THE LEADER OF THE FREE WORLD

While thinking about the nature of power, I was thinking about persuasive power. Now, there are three types of power a government has, at least according to John Kenneth Galbraith, who wrote a big heavy ox stunner of a book on the subject titled THE ANATOMY OF POWER. To sum it up they can pay you to what they want (enlistment bonus), they can force you to do what they want (the draft, guarded borders, etc) or they can convince you to do what they want (billion dollar ad campaigns to join the Army).
But this persuasive power seems that it would be the most innocuous. At least until you read manufacturing consent and/or watch 10 seconds of the Fox news network and realize how huge this power is.
I then was thinking about quotes from American presidents. Like Roosevelt's famous "We have nothing to fear but fear itself". Or Kennedy's "Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country" which was actually penned by Arthur Sleshinger. I respect that more than Reagen's famous quote "Go ahead make my day" lifted from a Dirty Harry movie. Ok, Reagen also had "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall", which is better than W. Bush's "Is our children learning enough?" which he wrote himself with purple crayon on a dry erase board.
But if you want to quote the real voice of freedom, a voice recognised all over the world, it is Bob Marley. From Get up stand up to Emancipation song, the words of Bob Marley are so universal, they inspire us and give us hope long after his death. His lyrics are not a blueprint for a free world, but they are a foundation for a better understanding. The truth may set you free, but Marley can set you free and make you dance. Everyone, from the janitor at DIA to Bonno (kuddos on the African AIDS relief campaign) who feels it knows it.