I wrote about this effect last year, when I pointed out that the life expectancy in my own county was similar to that of the developing world. I got a lot of shit for it, but inequality in America means that there is tremendous disparity within the country.

“Lifeexpectancy for males in 11% and for females in 14% of US counties was below that ofNicaragua. In some counties, such as McDowell County, WV and Sunflower County, MS,life expectancies are lower than Bangladesh for males and Algeria for...