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24637: Hugues (comment): whole chapter on Haiti and the DR in Jared Diamond's "Collapse



From Hugues Saint-Fort: <<Hugo274@aol.com <mailto:Hugo274@aol.com>>>

In Jared Diamond's most recent book entitled : "/Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed"/ (Viking, 2005), there is a whole chapter entirely devoted to Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Chapter 11, p.329-357 is entitled "One Island, Two Peoples, Two Histories: The Dominican Republic and Haiti" and constitutes one example among several others brought by Diamond to show "what happens when we squander our resources, when we ignore the signals our environment gives us, and when we ...cut down too many trees." This short case study has, however, some methodological flaws. In this comparison, Diamond extends his analysis on the Dominican Republic and writes only 5 or 6 full pages on Haiti. But the questions he asks in the beginning of his chapter on Haiti and the DR are very interesting. On Page 333, he writes: "For anyone inclined to caricature environmental history as "environmental determinism", the contrasting histories of the Dominican Republic and Haiti provide a useful antidote. Yes, environmental problems do constrain human societies, but *the societies' responses also make a difference.* (my emphasis). So, too, for better or for worse, do the actions and inactions of their leaders."

Hugues Saint-Fort