RE: [xmca] War and food

[Peter Smagorinsky <smago@uga.edu>]

Interesting Michael. It's pretty clear now that the Irish potato famine was not caused by lack of food (exports rose during the famine), but was a manipulation of markets to reduce the Catholic population of Ireland by Protestants in power. So, it's genocide rather than war, but the same principle holds.

From: xmca-bounces@weber.ucsd.edu [mailto:xmca-bounces@weber.ucsd.edu] On Behalf Of Michael Glassman
Sent: Tuesday, May 08, 2012 9:01 AM
To: eXtended Mind, Culture, Activity
Subject: RE: [xmca] War and food

Hi Peter,

The Bengali economist Amartya Sen did one of the most fascinating studies I have seen (I believe he won the Nobel Prize for it) on the causes of famine

Sen, Amartya, Poverty and Famines : An Essay on Entitlements and Deprivation, Oxford, Clarendon Press,

His thesis, well supported I think, is that famine is not the result of lack of food.  Generally there is enough food to maintain populations in almost every circumstance.  Famine instead is the result of either lack of communication or purposeful miscommunication (those dispersing food either hoard supplies and claim that there is not enough, or make distribution systems opaque and/or confusing so people who are hungry don't know where to go).

Taken together with the book you refer ot (of which I have only read the review) it seems there is a very real possibility that instead of lack of calories causing war, that centralized government manipulates food supplies in order to drive their population towards war.

It also raises questions of whether food supplies are manipulated for other reasons.

MIchael

________________________________
From: xmca-bounces@weber.ucsd.edu<mailto:xmca-bounces@weber.ucsd.edu> on behalf of Peter Smagorinsky
Sent: Tue 5/8/2012 8:46 AM
To: lchcmike@gmail.com<mailto:lchcmike@gmail.com>; eXtended Mind, Culture,Activity
Subject: RE: [xmca] War and food

Mike et al., those who find this article and book interesting might also be interested in: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plagues_and_Peoples
The emphasis is on the role of disease in human history in shaping societies, but food and disease often go hand in hand, with the help of animals. p

-----Original Message-----
From: xmca-bounces@weber.ucsd.edu<mailto:xmca-bounces@weber.ucsd.edu> [mailto:xmca-bounces@weber.ucsd.edu] On Behalf Of mike cole
Sent: Monday, May 07, 2012 4:02 PM
To: eXtended Mind, Culture,Activity
Subject: [xmca] War and food

This book review from the Sunday NY Times provides a thought provoking re-thinking of the circumstances leading up to WWII that seems more than a little relevant to the world's current circumstances and the links between political economy and ideology.

mike
        [image: The New York Times] <http://www.nytimes.com/>      *
*
 * *
 * On Their Stomachs
<http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/06/books/review/the-taste-of-war-by-lizzie-collingham.html?emc=eta1>
*

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