Marjory Stoneman Douglas (1890–1998) was an American journalist,
writer, feminist, and environmentalist known for her staunch defense of
the Everglades against efforts to drain it and reclaim land for
development. Moving to Miami as a young woman to work for The Miami
Herald, Douglas became a freelance writer, producing over a hundred
short stories that were published in popular magazines. Her most
influential work was the book The Everglades: River of Grass, which
redefined the popular conception of the Everglades as a treasured river
instead of a worthless swamp; its impact has been compared to that of
the influential 1962 book Silent Spring. Her books, stories, and
journalism career brought her influence in Miami, which she used to
advance her causes. Douglas lived until age 108, working until nearly
the end of her life for Everglades restoration. Upon her death, an
obituary in The Independent in London stated, "In the history of the
American environmental movement, there have been few more remarkable
figures than Marjory Stoneman Douglas."
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marjory_Stoneman_Douglas>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
661:
The Rashidun Caliphate, the first Arab caliphate founded after
Muhammad's death in 632, effectively ended with the death of Ali.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ali>
1343:
Pope Clement VI issued the papal bull Unigenitus to justify the power
of the pope and the use of indulgences.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Clement_VI>
1918:
The first hostilities in the Finnish Civil War began when White Guards
attacked trains carrying a large shipment of weapons from Bolshevist
Russia to the Red Guards.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finnish_Civil_War>
1967:
The Apollo 1 spacecraft was destroyed by fire at the Kennedy Space
Center in Florida, U.S., killing astronauts Gus Grissom, Edward White
and Roger Chaffee.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_1>
1996:
Colonel Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara deposed Mahamane Ousmane, the first
democratically elected president of Niger, in a military coup d'état.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ibrahim_Bar%C3%A9_Ma%C3%AFnassara>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
circumnavigate (v):
1. To travel completely around somewhere or something, especially by
sail.
2. To circumvent or bypass
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/circumnavigate>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
Everything's got a moral, if only you can find it.
--Lewis Carroll
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll>