Propaganda, Reason, Passion, Obama

I've been enjoying some great posts on BoingBoing from ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive, watching all sorts of great archived animation, from Mighty Mouse to incredibly obscure and unknown animations. I've really enjoyed the last two posts, and I figured I'd link to them here:

The concept of propaganda is widely misunderstood. Many people automatically assume that it's a negative thing. But propaganda is just a tool that can be used for either good or bad. Propaganda involves bypassing the intellect and appealing directly to emotion to motivate a group of people to action.

While there are many people appealing purely to our emotions nowadays, I don't have to stop and think long to think of the main transgressors. It's my desire that reason not be put in the back seat like it has in so many discussions I've been involved with lately. They both have a spot, but give reason the controls, people, please.
[WWI and WWII Propaganda Posters]
[In Praise of Passion]

Also interesting, Tom Junod's piece in Esquire about the type of leader Barack Obama is. Basically, and the article is great, it talks about how Obama is a true father figure. I hate just to use long excerpts--you should read it yourself--but there's a few poignant points I want to include.

Your example is your authority. Positive discipline does not mean no discipline; it means that discipline is a matter of teaching mutual respect, rather than making your child suffer. "Children do better when they feel better, not worse," is what it says on my kitchen cabinet, and so when faced with intransigence, parents have to respond by stating their expectations, repeating the rules, and then giving their children the love and support they need to follow them. Always try to include, rather than isolate; avoid labels; don't negotiate, but don't escalate, either. If your children are not doing well, either take them out of the situation or remove yourself. You — and they — can always try again.
It is a philosophy that could have been minted by Cass Sunstein, the White House advisor who is developing ways to "nudge" citizens to make the right choices without them being aware of the manipulation. It could serve as a précis for how Obama has dealt with Joe Wilson, not to mention Skip Gates and Sergeant Jim Crowley, not to mention Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who was never threatened but rather told to "think carefully" while answering the protests of the Iranian presidential election with the truncheon and the gallows. One could almost hear Obama saying, "Use your words, Mahmoud. Use your words."
...
Barack Obama, then, is not the agent of change; he's the fulfillment of a change that is already occurring culture-wide, in every place but politics. That's why the Republicans fear him so much; why, while waiting for him to fail, they just come off as the political party for people who want to hit their kids.

Take a look here.