[kamaal]

>>Take a moment to think about how powerful this guy really is.

Symbolically yes. But the world has moved on. Power these days comes in the form of a well developed economy, powerful armies, weapons, lobbies etc.

Spiritual power by and large means nothing in the current world.

Its all power, wealth and interests that move around them.

[kohanz]

Which of the above factors did Nelson Mandela possess?

[sys_argv]

Beyond the symbolic stature that he possessed, what 'power' did he have?

[andrewcooke]

where i live abortion, in any form, is still illegal.

this guy certainly does have power over many people.

if you had a hugely successful campaigner in the usa that transformed the debate over abortion there, don't you think that would make news? this guy has the same potential, and that's just one small aspect, here in chile.

and anyway, it is not about power. snowden has very little power, but we would all (well most of us) appreciate it if he had won.