What came first the big butt or the scooter?

So I’m at the mall for the first time in years and I’m blown away by A) the number of truly obese individuals, and B) the number of these same people riding around in little motorized scooters.

Humans by nature are inherently lazy. We are drawn to the path of least resistance. Hence the saying, "Never stand when you can sit; never sit when you can lie down. Never run when you can walk; never walk when you can ride."

In my opinion, the majority of people I see who use these motorized devices are those who are not themselves incapacitated from some deleterious cause or genetic defect, rather they have succumbed to the "American" way of life. I do not say that lightly, or with the slightest hint of disdain for my country. They are a product of their environment. They have, in other words, done it to themselves; either by neglect, slovenliness or some other means of self destruction.

As for our way of life, here is what I mean: Because we as a nation have been so blessed, we have lost sight of our responsibility to maintain the first line of defense: our very health. We have become a country of "convenience" seekers. A remote control for the over-abundance of television channels has eliminated the need to walk across the room to switch the station.

Keyless entry systems for our vehicles have allowed us to eliminate having to struggle to find the keyhole and, heaven forbid, exert ourselves and turn a key. Speed dial for the phone so we don't have to work so hard to dial Pizza Hut. We've even found a way to remove mental stress and strain by watching, on average, seven hours of television a day, thereby eliminating the need think for ourselves. Rather than read a book, thanks to IPod we can have someone else tell us what to think, or simply watch others working out on the tube.

Improvements in sanitation, nutrition, and medical science have been responsible for steady increases in longevity throughout modern history. This has been the case for virtually every country on earth, and it's a trend that's likely to continue - except in the United States. According to a University of Illinois study published in the New England Journal of Medicine the average American's lifespan could decrease by as much as five years in the coming decades. In the words of the author of the study, S. Jay Olshansky, "This is not based on speculation ... or unforeseen events, it is based on the future of American health that we can observe today among the very people who will express the health and life expectancy of the future: today's children."

But, how could this be? After all, the U.S. leads the world in the development of "wonder" drugs, high-tech surgeries, and technology for the early detection of disease.

It's because we're too fat.

More than 60% of adults and 30% of children are overweight or obese, putting themselves at a higher risk of cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and a variety of other illnesses. And it is having an impact on folk’s mobility, so rather than train hard and eat right, just get a little motorized cart. That way you don't have to change your life, you can cruise your way, in comfort, ease and style, to an early, morbidly obese death.

Overcoming this phenomenon is not likely to happen. People, like I said before, are inherently lazy. Working out, eating right and maintaining your health takes effort, consistency, determination and discipline. Sadly, most of those qualities are far from inherent in the bulk of the population.

And children today, fortunately and yet sadly, do still learn what they see.

Steve