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Assorted
1. Microfinance in the United States?
2. Camille Paglia is now a parent, and more.
3. Five comedies for a desert island? I want Smiles of a Summer Night on my list.
4. Americans are just less healthy than Englishmen (and no, it is not health care policy), but they won't admit it.
Posted by Tyler Cowen on November 13, 2006 at 11:31 AM in Web/Tech | Permalink
Comments
The abstract for the American vs English health comparison makes no mention of race. Given what we know about life expectancy and race, diabetes and race, hypertension and race, etcetera ad infinitum, this seems like a glaring omission. Maybe the actual paper (which I can't access) addresses this, but given that they already mentioned SES I'm guessing they consider that an adequate proxy. If so they're mistaken.
Posted by: bbartlog at Nov 13, 2006 11:55:45 AM
Why?
Posted by: dearieme at Nov 13, 2006 11:56:05 AM
"less healthier?"
Come on, Professor.
Posted by: Bernard Yomtov at Nov 13, 2006 11:59:38 AM
"less healthier than Englishmen" actually does work if we assume Americans are already "healthier than Englishmen".
Posted by: talboito at Nov 13, 2006 12:08:09 PM
I think a key difference is that Americans drive everywhere. No one in the world walks less than americans do.
This is probably as important as diet in accounting for americans moer health relative to other first worlders.
Posted by: Michael Foody at Nov 13, 2006 12:21:44 PM
There was a study a while back that looked at only Americans of European ancestry and found the the same difference and that it was not due to access to health care. Life style and stress were given as possible reasons.
Posted by: joan at Nov 13, 2006 12:23:06 PM
Is there a free link to the NBER paper?
Posted by: Bruce G Charlton at Nov 13, 2006 12:32:42 PM
Michael Foody:
Given what the English diet is like, I don't think it is the food.
Posted by: joan at Nov 13, 2006 1:38:30 PM
At least we've got our friggin teeth.
Posted by: KH at Nov 13, 2006 2:32:51 PM
It's probably the X-rays consequent on your obsessive visits to the dentist. And being hen-pecked.
Posted by: dearieme at Nov 13, 2006 5:37:07 PM
I couldn't quite get it down to five. The NYT lists are mostly appalling, but maybe they are promoting the work of friends. But I believe the following ones will all be watched, a hundred years from now:
Keaton, The General (1927)
Chaplin, City Lights (1931)
Lubitsch, Trouble in Paradise (1932)
Lubitsch, To Be or Not to Be (1942)
Bergman, Smiles of a Summer NIght (1957)
Ozu, Good Morning (1959)
Kubrick, Dr. Strangelove (1964)
Penn, Little Big Man (1970)
Posted by: Lee A. Arnold at Nov 13, 2006 8:36:11 PM
Unlike some pretentious twits, I understand that a list of PERSONAL FAVORITES doesn't have to represent "important" or objectively groundbreaking cinema.
My favorite comedies at the moment:
Raising Arizona
Rushmore
Welcome to the Dollhouse
I Heart Huckabees
The Squid and the Whale
Posted by: kb at Nov 13, 2006 9:53:29 PM
Cable Guy
Swingers
What's Up, Doc?
The Princess Bride
Fletch
Others...
The Return of the Pink Panther
Caddyshack
Office Space
Tommy Boy
This Is Spinal Tap
Fletch Lives
My Blue Heaven
National Lampoon's Vacation
Posted by: bob montgomery at Nov 14, 2006 12:36:48 PM
People of discrimination and taste who are stuck on Twit Island will also enjoy Fellini's Amarcord (1973), which is also very funny and, like Ozu's Good Morning, a work of art.
Posted by: Lee A. Arnold at Nov 14, 2006 1:05:33 PM
http://mindstalk.net/socialhealth/
The US has shorter lifespan and higher infant mortality than most other First World nations (all far more socialized in health care or insurance), while spending more money and more %GDP. Note that lifestyle doesn't explain the infant mortality. (And I think we smoke less than most other nations, though I have no data on that.) The results hold if you look only at white Americans. Also if you look at healthy years past age 60.
Posted by: Damien at Nov 14, 2006 1:20:51 PM
I really don't understand why Englishmen are healthier than American men. I know plenty of Englishmen and I am an American male. In all my observations they drink more, eat more, smoke more and are on average fatter. If any thing the only positive difference that I notice is they are more physically active.
Posted by: asiequana at Nov 14, 2006 4:01:07 PM
Take it FWIW, but I've heard that the US infant mortality numbers count premature babies while European infant mortality numbers don't. But regardless of that possible discrepancy, the infant mortality numbers are extremely low for every first-world country nowadays and the US numbers only marginally exceeded the European numbers.
I've also seen studies that lifestyle and not health insurance primarily creates differences in life expectancy between different groups in America. In other words, having guaranteed health care or not is not the driving factor in lower American life expectancies.
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