Comments on: Cormac on famine

By: Lefournier

Lefournier — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 23:18:35 +0000

RTE discussion with Andy O’Mahoney is here:
http://dynamic.rte.ie/quickaxs/209-rte-offtheshelf-2010-02-20.smil

By: David O'Donnell

David O'Donnell — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 19:14:17 +0000

@brian

.. maith agat.

By: Al

Al — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 16:06:25 +0000

@ Brian
Good artice
Al

By: David O'Donnell

David O'Donnell — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 13:52:03 +0000

@ALL

& looking on the bright side - considering that leading economic punters are predicting a ten year depresssion around here, or at minimum a ten year stagnation - it is most heartening to hear from Cormac that such stagnation will not result in abject famine. Gotta read up on that chapter in Marx again and figure out how to live on an acre of spuds and recalculate the barter-value of a big fat pig …………. anyone got an acre to lease for ten years? Derelict zombie sites, zombie hotel roofs, overgrown dirt tracks and roads are all open to negotiation ……… no cash - but balls of flour and home-cured bacon in lieu ……. no estate agents please.

By: Brian O' Hanlon

Brian O' Hanlon — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 12:00:11 +0000

Thanks for the links Kevin, I hope to get to listen to the podcast soon. BOH.

By: Wow

Wow — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 11:54:19 +0000

I have long held the suspicion that it would take a foreigner to be able to right such a book.

Simply because the majority of Irish would find it hard to do so with some being only too keen to leave a nationalist bias colour their findings as they start with the conlusion “it was the brits” analysis and the rest being too keen to prove no such bias and effectively working from the presumption that whatever it was “it was not the brits, no way.”

The book sounds interesting and worth a look. Thanks for highlighting it.

By: Brian

Brian — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 10:51:02 +0000

Readers of this post may value the opportunity of learning, if they haven’t already seen it, that the New Republic recently recognised the quality of Cormac O Grada’s contribution to our understanding of famine in a long and unusually positive review of this short book by David Rieff.

See, http://www.tnr.com/article/world/the-end-hunger

By: Pat Donnelly

Pat Donnelly — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 09:47:21 +0000

The Famine in Ireland is crucial to understanding modern Irish, in Ireland and elsewhere. Indian famines while under British rule, are also relevant.

It all boils down to rulership. S/he who has the gold makes the rules.

By: Greg

Greg — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 02:29:13 +0000

Heard it on the radio.

Going to buy the book.

By: zhou_enlai

zhou_enlai — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 16:44:33 +0000

I caught that on the radio - very enjoyable.

By: David O'Donnell

David O'Donnell — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 15:47:47 +0000

… then again it would be an O’Rourke giving a plug to an O Grada (-;

… think I met an earlier version of the double act years ago.

Do Amazon do barter in bank shares?