Polyglot Politcs

The GOP's Latino outreach: With three-quarters of a million Hispanic Americans reaching voting age every year for the next decade, Republicans not only are beginning to understand the political math but also are learning to speak the political language. Saying "pro-life" in Spanish might be a good idea | Bob Jones

Zozobra is dead. Growling and groaning, he was hoisted high on a pole two nights ago and set on fire. No one was sorry to see him go, of course. The 44-foot-tall puppet is nicknamed "Old Man Gloom" because he represents the mistakes and disappointments of the year. Thousands of New Mexicans party around his funeral pyre each year, kicking off the three-day celebration known as Fiesta.

Forty-eight hours after the blaze, the residents of Santa Fe are still partying. Marching bands and mounted regiments are gathered in the parking lot of the DeVargas Mall, waiting for the 2 p.m. kickoff of the annual Fiesta parade. It's a weird cross-section of Santa Fe, past and present: Church groups, New Age healers, and gay activists line up side-by-side with costumed Spanish conquistadors and Pueblo Indians.