Situations like this inevitably breed jealousy and desire for radical change. Eventually they breed the fiery resolve necessary for radical change as well. This resolve is the radicalism of the slaves, though, not of the revolution. .
It is safe to say that British government in its North American colonies was more efficient to begin with than that of Saint Domingue. Wood points emphasize in The Radicalism of the American Revolution that these Americans were prosperous compared to the rest the world. Most were not slaves. Yet, they were still subject to arbitrary, monarchial government that treated colonists as second class citizens. Significantly, their king was particularly inept, and chose to exploit the colonies through taxation rather than allow them to prosper on their own. Colonists seeking changes to create a more viable imperial union, got from the King the so-called Intolerable Acts and a proposal to bring over more British soldiers. Regardless of how good or bad the actual lot of revolutionary Americans was, the inefficiency of their monarchial and colonial form of government is easy to see.
Part of the efficiency of a revolution lies in its immediate positive and negative effects on the situation of those involved. The less disruption caused by a revolution the better it is for folks in the short term. That the Haitian revolution was violent should come as no surprise, considering it was inspired by the French one. The Haitian revolution started out bloodthirsty, but was tamed, to some extent, by the wisdom of L'Ouverture. His well thought out plans for Haiti did not include the gratuitous bloodshed that helped make Haiti an international pariah after the Revolution, which James justifies on the dubious grounds of fairness. Where and while he ruled, Toussaint showed uncommon mercy and restraint. From the Haitian Revolution's beginning in a Voodoo ceremony in Bois Caman, where slaves swore to kill all whites on the island, it was more a rebellion against the white oppressors than for ideals like "liberté, egalité, fraternité.
