I don't know the context, I just know it is a line from a Groucho Marx's movie. Let's see it this way: G. M. tries to count pulses from the wrist of a guy he found on the floor, and his count is just zero; he could logically say: "Either this man is dead or time has stopped " Wait a minute: would you expect 100 % logic from Groucho Marx ? So the line is a little bit twisted, but -- I guess -- even better.