14. “Death is caused by swallowing small amounts of saliva over a long period of time.”
Similar to something else George Carlin said, but incorrect:
Death is caused by swallowing small amounts of saliva over a long period of time.
The actual quotation is
The Food and Drug Administration has announced that saliva causes stomach cancer. However, only when swallowed in small amounts over a long period of time.
That’s from the track “Headlines” from his album On The Road (1977). He also used the same joke in his 1978 HBO special George Carlin: Again! (1978), as:
The Surgeon General announced today that saliva causes stomach cancer. However, only when swallowed in small amounts over a long period of time.
As usual, Carlin’s exact words are funnier than the messed-up version being passed around the internet.