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Potatoes?
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Famine_(Ireland)
Longer-term reasons for the massive impact of this particular famine included the system of absentee landlordism and single-crop dependence. Initial limited but constructive government actions to alleviate famine distress were ended by a new Whig administration in London, which pursued a laissez-faire economic doctrine, but also because some in power believed in divine providence or that the Irish lacked moral character, with aid only resuming to some degree later. Large amounts of food were exported from Ireland during the famine and the refusal of London to bar such exports, as had been done on previous occasions, was an immediate and continuing source of controversy, contributing to anti-British sentiment and the campaign for independence. Additionally, the famine indirectly resulted in tens of thousands of households being evicted, exacerbated by a provision forbidding access to workhouse aid while in possession of more than one-quarter acre of land.
I’m not hearing not potatoes
(I actually knew all about the horrendous and completely novel practice of depriving starving people of emergency alms, as was customary in times of famine for centuries before, as the depredations of capital see fit to slaughter all sacred calves and suck the very marrow out of their bones to seek satiety for its ever-burning hunger)
You see, the truth of the potato famine in Ireland hinges not on the potato harvest going bad, but the other foods being exported without regard for the starving Irish. All the grain and beef produced in Ireland was being shipped to the rest of Great Britain for profit, and imports of maize and grain from other countries was illegal due to protectionist laws. This, coupled with the ruthless exploitation of the Irish by absentee landlords, shrinking farm sizes, and horrific “welfare” options, led to the deaths of millions of Irish and the migration of many more from the country. All to protect the business of the British agricultural sector.
This sounds like someone trying to shift the blame away from potatoes tbh
If you’re interested in getting a deeper dive I recommend the book The Famine Plot by Tim Pat Coogan. A lot of the major players on the British side (and some of the Irish Protestants in lands that weren’t as badly hit) were convinced that the famine was a punishment for the Irish being “Heretics”. Also gave me a newfound respect for quakers who at least somewhat practice what they preach.
But what about second breakfast?
