Three decades before the Pentagon announced plans to livestream the execution of the Fort Hood mass shooter, legendary comedian George Carlin imagined an America where capital punishment became televised entertainment as a handy distraction from the country's problems. The late comic's infamous riff was part of his 1996 HBO special "Back in Town," when he proposed executions as public spectacle, leaning in on the idea with increasingly gruesome ideas, including "naked upside down crucifixions on TV once a week at halftime in the Monday Night Football game." The old bit, however, was revived Friday by dozens of internet users on X who saw some parallel in reporting about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's announcement that Nidal Hasan, convicted of killing 13 people and wounding 32 others at Fort Hood in 2009, will face a firing squad on Dec. 3 and that Americans will be able to watch.