Disclosure: I did not know what Lichtenberg designs were until I saw this thread.
After watching some videos, the one commonality I noticed was that all systems I saw were jury rigged from things designed for another purpose. This implies a lack of standards for the subject application of this thread. Missing standards include wiring, securing the electrodes to the clamp and placing that clamp to the wood.
We all agree there are inherent dangers in woodturning. But the tools we use generally are designed for our applications. I know as woodturners, we have been known to get creative and make stuff rather than buy it – yes we often jury rig. Which brings me to my last point.
I think we can presume that woodturners have some degree of mechanic “sense” or dexterity. We can see how our tools and jigs work. With experience, we can hear and feel when something isn’t right or is about to go wrong. Electricity on the other hand has invisible dangers, often lethal. There is often no warning. IMO, if you’re going to start jury rigging high voltage tools/toys, you really have to understand what you’re doing, foresee what could go wrong and know how to prevent it. The mechanical stuff we deal with is visual, electricity is conceptual. Winging it is a bad idea IMHO.
Regarding the Stop Saw analogy: While the blade stopped for the hot dog in the demo, the hot dog still had a small cut. How much of a zap from a ground fault device is okay?