Kaplan does NOT caution against exporting democracy.  What he says is that as democracy spreads, people's expectations will outrun the necessary slow development of institutions that support democracy; and that as democracy spreads, increased prosperity will follow, giving people access to information technology,  which will enable them to more effectively organize around their complaints.....and further the ethnic and religious divides.  Kaplan is saying to be aware of this, to not expect democracy to solve all problems....that democracy will for a long time in these countries make more problems.

And it's funny that this reviewer accuses him of conservatism, and I accuse him of liberalism.  Well, it's true that both charges could be laid.  At times Kaplan seems to contradict himself in his books. Often. It can be maddening. I decided not  to address that because I wanted to write a useful piece for readers, and decided to trust them to come to their own conclusions about the stuff I didn't like.

The reviewer (Alford) is showing off his intellectualism by seizing on the differences between self-interest and selfishness.  The problem does not exist in the book.  Kaplan defines and redefines what he means by self-interest, and any school child would know he does not mean  selfishness.

And...Balkan Ghosts was an excellent book, but The Ends of the Earth was not one of his (Kaplan's) better ones  I've read all of them.

The book can be seen as an "apology for the worst sort of  international exercise of power" because Kaplan takes "a dim view of the media?" 

LOL

The reviewer (Alford) is a twit.

Back to Warrior Politics review.

© 2002 Peggy Whitcomb