You would never believe it today, but before agriculture was an environmentalist's dirty word, it was a friendly word, a romantic word, a word that gave us hope -- something Florida editors rallied to sell as a savior of precious green belt.

A year ago environmentalists to a man/woman were blaming Big Sugar for the lion's share of Indian River Lagoon pollution, pooh-poohing the devastating effect of human waste leaking from the land. Actually, many of them still are. But times have changed. Florida rivers and estuaries have come under greater scrutiny. Now, through more concentrated scientific study, we understand what a threat septic tanks and faulty sewage pipes are to the quality of our waterways.

One year ago, there was a decent chance the Republican nominee for president would hail from Florida. Former Gov. Jeb Bush was far ahead of the pack in money and the "invisible primary" that comes before voters cast their ballots. And U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio was the second-favorite candidate for most GOP voters in the polls, signaling that he might have the most to gain as the field started to dwindle.