Happyez, I live in Canada and we watch a lot of British TV and movies and, in deed, I love British comedies and mysteries.

However, if you watch the first couple of minutes of that vid, without knowing that you are watching a couple of skilled actors, (they still have those in British TV and film) you would have no reason to believe it was a comedy, especially if you saw it here. Where it could be from anything.

You should hate getting into stereotyping, as you are coming across as a bit of a stereo type as well.

Since you have such great cultural knowledge and sensitivity, consider this. A real consideration, I'm not just being s smart as with this part.

As was pointed out, these were two very professional British comedic actors, playing it to the hilt in what looked like really boring reality TV stuff.

If you happen to recognize the actors, you are viewing it from a different advantage point than people who don't recognize them.

It could well be that that your response to this bit of vid was different from many, simply because you were aware of who these actors are. That does not imply cultural superiority. Your expression of superiority, is based on one piece of specific cultural information, a bit of mostly useless data.

I mean, there are plenty of well known Russian performers that you have never heard of. I guess that makes you an ignorant red neck, in Russia.

In spite of my style, Happyez, I'm trying to make what I think is a valid point that I believe you might agree with when you think about it.

There are tons of evidence for the intellectual state that America is currently in but this is actual evidence of almost nothing.

I do share some of your attitude but not your reasoning.

This almost makes me miss old Joe®. He would have some hilarious, overly patriotic post about happyez' comment and could do a much better job of stereotyping people and being insulting and arrogant than happyez could ever hope to do.

Well i think you are all sort of stupid if you dont think this clip is amazingly hilarious. If you dont know Ricky Gervais's shows etc. you wont get this. Karl Pilkington is one of the most hilarious people on the planet. They are not acting. If you want to truly appretiate it listen to the Ricky Gervais show podcasts.Until then,dont say stupid things about it.

Thanks guys

What I said was tongue-in-cheek as well, in the same vein as the clip. Which is kind of cool in a comedic way, as its all grist to the mill. Like, I am a huge fan of Jon Stewart etc which is why I come to this site, so I generally avoid believing that I think 290million Americans think this way. I just like being a smartarse.

Yes, I have no idea about Russian shows, its an Anglo-Celtic world we are living in on this site, so neither do I know about Uzbekistani political humour. Pharke, it must be hilarious, and I blame The Networks for not showing it in prime time viewing

Do you know who else I blame Jo Ann & Thomas - I blame the DVD distributors. And the Charts. And the racist attitude from customs (dont get me onto that).

So JoAnn & Thomas, I take your torches, combine them with mine & together we will storm the bastille of network programming - to get King Zog The Musical (Albania's longest running satire show - since 1978!) • Borats Real Nemisis - Akmed Zunikov (Khazakstan hits back with its own popular program, taking Alma Ata by storm!) & "Phark its Phreezing!" (Greenlands national debate program, right after the 6pm news) onto our tables & into the homes of middle America, Scotland, Australia, NZ and the Netherlands (well, they play cricket there...)! Are you game to join me?

btw you guys didnt grow up with the Young Ones....

Happyez, I agree, let's put our torches together. In fact, exposing people everywhere to the humour of everywhere else would have a lot of merit.

BTW, I thought the vid was very good, after I realized it wasn't a British version of reality TV.

The Young Ones...ain't so young now. :)

first off this is clevor and a new style of english humor, Gervais turned the show 'Office' into a master piece of oddness, and from Merchant to Gervais everything they touch turns gold.. they also both have the ability to recognise Karl as a uniqe 'stan laurel' in real life charactor and it makes for great interplay, but like tommy smothers Karl is dumb like a fox probably,, if not its all still funny as hell anyway!!!

thomasmccay : said...

Karl is dumb like a fox probably.

But not half as thick as you for believing it was real , its a sketch paradaying dumb shites like you and your replies only make it that much funnier .

You do realise of course that John Cleese was not really Basil Fawlty ??