Excerpt from the book "The Age of Globesity: Entering the Perfect Storm"

There are several factors that have contributed in synchrony to our present course. At the beginning of the twentieth century we entered into a new era in our nation, an era that was earmarked by shifts in our culture that were unprecedented in scope and magnitude throughout human history. The increasing amount and availability of food for the average person in our nation has truly transformed us into the “Land of Bounty.”

The industrial revolution in the previous century had begun the process of the mechanization of farming methods. The motorized tractor, the use of commercial fertilizers, the ability to irrigate vast fields with motorized pumps, the use of modern pesticides, the development of modern farming techniques all combined to create a miraculous growth in the productivity of agricultural land. The fact that fewer people needed to work the land to provide food for the community allowed many more to migrate to the city and find other forms of employment. Although the conditions at first were dismal for city laborers, through collective bargaining our nation developed a middle class that had not been equaled by any other nation in the world before us.

None can ignore that the average person today works fewer hours than ever before in human history and has more “stuff” to show for his labor. For this same reason, more people than in any other nation ever before have access to more food than is required to survive. That is, the vast majority of our people in this nation have access to an overabundance of food. This economic boom has also given rise to an unprecedented access to cutting edge technology for the common man, which in times past was available only to the very wealthy class. Most homes now have two cars and a television set in every room. The washing machine and dryer have provided for the homemaker the opportunity to have much more leisure time than in times past. The strenuous nature of the work that was necessary to survive two hundred years ago has been replaced by modern conveniences, which allow us unprecedented levels of leisure time at our disposal.

Computers and television have made a huge impact on our culture. In the latter part of the twentieth century we entered the age of visual communication. We quickly traversed the line from auditory communication to visual communication with the inventions of the moving picture show, television, personal computers, satellites and the Internet. Through these marvels of technology we are literally connected with the entire planet from our personal homes. We have access to information at our fingertips that could not, in times past, be cataloged in the largest libraries of 99% of the cities in the world.