The Croatian Spring was a political conflict that took place from 1967
to 1971 in the Socialist Republic of Croatia, at the time one of six
republics comprising Yugoslavia and ruled by the League of Communists of
Croatia (SKH). It was marked by a series of economic reforms. Reformers
within the SKH, aligned with the Croatian cultural society Matica
hrvatska, came into conflict with conservatives. A variety of grievances
were aired, including demands for increased autonomy, opposition to real
or perceived overrepresentation of Croatian Serbs in Croatia and
disagreement over whether the Croatian language was distinct from Serbo-
Croatian. The conflict also increased the popularity of expressions of
Croatian culture. Plans were made to amend the constitution. The
Yugoslav leadership intervened, compelling the SKH leadership to resign
(headline pictured). Nevertheless, most demands were later adopted,
ushering in a form of federalism that contributed to the subsequent
breakup of Yugoslavia.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croatian_Spring>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1787:
German-born British astronomer William Herschel discovered two
Uranian moons, later named Oberon and Titania by his son John.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titania_%28moon%29>
1863:
American Civil War: The Battle of Arkansas Post concluded with
the Union Army capturing a fort near the mouth of the Arkansas River.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Arkansas_Post_%281863%29>
1923:
Troops from France and Belgium invaded the Ruhr to force the
Weimar Republic to pay reparations in the aftermath of World War I.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occupation_of_the_Ruhr>
2013:
French special forces failed in an attempted rescue of a DGSE
agent, who had been taken hostage in 2009 by al-Shabaab, in Buulo
Mareer, Somalia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulo_Marer_hostage_rescue_attempt>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
blotto:
(informal) (Very) drunk or intoxicated.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/blotto>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
My dad went through a sea of deaths. The oldest of six, he buried
his four younger brothers and four of his children. Yes, I was it. His
philosophy after grieving was to laugh. To try to bring some joy to
others, because life is just so hard sometimes. Because it ends. My
father also had a huge amount of dignity. This Mark Twain quote sums up
the way my father and mother felt about life: “Keep away from people
who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the
really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” … I am
very proud of the life I have led so far. I have a lot of love in my
life. And a lot of laughs. And I wish that for you all. I wish that
even for the guy in the audience with his arms folded.
--Bob Saget
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Bob_Saget>