Richard Gavin Reid (1879–1980) was a Canadian politician who served as
the sixth Premier of Alberta from 1934 to 1935. He was the last member
of the United Farmers of Alberta to hold the office, and that party's
defeat at the hands of the upstart Social Credit League in the 1935
election made him the shortest-serving Premier in Alberta history. When
Reid took office, Alberta was experiencing the Great Depression. Reid
took measures to ease Albertans' suffering, but believed that inducing
a full economic recovery was beyond the capacity of the provincial
government. In this climate, Alberta voters were attracted to the
economic theories of evangelical preacher William Aberhart, who
advocated a version of social credit. Despite Reid's claims that
Aberhart's proposals were economically and constitutionally unfeasible,
Social Credit routed the UFA in the 1935 election; Reid's party did not
retain a single seat.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Gavin_Reid>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1790:
The Supreme Court of the United States first convened at the Merchants'
Exchange Building in New York City.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supreme_Court_of_the_United_States>
1884:
The first fascicle of the Oxford English Dictionary, a 352-page volume
that covered words from A to Ant, was published.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxford_English_Dictionary>
1896:
Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème premiered at the Teatro Regio in
Turin, Italy, eventually becoming part of the standard Italian opera
repertory and one of the most frequently performed operas
internationally.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_boh%C3%A8me>
1946:
As a result of a compromise between the major powers within the United
Nations, Norwegian politician Trygve Lie was elected as the first UN
Secretary-General.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trygve_Lie>
1957:
Invented by German mechanical engineer Felix Wankel, the first working
prototype of the Wankel rotary engine ran for the first time at the
research and development department of German manufacturer NSU
Motorenwerke AG.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wankel_engine>
2003:
The NASA Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated over Texas during reentry
into the Earth's atmosphere on its 28th and final mission, killing all
seven crew members.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle_Columbia_disaster>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
contemptuously (adv):
In a disrespectful or discourteous manner; condescendingly
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/contemptuously>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly.
--Langston Hughes
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Langston_Hughes>