HERE’S one of those strange little facts that emerge from reports about the activities of different US government agencies. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, it transpires, has refused to force car manufacturers to offer longer seat belts for obese passengers. The board found that even though there are 38 million Americans with a “seated hip circumference” of 47 inches or more, most of them can already find cars with seat belts that will fit them.
Our first thought was that 38 million obese people in a population of 280 million seems an awful lot. Our second was to wonder…
