Few topics are more hotly debated in the Americas today than what is Venezuela's Hugo Chavez's Socialism of the 21st Century, the Bolivarian Revolution, and Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA). Joel D. Hirst's pathbreaking study examines the Chavez phenomenon and ALBA, crisply documenting the political and economic ideology behind Chavez's petroleum-driven alliance of nations. Heavily committed to a collectivist, authoritarian, and anti-American future, ALBA in its present confi guration challenges U.S. democratic values, economic liberty, and hemispheric security cooperation. It should be a matter of concern, not just to Washington policy makers, but to all friends of freedom throughout the Americas. Ray Walser, Ph.D., Senior Policy Analyst, The Heritage Foundation