[Rhodes22-list] Politics - Community Organizing

[Brad Haslett]

Rik,

Here's what IowaHawk (blogger) and candidate for POTUS has to say in
defense of "community organizing".

Brad

--------------

When America's Communities Need Organizing, America's Community
Organizers Will Be There to Organize Them

By David Burge
Presidential Candidate
Professional Community Organizer


Organizing community youths: Dave's passion

When I listened to the snarky and demeaning and condescending remarks
of former beauty pageant loser Sarah Palin at the Republican National
Convention Wednesday night, I could scarcely believe what I was
hearing:

    "I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a 'community
organizer,' except that you have actual responsibilities."

Ooo-oooh, Caribou Barbie makes a funny, hardee-har-har. Well yuk it up
now, little miss former junior college baby machine, because your
sarcastic attempt to belittle America's community of hardworking
professional community organizers is about to backfire -- big time.
Because, for your information, I am America's community organizer
community.

By now most of you know I am a candidate for President of the United
States. What you may not know is that for the past 4 months, I have
also been a proud member of Campaign For a Better Humanity, a
non-profit community outreach program I created with a joint grant
from Johnson County Community Services and the Iowa State Work Release
Program.

What do community organizers do? As you know, Americans today are
struggling with problems. These problems include rising unemployment,
energy cost, alienation, animosity, corporations, and increased death.
Like no other time in our history, Americans are staring into an abyss
of a hellhole of helplessness. And this is where community organizers
like me come in and provide needed solutions. Specifically, America's
community organizers:

    * reach out and work with communities in various ways.
    * liaison with, and for, community agencies for service within
affected areas.
    * fight to make a difference.
    * raise awareness.
    * deal with community issues.
    * raise awareness in the community of how we are making
differences about undealt-with issues .
    * when necessary, refer inquiries to outreach coordinators.
    * Help coordination agency administrators identify and address
outreach opportunities.
    * model timetables and conceptualize benchmarks.
    * issue guidelines for poster contests and interpretive dance festivals.
    * Gather voter registrations, win valuable prizes.

And that's just the beginning. Let me give you some specific examples
of how community organizer organizations like CFBH are making a
difference right here in Majestic Oakewoods, a subdivision off exit
242. As you know, in the year since I moved here my community has
experienced a rash of crime, despair, and abandoned homes. To address
these community problems, I reached out to local groups of disaffected
dropout youths who were struggling with unemployment. During a
rap-session kegger at my home, I spoke with them about ways they could
get involved with the community and help protect the environment.
Together we organized an innovative free community bicycle / metal
recycling program. I am proud to say that it has been so successful
that our private sector partner, Kyle's Salvage, has encouraged us to
create an expanded free community car program.

I am also proud to report that my outreach efforts have also helped
get local disadvantaged youths involved in the community through
politics. We met with local elected officials and showed them how
successful programs piloted by ACORN in Chicago and Milwaukee could be
adapted to keep local youths off the streets. The result is CFBH's
wildly popular Beer and Smokes for Votes program.

But it's not just young people who benefit through community
organizing efforts. For example I also make frequent visits to
Whispering Acres, the senior assisted living center across from
Hy-Vee. Like many elderly people across America, the residents there
often struggle with forgetfulness and confusion. As a community
organizer, I listen to their concerns and boring, meandering stories
about the Depression. Then, when they eventually fall asleep, I help
by checking their mail and storage areas and medicine cabinets to see
what needs organizing. If they suddenly wake back up, I enjoy helping
them fill out various legal and financial forms, and voter
registrations. I'm proud to say that through efforts like these, many
of these seniors have come to think of me as family. And dude, I mean
totally convinced.

So yes, Sarah Palin, you igloo-dwelling ignoramus, I am a Community
Organizer - and damned proud of it. And I will be proud to bring my
community organizing skills to the White House while you snowmobile in
shame back to your stupid Alaska podunk moose meth lab. Speaking for
America's dedicated community organizers and the hundreds of millions
of Americans whose very lives depend on us -- we will not sit here
while you badmouth the United States of America.

Oh, and Sarah? Call me.


On Fri, Sep 5, 2008 at 6:59 PM, Rik Sandberg <sanderico1 at gmail.com> wrote:
> Brad,
>
> Sounds like something Obamarama would think is just great.
>
> Maybe instead of teaching these kids to hang out on street corners
> demonstrating (bitching) he could teach them the value of a job. That
> would be doing something really constructive for the country.
>
> Speaking of demonstrating, did you see they damned near had a riot down
> near the Excel Center last night. Damned fool war protesters haven't
> figured out yet that our boys are starting to come home already, I
> guess. What a bunch of maroons.
>
> Rik
>
> Ayn Rand was a prophet - - it isn't my fault
>
>
>
> Brad Haslett wrote:
>> Does this sound like a good use for your tax dollars?
>>
>> http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=305420655186700#
>>
>> Remind me to tell the story sometime (if I haven't already done so)
>> about the HUD crime prevention grant audit I did one time while
>> working for a CPA firm.  If people understood how "community
>> organizers" really work and how they are funded, there would be a
>> bounty on them.
>>
>> Brad
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