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This paper examines the cycle of rebellion that the Central African Republic (CAR) has fallen into over the past decade, and the weaknesses of the international peacebuilding efforts organized in response. Rather than a unified state, the space labeled the CAR is home to two governing forces, both of which take advantage of broader regional dynamics: (1) capital rentiers and (2) hinterland raiders with non-centralized modes of operation. The rebellions represent the instrumentalization of the latter by the former. But these temporary alliances have not unified the two modes of rule. An ever-tighter circle around the president controls politics in the capital, and rural residents remain marginalized. This paper argues that understanding insecurity and rebellion in CAR requires looking at the specific dynamics that fostered their creation. In contrast, the peacebuilding structures advocated by international donors are founded on an ideal-type conception of the state that ignores the workings of politics on the ground. In this gap between vernacular and ideal-type politics, capital-based leaders have been able to pay lip service to the state ideals while actually pursuing their own prerogatives, with little fear of punishment. The example of disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) provides a case study of how these processes work.