Actually, there are simple and apparently painless methods of causing instant loss of conciousness and quick death.
For example, quickly replace the air in the death chamber with nitrogen or another inert gas. Out like a light very quickly. Death in a few minutes. Let the chamber sit at 100% nitrogen for half hour, pump in air to replace, go in, certify death, go home.
Or why not use some of that confiscated heroin to induce a massive overdose? Presumably the killee will go out not only painlessly, but with a big smile on his face.
This whole mess is emblematic of an American attitude that causes a whole bunch of similar problems. We prefer to have things appear to be neat, tidy and painless, even if they cause a great deal more actual damage.
A few examples:
The logical approach to dealing with non-violent (and possibly even mildly violent) first offenders is a good flogging. Humans have a mental mechanism whereby pain induces a desire to avoid whatever caused the pain. So why not use it? Instead, we lock young guys up in prison, pretending that’s more humane, where they run immense risk of sexual or physical assault much more damaging than a reasonable flogging. I know that given the choice I’d take a flogging followed by a week facedown in the hospital over a month in the slammer with hardened criminals.
Boxing. Old-time bare-knuckle boxing was bloody and brutal, no doubt about it. So we add pillowy gloves to minimize the cutting of the skin that causes the blood to flow. Result: less blood and boxers develop brain damage that makes them “punchy” from the brain bouncing off the walls of the skull repeatedly. Without gloves, that just didn’t happen. A person simply cannot hit somebody hard enough in the head to do that kind of damage without breaking his hands. No gloves, lots of blood, little longterm damage to the fighters. Gloves, little blood, fighters usually brain damaged.
Football: This one is similar to boxing. Rugby is played quite roughly, yet the brain damage common in American football players is seldom seen. The “armor” worn by American footballers allows and encourages them to hit much harder than Rugbyists can without seriously injuring themselves. So the padding encourages more severe injuries, it doesn’t prevent them.
There are multiple other examples of our national tendency to trade the appearance of nonviolence for a reality of worse damage. Very sad.
Perhaps that is why the feds bought all those .40 cal rounds. Might be planning a BIG TIME firing squad.