EPISODE 196 — Addiction

[JulyDiaz 2797]

Tig, Kyle, and David begin by talking about Kyle’s Head in the Toilet method before welcoming Portland stand-up comedian Sean Jordan to talk about addiction. They’ll discuss the early signs of addiction, Sean’s relationship with alcohol, and everyone remembers Harris Wittels.

[ComedyGangBang 88]

Shane McConkeys nickname on Wikipedia is "Cliff Huckstable"

 

[HotSaucerman 2051]

Do you really need a Squatty Potty? Can't you just lean your upper body down and be in the same position?

[Samson 14]

So, am I the only one who sees Leonard Maltin?

[HotSaucerman 2051]

So, am I the only one who sees Leonard Maltin?

Waiting on deck to record his podcast, I guess.

[GregJ.Hansen 316]

So, am I the only one who sees Leonard Maltin?

 

Believing you see Leonard Maltin is the first step towards admitting you have a problem.

[EdDykhuizen 20]

Great stuff as always. Anyone interested in what was going through Harris Wittels' mind soon before his death should listen to his appearance on You Made It Weird, with Pete Holmes: http://www.nerdist.com/pepisode/you-made-it-weird-236-harris-wittels-returns/ It addresses a lot of the questions that the Blastoff folks were plagued by, such as how such a seemingly comfortable, mellow guy could be so troubled. He's very frank about his addiction. It's also pretty disturbing, so be forewarned.

 

Also, I would like to point out that when David told his beach poop story, he said that the squatting near the trash can resulted in nothing to wipe. This is a tacit endorsement of the Squatty Potty.

[Lukas Holmes 2287]

I like the idea that '1 in 100 parachutes don't work' that Kyle put out. I would totes do skydiving if I thought there was a 1 in 100 chance I was going to die.

[BrettMorris 1862]

I just want to pipe in real quick and say that Harris really was trying to get better and was making all sorts of plans for the future (read Jake's twitter for proof). I don't think there's much question that he didn't intend this.

[BrettMorris 1862]

So, am I the only one who sees Leonard Maltin?

I'm sorry to differ with you sir, but Maltin has always been there

[NickSpannaus 91]

...is Kyle a sociopath?

[pterodactylcackle 79]

I think that Harris's YMIW episode offers a lot of answers to anyone wondering what Harris was going through. He says in it that he wanted to stay sober (after his second stint in rehab) because he knew that if he went back to heroin that he could die and that he didn't want that for his parents or himself. He also talks about how he felt he was living a 'double life' while using heroin and was good at hiding his addiction from his coworkers and friends. It's pretty easy to understand, listening to his story and his other podcast appearances where he describes his personal life/relationship to drugs over the years, how this could happen. Unbelievably sad, addiction is some serious shit.

 

This was a good episode, Sean Jordan is a great guest! Would like to see more of him.

[emki 27]

...is Kyle a sociopath?

 

Hmmm...I don't think you're good for Professor Blastoff. I'm picturing Kyle's head in a toilet, and you're squatting over it and pooping on his face (and you're really struggling).

[Bob Drillboids 181]

I found the discussion on whether or not alcoholism is a disease to be incredibly frustrating and borderline offensive. There is literally no debate amongst rational neuroscientists that substance use disorders are real illnesses that require real treatment. And that absurd hypothetical of pathologic behavior being extinguished by a gun to the head, whereas with a "real" disease like cancer it remains? Are you kidding? By extension, if you take away a suicidal person's access to self-injury and they don't kill themselves, then was their depression not real either? Or take someone with OCD and intense fears of contamination but lock them in a room without a sink so they can't engage in compulsive hand-washing, was their OCD not a real disease? Try harder, guys.

[Kickpuncher 5012]

Great episode! Last week and the solo eps were fun, but it was nice to get back to the usual format and they did a great job of mixing the topical discussion with fun diversions. It was also nice to be reminded of Tig's rare gift for saying the funniest things in the subtlest way with the fewest words - During the intro, when she goes "Oh, you eating some nuts? On the podcast?", it absolutely destroyed me.

[Mosdefjukie 8]

Great show guys...someone needs to give Sean props on his RTJ t-shirt. Very solid.

[NameThatPunky 804]

Was it just a coincidence that the scheduled topic this week was addiction after Harris's death? If so that's crazy, but I'm glad it gave them an opportunity to talk about him. I didn't know if those three had much contact with him so I wasn't sure what to expect, it was nice to hear.

[djsexyrandal 153]

I found the discussion on whether or not alcoholism is a disease to be incredibly frustrating and borderline offensive. There is literally no debate amongst rational neuroscientists that substance use disorders are real illnesses that require real treatment. And that absurd hypothetical of pathologic behavior being extinguished by a gun to the head, whereas with a "real" disease like cancer it remains? Are you kidding? By extension, if you take away a suicidal person's access to self-injury and they don't kill themselves, then was their depression not real either? Or take someone with OCD and intense fears of contamination but lock them in a room without a sink so they can't engage in compulsive hand-washing, was their OCD not a real disease? Try harder, guys.

 

yeah I mean they never pretend to be experts on anything, that's kinda their thing, and they're all very good at being funny which actually IS their are of expertise, but ...

 

every so often I find myself wanting to yell at them through the podcast, which may be more my problem than theirs, but this was one of those times.

 

If you put someone with cancer in jail, they will still have cancer. If you put an addict in jail and they can't get access to any substances, they are STILL an addict. It's recovery 101; addicts will ALWAYS be addicts, whether they are using or not. i feel like that's an important distinction they kind of missed out on.

[djsexyrandal 153]

and this is not to shit on dave, kyle, tig and sean at all. 90% of the podcast made me laugh, which is what it's there for. i just wish there was another voice in the mix to cover the established point of view.

[Kickpuncher 5012]

If you put someone with cancer in jail, they will still have cancer. If you put an addict in jail and they can't get access to any substances, they are STILL an addict. It's recovery 101; addicts will ALWAYS be addicts, whether they are using or not. i feel like that's an important distinction they kind of missed out on.

 

I don't think any of the hosts or guest would dispute that. I'm sure they said things that are wrong, like they do on pretty much every topic. But I think their point is that in the above scenario, the cancer patient would still die from cancer whereas the addict wouldn't have the negative effects of their addiction (beyond an initial withdrawal) without access to their addictive substance.

[NameThatPunky 804]

Alcoholism is a disease, but it's the only one you can get yelled at for having. Goddamn it Otto, you are an alcoholic. Goddamn it Otto, you have Lupis... one of those two doesn't sound right.

 

-Mitch Hedberg

[djsexyrandal 153]

 

I don't think any of the hosts or guest would dispute that. I'm sure they said things that are wrong, like they do on pretty much every topic. But I think their point is that in the above scenario, the cancer patient would still die from cancer whereas the addict wouldn't have the negative effects of their addiction (beyond an initial withdrawal) without access to their addictive substance.

 

Fair enough. But I still think that statement revealed a fundamental misunderstanding of how addiction works. Anyway, I don't hold it against them, like I said before, they never pretend to be experts.

 

Also, my favorite joke about alcoholism is Norm's bit where he talks about how, compared with cancer, alcoholism must be a pretty fun disease because you get to be drunk all the time

[qrter 79]

I think the whole "alcoholism is not a disease" thing is annoying because the hosts just wade into a real scientific discussion without any actual knowledge, and then half-assedly say they don't "believe" in it. This isn't about believing or not, it's about weighing actual facts and coming to a scientific plausible conclusion.

 

Ofcourse I don't expect Tig, David and Kyle to do this for every subject, but then it also wouldn't hurt to once in a while say "hey, I don't know nearly enough about this particular thing, I can't make that judgment call."

[Itsmeb 1]

"But I think their point is that in the above scenario, the cancer patient would still die from cancer whereas the addict wouldn't have the negative effects of their addiction (beyond an initial withdrawal) without access to their addictive substance."

- hilarious. Just goes to show how little ppl know about the "ism"

"No negative effects?" Really? Have you ever been around a dry drunk? Or an addict of any kind? Or better yet someone who's been in an institution and gets dry? only to be off to the races once released because they're convinced they are like others? A miserable manipulative family crushing dis-ease of life is addiction. Addiction is the most patient disease in existence

. This is what makes it so powerful. If you don't think there's any negative effects of addiction other than "initial withdraw"- which an addict can die of btw - then you havent stuck around a real addict long enough to witness the havoc their addiction plays on all aspects of their life. It is a disease of mind body and soul. Which is why it is so continually baffling to people. That person with cancer btw can get the cancer remove, ask tig. The person with addiction will never win that battle. This is why surrender to the disease is so crucial and why stigma and ignorance against it being a disease in the first place is so very dangerous. Also addiction can be the cause of something like cancer. I'd say that's a pretty negative shitty effect.

[Kickpuncher 5012]

Have you ever been around a dry drunk? Or an addict of any kind? Or better yet someone who's been in an institution and gets dry? only to be off to the races once released because they're convinced they are like others?

 

Not that I'm aware of, not really, no, and no. I guess I'm lucky.

 

I've obviously hit a nerve here when all I was trying to do was defend and maybe clarify something the hosts said, so I think it's time for me to bow out of this discussion. But if I can make one more general point, it's that after listening to 196 episodes of this show, I find myself enjoying it a lot more when I remember that it's first and foremost a comedy show and ultimately don't take anything seriously (not because they're necessarily trying to be funny all the time, but because they're comedians, not experts in every field they discuss). I know that can be very difficult when you're personally invested in the subject matter, but it's worth keeping in mind for your own benefit.