Bad times were good for health, back then

A recent study found that during the Great Depression and two recessions, death rates decreased and life expectancy increased. The association between economic downstrends and a "healthier" populace is decreasing. The implications are astounding.
( This inquiry provoked by the 10/16/09 The Week Health & Science page: notes )

Shell Game

The Credit Card Act of 2009 goes into effect in February, 2010. The banks are scrambling to replace lost funding, and are likely to stealthily introduce new fees. It might be a good time to make sure I know what my credit card account agreement actually says. I think that if you call to activate a new card, you are automatically accepting any revisions to your policy they may have instituted, even if you have not seen a paper copy of such revisions. Not sure. Anybody know?