Party Like It's 1830

Republicans in Idaho hate the word fiesta. It's too Mexican in their ears and also, apparently, an insult to Arizona which is doing all it can to expel Mexicans from their state.

Fiesta has been in the English dictionary since the 1840's. While it means feast, literally, in Spanish, in English it has the meaning of an elaborate outdoor party. With that definition it is a very useful English word with no perfect synonym.

In my never ending effort to help Republicans achieve more perfect racial purity, here are some other English words with Spanish origins they will want to protest.

• Alligator - An anglicized form of el lagarto the Spanish term for "lizard." Florida Republicans should start referring to them as Swamp Toothy Things.
• Burrito - Republicans should insist on ordering them as "Little Donkeys."
• Montana - The whole state is an affront to All-American Republicans who should petition Congress to rename the state as Mountain.
• Rodeo - All of those Idaho rodeos should start using the American phrase, round up.
• Vanilla - What child wouldn't want some Little Pod Ice Cream.
• Chocolate - While we are at it, this would sound yummy as Hot Water Ice Cream. Chocolate is as Mexican a word as you can get, coming from combining Mayan and Nahuatl words.