Hugo Chavez’s defeat may mean the beginning of the end for his regime, but certainly not for social reformism in Latin America. With its horrendous disparity in income distribution and its lack of basic social justice, Latin America sorely needs a clear-thinking left. What it doesn’t need is a demagogue flush in petro-dollars presenting his corrupt and inefficient regime as a revolutionary model for the rest to follow.

Despite its substantial flaws, however, Chavez’s regime still has an increasing source of support and strength. It is petrodollars, the political spinach for tyrants the world over. In practical terms, this means that in the end Chavez’s most reliable ally is neither Cuba nor Iran, but the United States.

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In Peru, somebody has already done Amar’s homework for him. A nationwide poll published May 20th in El Comercio, Peru’s newspaper of record, had some revealing answers:

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On the surface, the Latin American Left seems to be surging with unprecedented vigor. Not even at the heyday of the internal guerrilla and counterinsurgency wars in Latin America -- from the 1960s to the 1980s -- were there so many self-designated leftist regimes as there are today.

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Lima, Peru - In Spanish we have lots of nice, often contradictory sayings. They are unpretentious, witty observations that have stood the test of time by sometimes mimicking wisdom and other times achieving it.

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Lima, Peru - Looking for a way out of the many strategic quagmires brought about by the Bush's administration arrogant incompetence and greed will keep both the Senate and the House pretty busy. I just hope that the pendulum doesn't swing back too much.

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Lima, Peru - A few days ago, Peru's president, Alan Garcia, visited Washington. It wasn't a striking or even an aesthetically appealing occasion, but it had some importance for South America. Last time Mr. García dealt with a U.S. president was in the late 1980s, when he was our leader for the first (and many prayed -- unsuccessfully -- it would be the last) time. During both visits, his counterparts were named George Bush. In both cases, the pairs of presidents discussed the "war on drugs." But times have changed, and Mr. García has, too.

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Lima, Peru - Historically, regime change in Latin America has usually been caused by the law of force rather than the force of law. But the methods have changed. During the Cold War years, a pendulum swung through Latin America roughly every decade. Weak Democracies were replaced with military regimes and vice versa. The 50s and the 70s were dominated by often brutal military regimes (save a couple exceptions), while the 60s and 80s by fledgling Democracies.

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