Coming of Anarchy

David Kaplan’s “Coming of Anarchy” asserts crime, overpopulation, and resource scarcity within West Africa will bleed beyond political boundaries and cause the descent of society and absolute anarchy in the world. While Kaplan’s analysis raises some valid points, his conclusions are flawed due to generalizations and omitting key considerations.   This will be demonstrated by reviewing Kaplan’s oversimplified analysis of the scenario regarding the Ivory Coast and its root causes as well as Kaplan’s tendency to be far-reaching with his premises that omit key considerations regarding West Africa’s relation to the rest of the world. I will also address his failure to acknowledge the ability of a populace to evolve and change their surrounding environment.
Early on in his series of essays Kaplan fails to provide great detail and depth of analysis for what he identifies as some of the root causes for the descent into chaos and anarchy. He offers numerous indefinite examples of resource scarcity that is rooted within West Africa. One of which he casually references that when Sierra Leone achieved its independence in 1961, as much as 60 percent of the country was primarily rain forest.   It is now less than six percent.   Kaplan goes further by introducing Ivory Coast proportion of rain forests has decreased from 38 percent to eight percent.   In Guinea hardwood logging continues at a madcap speed, and people flee the Guinean countryside for Conakry.   This tale of deforestation and migration leading to soil erosion, flooding, and now everyone in West Africa has malaria is a slippery slope that must not be extrapolated.   Examinations of root causes should be focused and unambiguous. One must ascertain what is the main source of deforestation and why in West Africa?   Is it due to fuel consumption, sale on international markets, governmental corruption?   Is the lack of access to healthcare and shelter the cause of pandemic spread of malaria in the region?   Kaplan does not...