Obama's Plan to Desecrate 9/11 [Plus Additional Links for Archival Purposes]

Whoops! I meant to address the above to you too.:)

“SUSTAINABLE CITIES AND HIP HOP: CREATING A NEW URBAN BEAT”

http://thecityfix.com/sustainable-cities-and-hip-hop-creating-a-new-urban-beat/

“Yesterday, on his 48th birthday, Pres. Barack Obama announced the Green the Block campaign “to ensure that low-income communities and communities of color have the resources and platforms needed to access the benefits and opportunities of the growing clean-energy economy.”

Launched in partnership with Green For All and the Hip Hop Caucus, the nationwide campaign will rely on a coalition of organizations to educate and mobilize young people about how to take action on things like installing energy-efficient light bulbs in neighborhood homes, planting a community garden, and writing letters to local officials asking them to promote the use of more fuel efficient vehicles.

Green the Block is just one example of how youth culture — and in particular, hip hop culture — is transforming the way we advocate for sustainable cities and transportation. And it’s not just in the United States.
Take, for example, the events planned for the World Urban Forum in 2006, where artists like Curtis Clearsky and other UN-HABITAT Messengers of Truth performed at the Global Hip-Hip Mainstage to inspire young people to change their cities for the better. The United Nations recognized that “Hip-Hop is more than a genre of music or dance. It is a social movement.”

It’s about mainstreaming the idea of safer, cleaner and more accessible urban communities, and you can see it happening through what’s commonly referred to as “the five elements:” emceeing, breakdancing, deejaying, beat boxing, and the art of graffiti. Here’s a few examples from around the world:

MASTER OF CEREMONIES
Obama, himself, is the quintessential emcee for America’s youth, supporting the power of hip hop as a vehicle for change:

“I love the art of hip hop; I don’t always love the message of hip hop. The thing about hip hop today is that it’s smart, it’s insightful, the way that [rappers] can communicate a complex message in a very short space is remarkable. A lot of these kids are not going to be reading The New York Times. The question, then, is, what’s the content? What’s the message?

Art can’t just be a rear view mirror; it should also have a headlight out there pointing to where we need to go.”

Barack “B-Rock” Obama meets with Ludacris. Photo via Snicka.

His decision about “where to go” was made clear through the establishment of the White House Office of Urban Affairs, which proves his commitment to “promote strong cities as the backbone of regional growth.” This summer, the Office kicked off a National Conversation on the Future of America’s Cities and Metropolitan Areas, essentially convening a whole community of urban policy “emcees” who will be talking about “ways in which Washington can be a partner and catalyst for community-based solutions, instead of a bureaucratic obstacle.”

Another public figure who comes to mind as a hip-hop-inspired voice for a new generation of sustainable city advocates is Majora Carter, who wrote a $1.25 million federal transportation planning grant to conduct a feasibility study for the South Bronx Greenway. As an African-American woman who grew up in the South Bronx, Carter understands that some people think cleaning and greening a city will “kill” hip hop because it takes away from the suffering, which often fuels the art form. But, she said in an interview, “if we have industry that employs people and communities — that are beautiful — then hip-hop can just flourish. It will just be something new. It will be happy hip-hop!” Hence her motto: “Green the Ghetto!”, which is also the title of her organization’s blog, which recently posted this pic...”

Despicable..as usual. Obama and his communist pals have no shame. It’s all about POWER..ALL THE TIME!

Heaven help us!

Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act (HR 1388)

Creates 175,000 New Service Opportunities and Rewards Americans for Commitment

* Grows the number of volunteers nationwide to 250,000, up from 75,000. These new service opportunities will include the expansion of existing service programs, like AmeriCorps, as well as four new service corps focused on education, health care, energy and veterans. All service programs established under the bill will be overseen by the Corporation for National and Community Service.
* Increases the full-time education award service members receive in exchange for their work to $5,350 for 2010. This award would also be linked to match future increases in the Pell Grant scholarship in order to keep up with rising college costs.

Creates New Service Corps to Meet Key Needs in Low-Income Communities

* Establishes four new service corps to address key needs in low income communities, including a Clean Energy Corps to encourage energy efficiency and conservation, an Education Corps to help increase student engagement, achievement and graduation, a Healthy Futures Corps to improve health care access, and a Veterans Service Corps to enhance services for veterans.

Provides Incentives for Middle and High School Students to Engage in Service

* Establishes the Summer of Service program that engages middle and high school students in volunteer activities in their communities and allows them to earn a $500 education award to be used for college costs. Students will be eligible to participate in two terms of service and earn up to a total of $1,000.

Makes High School Students Part of Solution to Challenges in their Communities

* Establishes Youth Engagement Zones, a new service-learning program to engage low-income high school students and out-of-school youth in volunteer efforts that address challenges in their local communities. The program will encourage partnerships between community-based organizations and schools in high-need communities and apply real world activities to teach students about a certain topic. For example, volunteering in a homeless shelter could supplement a class about poverty.

Boosts Opportunities for Disadvantaged and Foster Youth and Native Americans

* Expands opportunities for disadvantaged youth, including doubling the resources available to engage youth with disabilities, to become more involved with service and offers people of all ages and those from diverse backgrounds introduction to service.
* Encourages adults to serve as mentors for foster youth.
* Establishes a new office for service opportunities for Native Americans.

Strengthens Disaster Relief Service Efforts

* Expands the focus of the National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) to include disaster relief, infrastructure improvement, environmental and energy conservation, and urban and rural development.
* Encourages service partnerships with other federal agencies and increases the participation of disadvantaged youth to 50 percent of program participants by 2011.

Establishes an Alumni Reserve to Respond in Emergencies

* Establishes an alumni corps of former participants who can be called to service during times of disaster and other emergencies.

Bolsters America’s Competitiveness

* Encourages scientists, technicians and mathematicians to participate in service programs to help keep our nation competitive.

Expands Service Opportunities for Older Americans and Public-Private Partnerships

* Creates two new fellowships to engage social entrepreneurs, boomers and retirees, the private sector and Americans from all generations into service. Older Americans will be allowed to transfer their awards to a child, foster child or grandchild to help them pay for college.
o ServeAmerica Fellowships: ServeAmerica Fellows are individuals who propose their own plans for serving in their communities to address national needs and are matched up with a service sponsor.
o Silver Scholarships and Encore Fellowships: These programs offer Americans, age 55 or older, post-career service opportunities as well as entrance into new careers in the public or nonprofit sector. Silver Scholars will be able to earn up to $1,000 in exchange for 350 hours of service.

Creates a nationwide community-based infrastructure to leverage investments in service

* Builds a nationwide service infrastructure through community-building investments, social entrepreneurship, and programs to support and generate new volunteers.
o Community Solutions Fund: Creates a Community Solutions Fund pilot program that awards competitive matching grants to social entrepreneur venture funds in order to provide community organizations with the resources to replicate or expand proven solutions to community challenges, including a new focus on leveraging public private partnerships in small communities and rural areas. (Examples of service organizations that were launched by social entrepreneurs include Teach for America, City Year, Citizen Schools, Jump Start, Working Today, an organization that provides affordable, portable health benefits to 100,000 Americans, and the SEED school, the nation’s first public urban boarding school.)
o Volunteer Generation Fund: Provides grants to improve the quality and capacity of organizations to work with volunteers, and to create innovations in volunteerism in the areas of recruitment, training and management.

Encourages Highly Skilled Professionals to Help Improve Global Health

* Expands the Volunteers for Prosperity program which encourages highly skilled professionals to serve internationally in targeted areas of need such as global health

Establishes Call to Service Campaigns

* Includes a Call to Service Campaign to launch a national campaign encouraging all Americans to engage in service and to observe September 11th as a National Day of Service and Remembrance

Recognizes and Supports Colleges and Universities Engaged in Service

* Establishes the Campuses of Service to support and recognize institutions of higher education with exemplary service-learning programs and assists students in the pursuit of public service careers.