The more I watch this show, the more ADDICTED I become to it. It's a GOOD ADDICTION too, because it just confirms EVERYTHING I believed as a kid.
Penn and Teller are what you call "Teetotalers"; people who, for whatever reason, do not drink. Me, I think alcohol is absolutely DISGUSTING because it tastes like my idea of NUCLEAR WASTE, or the worst tasting poison you can think of. I seriously CANNOT imagine why anyone in their right mind would take up drinking.
I love milk-shakes. I love Tang. I love milk plain, or with cereal, or with sugared cereal or with a little bit of Hershey's flavoring. Most mild sodas, a few energy drinks, and just otherwise sweet or healthy stuff. Fresh squeezed orange juice is another favorite. All those things have one thing in common. They taste GOOD.
So, imagine my surprise when my friends started to drink, and, worse yet, get drunk. The stuff doesn't taste good to begin with, and yet they binge on it to get some kind of chemical high?
Penn and Teller don't really examine the reasons of why people imbibe in alcohol, but they do examine Alcoholics Anonymous, and the fraud "Christian" religious organization that it is. And, further, how the government at the local level by way of the courts have mandated through the years that convicted drunk drivers go to their meetings or get tossed in jail.
The absolute debauchery of the Christian faith to claw at our government, freedoms, and to use the government as a measure to push forward their bronze age and medieval era superstition, is an absolute insult on all levels to people who would like to make the decision to stop drinking.
I used to love watching movies and reading science fiction. It actually interfered with my studies and paying bills. Until I decided to put those things away and clean up the house a little until such time as I could re-engage in my favorite hobbies. Ditto with eating, and there is absolutely nothing more addicting on the face of this Earth than the consumption of flavorful nourishment. When I gained weight, I stopped eating so much, and exercised more. Did it hurt? Some. Did I crave a Carl's Junior Double Western Bacon Cheeseburger? You bet your goddamn backside. Did I stop eating Double Western Bacon Cheeseburgers? Ehhh...sorta kinda. I did not eat them as often, and burned more calories to trim down.
And Penn and Teller once again destroy the facade of yielding your ego to in imaginary "higher power". They even show us the figures of success and recidivism, which, if nothing else, is a real eye opener.
Quick SF Giants anecdote; back in the mid 90s Darryl Strawberry came to play for Dusty Baker. Strawberry was a hated Dodger, but once he donned the extra custom-made-extra-short-sleeve SF Giants' jersey, he looked good. Ah, but, Strawberry at the time was addicted to cocaine. One of the local KNBR sports' radio guys (Brooks or Mister T) argued with a caller on one of the shows that cocaine addiction was a disease.
Ah, no.
As a kid, and I mean both as a young boy and as a pre-teen, teenager and university student, I told people that it was a personal choice. It still is. Penn and Teller will demonstrate by way of expert opinion, that my mettle and conviction were one-hundred percent on the mark.
If you're an alcoholic, then I have no pity for you. Whether you do it to escape life's problems, or whether you like the taste (which is beyond me), or whether you do it because "hey, everyone else is doing it", YOU made the DECISION to put the most foulest substance on your tongue, in your mouth, and to allow that chemical to flow down your esophagus and react with your digestive track.
No one forced it on you.
I love this show. I love Penn and Teller. I'm sorry they ran out of topics to do shows on. I wish they would do some follow up shows to the episodes they've already done, because I am one-hundred percent addicted to "Penn and Teller's B******T!"
Enjoy!
