Bob Mount: Execution by lethal injection neither cruel nor painful

By: Bob Mount Columnist | Opelika Auburn News
Published: May 08, 2008

I was pleased by the ruling of the U.S. Supreme Court that execution of cold-blooded murderers by lethal injection does not constitute “cruel and unusual punishment.”

I have undergone six surgical procedures requiring general anesthesia, the first by Dr. Bill Lazenby to excise a lump from my breast. I opened my eyes and Janie was at my bedside. I asked her, “When is Dr. Lazenby going to do the operation?”

Janie said, “It’s already been done.” A dressing over my breast was the only evidence that demonstrated to my satisfaction that the operation had been performed.
The next time was to repair a herniated cervical disc in my spine. I was given something to put me in a “twilight zone” prior to administration of the general anesthetic. Janie related the following conversation of which I have no recollection.

“Dr. Mount, I’m Ken Rainer, and I’m going to do the surgery. You may not remember me, but I was a student in your biology class.”

“No,” I said, “and what grade did you make?” Dr. Rainer replied, “I was afraid you would ask me that. I only made a C.”

I blurted out, “For gosh sakes, get me another surgeon.” He told Janie, “Dr. Mount will think I’ve performed a miracle.” To my way of thinking, he did. Prior to the surgery, I had long suffered from neck and shoulder pains, and since then — 25 years ago — I have been bothered with neither.

More recently, I underwent surgery to remove a cancerous segment of my colon and another to remove an obstruction in my small intestine. Both were performed by Dr. Allan Lazenby. I’ve undergone two colonoscopies, both by Dr. Park McGehee, the first of which revealed cancer in my colon.

During the six aforementioned procedures, did I experience pain or even the slightest discomfort? Only once, during my last colonoscopy; I felt slight cramping sensations as the scope was being inserted into my colon, but I would be hard-pressed to describe the sensations as “painful.” “Mildly discomforting” was how I would describe them, and they lasted no more than a minute or two.

Thus, I have concluded that execution by lethal injection is neither “cruel nor painful,” and I say, as Attila the Hun would, “Let the executions begin.”

Bob Mount is emeritus professor of zoology and entomology at Auburn University and writes a weekly column for the Opelika-Auburn News.