Hmmm.

Life expectancy has long been growing steadily for most Americans. But it has not for a significant minority, according to a new study, which finds a growing disparity in mortality depending on race, income and geography.

The study, published Monday in the online journal PLoS, analyzed life expectancy in all 3,141 counties in the United States from 1961 to 1999, the latest year for which complete data have been released by the National Center for Health Statistics. Although life span has generally increased since 1961, the authors reported, it began to level off or even decline in the 1980s for 4 percent of men and 19 percent of women.

“It’s very troubling that there are parts of the wealthiest country in the world, with the highest health spending in the world, where health is getting worse,” said Majid Ezzati, the lead author and an associate professor of international health at Harvard. It is a phenomenon, he added, “unheard of in any other developed country.”

Counties with significant declines were concentrated in Appalachia, the Southeast, Texas, the southern Midwest and along the Mississippi River. Life expectancy increases were mainly in the Northeast and on the Pacific Coast.

Also, places where, well, they get there.

This lack of progress among the worst off was caused by a slowing or halt of reductions in cardiovascular disease, combined with increases in lung cancer and diabetes for women and in H.I.V. infection and homicide for men.

This rise in mortality for chronic diseases runs counter to trends in other developed countries, and the geographical differences are consistent with regional trends in smoking, high blood pressure and obesity. Dr. Ezzati speculates that data after 1999 will show more decreases in life span for the worst-off women. He expects to see a slight increase for men, with improved treatment for H.I.V. and AIDS.

In other words, it’s our smoking, drinking, eating and fucking that are killing us.

As I was walking into work today, I saw a woman sitting in the shade having lunch with her baby. The little tyke — couldn’t have been more than two months old — was asleep in a buggy (or “travel system” as they’re called these days). I looked for a little while and smiled. It was a cute scene.

I never used to be one for going, “awww” when it came to kids. I’d see people with kids and it’s didn’t affect me. I’d read about sick kids and I’d feel bad, but I wouldn’t be devastated. I’d watch movies where they had the Child in Danger (TM) and I’d get annoyed. The floodwaters or whatever would be closing in on some little tot and all I could think was “This again? What, was central casting out of cute puppies?” In fact, our decision to have kids wasn’t made because we luuuved kids but because, at our age, it was now or never.

That’s all changed since I’ve become a dad. Maybe it’s because I can now project everything onto Abby. Seeing that woman in the shade made me think about when my daughter was nothing but a bologna loaf with big blue eyes. Or maybe Abby fixed whatever was broken in me. But I have changed. For the better, I hope. It’s hasn’t made me a big bleeding-heart liberal; quite the opposite, in fact. But I do feel a little closer to my fellow human beings.

Was just watching Conan and he was doing a segment on spinning wedding rings. I tried it with my own and can easily get 30 seconds and sometimes as long as as minute.

The question I have is why does the ring spin so well? This is obviously before his physicist guest. I would guess the symmetry of a plain band combined with the low friction of gold.

Is anyone surprised that scientists find that men aren’t very good at reading signals from women?

I was always on the “she doesn’t like me” side of the equation. I assume that either there were a number of women who were interested in me who escaped my noticed or that women just weren’t interested me. I don’t know which would be worse. Having missed some opportunities or having not had many.

Stand by for more bullshit like this. Now that we may be in a recession, all the nitwits who have been predicting it every year for the last eight years are coming out of the woodwork to proclaim that they were right.

It tells you something that economist have a worse record of prognostication than sports columnists.

You know that explosion of teenagers offing themselves? Uh, like, no. Suicide rates peak for people in their 80’s — when people are old enough to have lived their lives but not so old they can’t work a gun any longer.

I’m actually surprised as my only suicidal thoughts were during high school. Any teen killing himself is a tragedy, obviously, and the problem is not to be taken lightly. It’s not just tragic, it’s stupid. High school was the worst period of my life. But I’ve had so many wonderful experiences since then (one of whom is grabbing at my arm while I type this).

There’s a nice little piece over at the NYT on the 20 or so remaining World War I veterans.

These men fascinate me. I can’t imagine what it was like for them back in, say, 1917, when they were watching their friends and comrades get slaughtered by the hundreds of thousands. Just imagine not only surviving that horror but hanging on for another 90 years. What an awesome responsibility.

I have to admit, the Fed loan of $200 billion to banks confuses me. Fortunately, McCardle is there to explain it to us non-economists.

What’s happening to the credit markets is a little akin to a bank run. The underlying conditions may be somewhat shaky, but what’s really screwing things up is that everyone’s trying to run for the exits–or just play possum–at once.

So this is the equivalent of the Fed slapping people and telling them to come to their senses — some mortgage-backed securities are good investments.

Boy, James Surowiecki must be loving this.

Anyone who refers to himself as a “raconteur” needs to be punched in the face. Repeatedly.