[Someone]

> It only takes 80ma across your heart to stop it. Mains voltage, in both the US and the rest of the world, can easily develop that kind of current, especially if there is moisture involved. And yet plenty of folks have accidental contact without lasting effects.

I think that’s because most accidental contact doesn’t produce much current across your heart. Touching the two wires of mains electricity with one hand? Not a good idea, but unlikely to kill you. Touching one with your left and one with your right hand? Way more risky. Grabbing one with your left and one with your right hand? Even more risky.

And of course, modern circuitry often has circuit breakers that in many cases rapidly stop the current from flowing.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Residual-current_device#Purpos...:

“To reduce the risk of electrocution, RCDs should operate within 25–40 milliseconds with any leakage currents[clarification needed] (through a person) of greater than 30 mA, before electric shock can drive the heart into ventricular fibrillation, the most common cause of death through electric shock. By contrast, conventional circuit breakers or fuses only break the circuit when the total current is excessive (which may be thousands of times the leakage current an RCD responds to). A small leakage current, such as through a person, can be a very serious fault, but would probably not increase the total current enough for a fuse or overload circuit breaker to isolate the circuit, and not fast enough to save a life.”