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

_______________________________ 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

_____________________________ 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

___________________________ 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