The Co-Villains Behind Obesity's Rise

A large debate taking place in America is the answer to why Obesity rates have soared over the years. Sendhill Mullainathan wrote an article titled "The Co-Villains Behind Obesity’s Rise", published in the New York Times, that discusses the multiple causes of Obesity in America.

The first cause that is addressed is the behavioral economics in the United States. Our decisions on what foods to buy at the grocery store, as well as out to dinner, play a big role in obesity's rise. Suppliers strategically choose what to provide for the consumers based off of what is most demanded at the time. Behavioral economics play a big role in obesity, but perhaps not the major role.

The article focuses primarily on the biology villain and his role in rising obesity rates. Mullainathan draws attention to the importance of both the economic side, as well as the biological side of obesity.

Focusing in on biology, animals have been able to help prove the importance of biology when dealing with obesity. Why is it that animal obesity rates have increased with human obesity rates? This couldn't only be because of behavior economics could it? Well, an experiment held with twin mice helps to prove the biological role in obesity.

Between the twin mice, one was obese and one was not. This raised curiosity because they were being fed the same diet. This immediately excludes the idea that behavior economics is the only factor that leads toward obesity. The obese twin was discovered to have a type of "gut bacteria" that lead to obesity.

This "obese gut bacteria" is thought to possibly come from toxins, processed foods, or even antibiotics. Another thought is that perhaps the bacteria can be spread such as the flu. Scientists are still researching into this idea of how obesity is growing, and it could be a relief that it is not purely based on behavioral economics, am I right? Hopefully, once we further understand this "obese gut bacteria" we will be able to understand more about cravings and possibly be able to shift those cravings and put a halt in the rising rate of obesity throughout America. 

Behind the Roar of Political Debates, Whispers of Race Persist

The controversial topic of Government Spending and Healthcare has opened the doors to many other issues that people have been dealing with for quite some time. John Harwood explains these issues in detail in his article "Behind the Roar of Political Debates, Whispers of Race Persist" published in the New York Times on October 30th.

President Obama brought attention to immigration issues and the tension that Whites are feeling as Asian American, Blacks, and Hispanics gain a louder voice in US Politics. There is a division in the  ideas about politics and government power between the races. For example, many Whites oppose legal status for illegal immigrants, whereas many Hispanics and blacks support it. Keep in mind that this is just one example out of many that demonstrate the increasing polarization between race and politics.

The major issue discussed in this article is the rising problem that soon Whites may have a very small volume in political voice. Blacks, Hispanics and other races believe the Government should have a greater say in the United States. The majority of Whites, however, believe that the less government interference the better. Big government is a growing concern for Whites. Many feel that a big government will explicitly help Democrats, and will loosen the White's power in the United States.

The first issue brought to the surface is that the Democratic coalition is made up of mainly nonwhites such as Asian Americans, blacks, and Hispanics. This means that the majority of Whites make up the Republican side of the government, which is the side that strongly disagrees with many of Obama's decisions. This is where we see racial tensions begin to grow, according to Obama as well as other politicians.

In conclusion, politicians claim they do not want race to be an issue between sides in the government but they are claiming that the strong disagreement on Obama's health care law is an example of the racial issue between Democrats and Republicans. Can these tensions deminish as time goes on and "as rising generations replace older ones"?