'From the Mississippi Delta to New Orleans, the Central Gulf has been the spawning ground of contemporary music from Blues to Jazz to Rock'n'Roll...But the music was silenced by the storms as whole lives were destroyed and people uprooted, leaving behind everything...'Thousands of musicians have lost their instruments in New Orleans - Music Rising is attempting to put those instruments back in their hands.' - The Edge
 

Music Rising, the non-profit organization launched by The Edge and Gibson Guitar to provide funds to replace instruments destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, has launched its own website. The new site includes commentary by Edge, the two public service announcements filmed in New Orleans (in Quicktime), a link to donate and a spot for a blog and bulletin board. Under the donate tab, you can also buy the limited edition Music Rising Gibson Guitar (currently on sale for $3334 U.S.) or the Music Rising t-shirt. The group has already received donations and pledges of over $2,000,000.

Check out the Music Rising site HERE. 

Products Turn Red To Augment AIDS Fund

By Steve Stecklow April 13, 2006

When United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan called in 2001 for a new global fund to fight the AIDS pandemic, he described it as a public-private partnership with both governments and corporations pitching in.

It hasn't worked out that way. Since 2001, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, an independent Swiss-based, nonprofit foundation that is supporting disease prevention and treatment programs in 131 countries, has raised more than $4.8 billion from governments, including $1.5 billion from the U.S. Other money has come from nonprofit sources, including $150 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. But less than $2 million has come from corporations, and none of that has come from American companies, according to the fund's financial records. By contrast, companies in the U.S. gave $425 million in cash to Southeast Asia tsunami relief, according to the Business Civic Leadership Center in Washington.

This isn't to say that U.S. companies ignore AIDS. Some have given to AIDS relief efforts outside the global fund -- more than $69 million in 2003, the latest year tracked by Funders Concerned About AIDS.

At the global AIDS fund, Executive Director Richard Feachem says the fund "is not an easy sell" to companies' philanthropic programs because it looks for large sums of money over a long period of time -- unlike emergency-relief efforts. The fund also doesn't allow private donors to direct how the money is spent, which doesn't jibe with a lot of corporate-giving programs, fund officials say. The fund's generally low profile is another problem.

Help may be at hand in the form of Project Red, an effort conceived by U2 rock star Bono and the Kennedy clan's Bobby Shriver, who have worked together on African poverty issues. Announced in January, the project is centered on enlisting companies to create special "red" products, a portion of whose profits -- about 40% to 50% -- is given to the global AIDS fund for its work in Africa. "We're trying to make it really easy for people to help," Bono says, referring to consumers.

The first Project Red products were introduced in Britain last month. So far, four companies have signed on, led by American Express Co., which is offering a red-colored credit card that says on the back, "This card is designed to help eliminate AIDS in Africa." At least 1% of the cardholder's spending goes to the fund. The other participants are Gap Inc., which launched a line of T-shirts; Nike Inc., which is selling a special Converse sneaker; and Giorgio Armani SpA, which is marketing sunglasses popularized by Bono. Actress Scarlett Johansson contributed a photo shoot to publicize the initiative.

Bono says the project sprang from a conversation he had with Robert Rubin about the general lack of AIDS awareness in which the former U.S. treasury secretary said, "You need to market this like Nike." Bono says, "It sowed the seeds in my mind about how to go about this."

The project was launched in Britain with the knowledge that consumers there have a history of buying "ethical" products like Fair Trade coffee, which promises to pay peasant growers more than the market rate. Only Armani, which says it plans to sell a whole line of red products, has expanded the project to the U.S. and other countries, although a Gap spokesman says an expanded line of red products will be available in North America this fall.

Officials at American Express, Gap and Armani say it is too soon to judge the project's success, but by some indications, there is a long way to go, at least in the U.K.

Stephan Shakespeare, chief executive of YouGov, a British market-research company, says, "When we look at the impact of Project Red on these so-called superbrands ... the scores are as flat as a pancake and the British public hasn't reacted in the manner that these companies, at least in private, would have hoped for." He suggests a recent spate of other ethical-issue affinity products in the U.K. may have resulted in "consumer apathy towards Project Red, which even Bono can't overcome."

Although publicity for the fund was widespread at its launch, Dr. Feachem says it has since waned. "Most people have never heard of us," he says. Joelle Tanguy, managing director of the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS in New York, says AIDS "will never have the power of the images of the tsunami."

Stephen Lewis, Mr. Annan's special U.N. envoy for AIDS in Africa, says, "The companies are going to benefit a hell of a lot more from Bono's name than the global fund is going to benefit from the companies." Replies Bono, "We don't know that yet. If we fail, that's true."

Mr. Lewis suggests that companies give 0.7% of their after-tax profits to the fund. But Ms. Tanguy of the HIV/AIDS business coalition says, "It's not going to happen," in part because shareholders likely wouldn't agree.

Meanwhile, Bono, Mr. Shriver and fund officials remain optimistic about their approach. Mr. Shriver says it will take 18 months to judge the effectiveness of Project Red, and he notes that the four companies signed five-year contracts. He says it took nearly two years to enlist participants; some companies suggested sponsoring a musical recording involving Bono.

Apple Computer Inc. and Time Warner Inc.'s AOL unit declined to participate, at least at first, according to people familiar with the situation. Spokespeople at Apple and AOL declined to discuss the matter. Project Red officials are hoping soon to announce a major cellular-phone service deal.

Mr. Shriver says all of the companies they approached were "a bit stunned" when they first heard the pitch: "We want you to make money." Although he suspects some companies worried about being accused of AIDS "profiteering," he says he believes it's the best solution to get companies to contribute over the long term. "No private-sector company whose job is to make profits is going to on a sustainable basis give away money," he says.

The fund's Dr. Feachem, who eventually wants to raise about $300 million annually from the private sector, makes no financial projections about Project Red, but says, "The potential ... is very large." And Bono is hopeful the companies' marketing skills will generate more awareness about "the AIDS emergency" in Africa, which is the continent's leading cause of death. "These people are great about getting people's attention," he says.

 WASHINGTON - Born to a Roman Catholic father and a Protestant mother in the sectarian strife of 1960s Ireland, U2 frontman Bono has more than a few reasons to distrust organized religion.

Far too often, Bono did not see his experience of Christian faith reflected in what he saw as a preachy moralism that neglects the poor and usually "gets in the way of God."

So Bono was as surprised as anyone to find himself the keynote speaker at the Feb. 2 National Prayer Breakfast. Not only that, he was extolling churches and faith communities for their efforts in his global crusade to rescue Africa from disease, debt and economic destruction.

"I have avoided religious people for most of my life," Bono told more than 3,000 mostly evangelical attendees. Later, he sheepishly admitted that he's "started to like these church people."

After years of running from organized religion, Bono says he can now embrace it, warts and all, as a pragmatic partner. And especially in the United States, Bono realizes that any effort at social change must include an appeal to Americans' faith-based instincts.

Bono credits religious groups for progress in his humanitarian campaign, and the newfound alliance suggests that (his most famous lyrics notwithstanding) perhaps he's finally "found what I'm looking for" -- a partner he can work with.

During a meeting with a half-dozen reporters after his speech, Bono munched on muffins and cantaloupe as he mused about the role of Christian faith generally, and the church's infrastructure specifically, in confronting famine, disease and poverty.

His strategy seems to be three-fold.

For one, Bono brings his own personal faith to bear, one that is deeply personal and not necessarily shaped by the four walls of the church. He finds hope in Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, inspiration in the Hebrew prophets and solace in the idea of undeserved grace.

Although U2's lyrics have been picked apart for their explicit and implicit Christian imagery, Bono has sometimes been reluctant to embrace the "Christian" label for himself, often because of his own shortcomings.

And he's the first to admit he's not a theologian. "I appreciate the absurdities of being a rock star quoting the Scriptures," he said.

Nonetheless, he can quote entire sections of Scripture -- he used his childhood Bible to prepare for Thursday's speech -- and talks in terms of national "tithing" on foreign aid, and the Bible's 2,100-plus verses on poverty.

"This is the leprosy of our age," Bono said, linking HIV/AIDS with the plagues of Jesus' day, in a hotel room after the breakfast. "It couldn't be more poignant, from a scriptural point of view, that this is on God's mind, that this is Jesus' point of view."

For years, many evangelicals -- Bono's target audience on Thursday -- weren't sure what to make of the drinking, partying, salty-mouthed Irishman and his rock band.

In recent years, much of that skepticism has fallen away. "He's a doer," President Bush said of Bono at the breakfast. "The thing about this good citizen of the world is he's used his position to get things done."

Bono is now widely seen as summoning Christians to a higher calling. "He's ready to be used by God in whatever ways he can," said Richard Cizik, the Washington-based director for the National Association of Evangelicals, "and if we were all so willing, the world would be a better place."

Bono's personal faith impacts and informs the second thrust of his work, which is an appeal for a 21st century reimagining of Christian essentials. It's an effort to sidestep divisive issues of sexual morality and partisan politics for a return to caring for the "least of these."

He has openly criticized Western governments for not spending more on foreign aid, especially for drugs that treat AIDS, schooling for African children and mosquito nets to prevent the spread of malaria. "God will not accept that," Bono chided the prayer breakfast. "Mine won't, at least. Will yours?"

Bono has been willing to work with almost anyone who will listen -- Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Muslim -- to harness the power of faith groups to aid the poor.

"He's reminding church leaders that hey, wake up, you should be heading this up," said Canadian author Robert Vagacs, who wrote Religious Nuts, Political Fanatics: U2 in Theological Perspective, published last November. "A rock star should not have to be heading this up."

But Bono is no ordinary rock star. After all, he didn't win Time's "Person of the Year" designation in 2005 with Bill and Melinda Gates for his musical abilities.

Bono's work with churches reflects just how politically savvy he is, and underscores his third goal, which is harnassing the power of American religion to shape the outcome of American politics, or at least the U.S. budget.

Bono has worked with Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Bill Clinton, conservative religious broadcaster Pat Robertson and progressive preacher Jim Wallis. America's strong religious identity has actually made it easier to preach his social gospel here than in Europe, which is now largely secular, he said.

"The church," he said after the breakfast, "is a much bigger crowd than even the stadium-sized crowds that we play to in U2."

At the same time, however, Bono has been openly critical of American faith and the "so-called Christian society" that he says is held captive by the bottom line and colored by notions of sin and punishment. Nonetheless, he continues to look for partners wherever he can find them.

"I think it was...a very strategic decision that if we're going to have a broad movement, we can't just have people we like," said Christian Scharen, a theology professor at Yale Divinity School with an upcoming book about U2.

And, to an extent that he even once thought unthinkable, Bono is willing to work with those he once ignored.

"If me, 10 years ago, had heard what I am saying," he said, "I wouldn't have believed me."


© Religion News Service, 2006.

'Thank You, Mr President...'

Source: U2.com, February 3rd, 2006

Bono is in Washington this week lobbying policy makers in the fight against AIDS and extreme poverty. Yesterday he quoted Islamic, Jewish and Christian texts in a speech at the National Prayer Breakfast calling on the U.S. government to give an additional 1 percent of the federal budget to the world's poor.

Speaking to President Bush, members of Congress, the Cabinet and the military as well as clergy and representatives from other countries he argued that it is unjust to keep poor people from selling their goods while singing the virtues of the free market, to hold children to ransom for the debts of their grandparents and to withhold medicines that would save lives. 'God will not accept that,' he said. 'Mine won't. Will yours?'

You can read Bono's entire speech on the DATA website, where you can also learn more about the global campaign to end extreme poverty. Click here to read Bono's speech. 

Bono Mixes Music with a Message

Omaha World-Herald, written by Christine Laue and Dane Stickney

December 17, 2005

One night in Omaha wasn't enough for U2 frontman Bono.

Following the band's sold-out Thursday night concert at the Qwest Center Omaha, Bono remained in town Friday to meet with board members of DATA, the group he co-founded in 2002 to raise awareness about and spark responses to the crises plaguing Africa.

Omahan Susan A. Buffett, daughter of Omaha investor Warren Buffett, serves on the board of DATA, an acronym for Debt, AIDS, Trade, Africa. The Buffetts and Bono have become close in recent years as they've worked for similar causes.

Bono, Susan Buffett and her brother, Howard Buffett, were among about 16 people who met Friday in the Omaha Steaks Conference Room at Joslyn Art Museum, 2200 Dodge St.

Bono, wearing his signature tinted glasses, scrawled notes on a white legal pad as the board huddled at a table decorated with red poinsettias. Extra security guards hovered outside the boardroom door and museum.

"We were thrilled to have Bono there," said Michael Yanney, chairman of Joslyn's board of directors.

During Thursday night's concert, Bono foreshadowed the meeting.

While soliciting support from the crowd for the ONE Campaign to combat global AIDS and poverty, Bono said he was taking part in a Christmas party Friday in Omaha.

Also during the show, he dedicated "Original of the Species" to Susan T. Buffett, the late wife of Warren Buffett.

Bono is one of the celebrities who helped launch the ONE Campaign. He also visited Lincoln in 2002 to raise awareness of the African AIDS epidemic.

The rock singer was in Omaha in August 2004 to sing at the elder Susan Buffett's funeral. Bono also thanks her in the liner notes of the 2004 CD, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb.

According to the DATA Web site, the board of directors also includes David Lane of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; Jamie Drummond of DATA; Morton H. Halperin of the Open Society Institute; Ned Jannotta of GTCR Golder Rauner, LLC; Richard Kiphart of William Blair & Co.; Trevor Neilson of the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS; Edward W. Scott Jr. of the Center for Global Development; Bobby S. Shriver, DATA chairman; and Amre A. Youness, private investor.

© World-Herald, 2005.

Rocker with a cause has leaders' ears

Bono applies fame as musician to winning help for the desperate

Source: The Plain Dealer, written by John Soeder, Plain Dealer Pop Music Critic

December 10, 2005

When Elvis Presley shook hands with President Nixon in 1970, it wasn't much more than a fleeting photo op.

When Bono got together with President Bush for lunch at the White House in October, however, they spoke for nearly two hours about debt relief, AIDS and other issues. Bono fronts the mega-popular Irish rock band U2, headlining a sold-out concert tonight at The Q.

But these days the singer is just as famous for his extracurricular activism.

He's the unshaven diplomat in the designer sunglasses who has been chewing the ears off presidents, prime ministers and other world leaders about humanitarian causes. "People look at him as more than a rock star," says former Ohio congressman John Kasich. "For a lot of people, he represents hope."

Kasich was chairman of the House Budget Committee when his pal Arnold Schwarzenegger asked him to discuss foreign aid with Bono in 1999.

"I've never been keen on celebrities in politics," Kasich says. "But Arnold told me Bono knew what he was talking about. As it turned out, Bono really did know what he was talking about."

Three years ago, Bono co-founded DATA, a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group whose name stands for Debt AIDS Trade Africa. The organization is dedicated to fighting extreme poverty and AIDS in Africa.

Bono's group was a driving force behind the Bush administration's Millennium Challenge Account, which earmarked $1.5 billion in assistance for developing nations this year. DATA also helped to lay the groundwork for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, launched with a $200 million pledge from the United States in 2002.

Kasich, a prominent Republican who now hosts a Fox News Channel talk show, became Bono's liaison on Capitol Hill, introducing the well-read rocker to key politicians from both parties. Bono even hit it off with Jesse Helms, the ultra-conservative senator from North Carolina.

"Jesse told Bono he wished he'd accomplished as much in his life as Bono has accomplished," Kasich says. "Jesse later went to see U2 in concert. He had to keep turning down his hearing aid."

British Prime Minister Tony Blair, former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and French President Jacques Chirac all have met with Bono over the years.

"He's making a difference in the world," says Bono's friend Neil McCormick, a London journalist and author of the tongue-in-cheekily titled memoir "Killing Bono." They met in high school.

"He always had that almost messianic glint about him," McCormick says, laughing.

"When you're kids in a rock 'n' roll band, you feel you can change the world. Most people lose that naive idealism. Bono lost the naivete, but not the idealism."

DATA's latest push is the One Campaign, a broad initiative to rally Americans in favor of allocating an additional 1 percent of the United States budget for aid to the world's poorest countries.

During U2's concerts, Bono has been making a pitch on behalf of One, which claims 1.5 million supporters to date. Cleveland Mayor Jane Campbell issued a proclamation this week declaring the city's support for the campaign.

Bono "is a very effective ally," says DATA Executive Director Jamie Drummond. "He's an inspirational character. He's very good at seeing both sides of an argument and talking to both sides to strike a deal."

Bono, 45, was born Paul Hewson in Dublin, where he and guitarist Dave "The Edge" Evans, bass player Adam Clayton and drummer Larry Mullen Jr. formed U2 in the late 1970s, when they were in their teens.

Bono's activism is a natural extension of the band's socially conscious brand of anthemic rock, says Jim Henke, chief curator at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and a former Rolling Stone editor who championed U2 early in its career.

"Their songs always have dealt with issues bigger than boy meets girl," Henke says.

The group has sold 120 million albums worldwide. Its latest release, "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb," brought five Grammy Award nominations for U2, including a nod for album of the year. Numerous rockers have dabbled in do-goodism, although none as successfully as Bono, Henke says.

Bono "is using his celebrity in a positive way," says Mary Cipriani, a longtime U2 fan from Cleveland who has been to dozens of U2 concerts. The first was a December 1981 gig at the Agora Theatre. Even then, Bono and his bandmates had a compassionate side. They let showgoers in early for the group's sound check, instead of making them wait outside in a blizzard.

Earlier this year, Bono was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. He surfaced as a candidate to head the World Bank, too.

To hear him tell it, he isn't ready to give up his day job or his rock 'n' roll lifestyle. Basking in the flashbulb-popping afterglow of a news conference immediately after U2's induction into the Rock Hall in March, Bono was asked if he would run for president.

With a grin, he replied: "I wouldn't move to a smaller house."

In The Name of Love

Source: U2.com, December 10, 2005

U2 have been awarded the ‘Ambassador of Conscience’ Award for 2005 by Amnesty International. Speaking of the award, Nobel Literature Laureate Seamus Heaney said that ‘U2 have sung themselves to where great singing comes from, that place where art and ardency meet in the light of conscience.’

The award was made to band members and manager Paul McGuinness. Irene Khan, Amnesty International Secretary General, praised U2 for doing arguably ‘more than any other band to highlight the cause of global human rights in general and Amnesty International's work in particular.’

‘Their leadership in linking music to the struggle for human rights and human dignity worldwide has been ground-breaking and unwavering. They have inspired and empowered millions with their music and by speaking out on behalf of the poor, the powerless and the oppressed.’

Previously won by Vaclav Havel and UN Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson, the award ‘recognises exceptional individual leadership and witness in the fight to protect and promote human rights.’

It is made on a day when human rights are being celebrated around the world and Amnesty International launches a global music venture ‘Make Some Noise’. The award cites U2’s work with Amnesty since the mid-1980’s, the Conspiracy of Hope Tour in 1986, Live Aid to Live 8 and the way the band have promoted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on the Vertigo Tour.

Bill Shipsey, founder of Art for Amnesty -- the global artist support network that organises the Award -- said that through songs like Pride (In The Name of Love), MLK, Miss Sarajevo, Mothers of the Disappeared, Walk On and One, U2 has helped spread the human rights message of Amnesty International to a global audience.

‘But U2 is, and always has been, about much more than just music. Band members have used their music and celebrity to champion countless human rights causes. Through their more recent involvement with DATA and The One Campaign they have brought the issues of debt, aid and trade -- particularly as they affect Africa -- to the world’s attention. They have shown that it is not enough to leave it to the politicians and ‘traditional’ world leaders to change the world. They have empowered and inspired millions of people with their music, their example and their action.’

Check out Amnesty’s Make Some Noise here. 

Bono hasn't found what he's looking for

Source: Toronto Sun, written by Kathleen Harris

November 26, 2005

OTTAWA - Irish rocker Bono is "mystified" and "crushed" by Prime Minister Paul Martin's failure to pledge more aid for the world's poor and predicted he will be punished for it by Canadians at the polls.

Comparing the growing battle to lift global poverty to the fight to end apartheid, the U2 frontman said Martin could suffer a ballot-box backlash if he refuses to commit to meeting the target of 0.7% of GDP adopted by other wealthy nations.

"I think the prime minister will find out, if he walks away from the opportunity to 0.7%, I think he will hear about it and feel it in the election. I'm absolutely sure of that," he told reporters during an Ottawa news conference.

Bono said the Make Poverty History campaign is growing in momentum and urged Canadians to press politicians on the issue as they come knocking at doors during the election campaign. Calling himself a "fan" of Canada, the musician-activist praised results of a recent poll that showed 45% of Canadians support giving more money to end world hunger and disease.

"There's something about Canada that sets it apart. It's this kind of leadership, this sense of decency and a kind of awakeness to what's going on in the wider world, that's what sets Canada apart," he said.

But Bono blasted Martin for failing to deliver the goods while the nation's economy flourishes.

"I'm personally not just disappointed; I'm crushed, actually, because I believed the prime minister would do that," he said.

"I felt as a former finance minister, he would be able to make the numbers work."

Martin said he'd spoken with Bono on the phone for about 15 minutes yesterday morning. "His role is to push me forward," Martin said at a first ministers' conference in Kelowna, B.C., before reiterating his oft-stated belief that Canada can't commit to the 0.7% target without a firm plan for reaching that goal.

In the House of Commons, Finance Minister Ralph Goodale defended the government's record of helping developing countries, pointing to a doubling of aid to Africa and the writing off of billions in debt owed by poor countries.

He also noted a $342-million investment to combat malaria, tuberculosis and AIDS, and a $500-million fund to promote global peace and security in places like Sudan.

Bono met with Goodale and Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe, then chatted on the phone with NDP Leader Jack Layton and Conservative Leader Stephen Harper.  Last night, he attended a private reception hosted by Human Resources Minister Belinda Stronach before thrilling fans at the Corel Centre.

Bono 'crushed' by PM's stance on global poverty

CTV.ca News Staff

Appearing on Parliament Hill, U2 frontman Bono said he's not just disappointed -- he's crushed -- by Prime Minister Paul Martin's failure to commit 0.7 per cent of GDP to eliminating global poverty.

With a federal election looming over Ottawa, Bono appealed to the "better nature" of what he called a "better country" to implore their prime minister to make the commitment without further delay.

At a packed press conference Friday afternoon, the outspoken Irish rocker told reporters Martin's reluctance to make the pledge flies in the face of public opinion.

"The Canadian people are ahead of the prime minister on these global poverty issues," Bono said, pointing to a recent EKOS poll that found widespread support for "more of the national purse into the world's poorest countries."

"This is the reason why I'm a fan of Canada," he added.

The fact the opinions of Martin and the Canadian public appear so far apart when it comes to meeting the 0.7 per cent aid target set out in the 'Make Poverty History' campaign, he said, have left him mystified and angry.

"I'm not just disappointed, I'm crushed actually," he said, blasting the former finance minister for not finding a way to make the numbers work.

"I'm mystified actually by the man at this point...I just think it's a huge opportunity that he's missing out on."

Conceding the "absurdity" of a rockstar weighing in on such serious political issues, Bono said this issue is simply too dire for him to ignore.

"What we're really talking about is extreme poverty, stupid poverty, a brutal poverty that can be avoided," he explained. "It's something we just cannot permit."

When asked whether he thought Martin should be punished come election day, Bono warned the PM to expect to pay a political price.

"I think he will hear about it and feel it in the election, I'm absolutely sure of that -- this is not to be underestimated," he said, promising to raise the issue with every political leader he could during his time in the capital.

Mayor Bob Chiarelli has officially declared Friday U2 day in Ottawa, to coincide with a concert event the capital has been anticipating wildly for almost a year.

Since the Ottawa stop in the band's worldwide Vertigo tour was announced, Bono has made no secret the gig carries unusually political overtones.

"Paul Martin asked us to play the gig," Bono said when the date was first confirmed, promising to turn the event into a celebration or protest -- depending on whether or not Martin decided to sign on to spending 0.7 per cent of national income on foreign aid.

Bono, who lent his considerable star power to Martin's Liberal leadership victory celebration, has repeatedly described Martin as a "friend."

During an April concert in Vancouver, however, he chastised Martin for breaking a promise to meet the target.

Bono urges PM to give more to Third World 

By Stephen Thorne

November 25, 2005

OTTAWA (CP) - Irish rock star Bono says Prime Minister Paul Martin's inability to further increase foreign aid mystifies him, especially facing an election in a country that clearly favours more foreign aid.

"I'm mystified, actually, by the man," the U2 lead singer told a news conference Friday. "I like him very much, personally.

"I just think that it's a huge opportunity that he's missing out on. This is important to the Canadian people. I think the prime minister will find out if he walks away from the opportunity to (boost foreign aid) he will hear about it in the election. I am absolutely sure of that."

Bono said he was heartened by polls suggesting most Canadians support a boost to foreign aid. He wants Canada to increase foreign contributions to 0.7 per cent of its gross domestic product.

That would more than triple the $3 billion Canada currently spends on foreign aid each year.

He has also called on Canada to erase foreign debt and advocate fair trade in a world where a billion people live on less than a dollar a day.

Martin said he'd spoken with Bono on the phone for about 15 minutes on Friday morning.

"His role is to push me forward," Martin said at a first ministers' conference in Kelowna, B.C., before reiterating his oft-stated belief that Canada can't commit to the 0.7 per cent target without a firm plan for reaching that goal.

Speaking in support of the Make Poverty History project, Bono said Canada could easily increase Third World aid because it's the only major industrialized country in a surplus position.

"I would beseech the Canadian people, as their politicians meet them on their doorsteps, just...say this is the kind of Canada that your kids want to grow up in, this is the kind of Canada the world needs now."

Bono is in Ottawa for a U2 concert but spent the day meeting with party leaders, saying he wants to appeal to the better nature of people in what he calls a better country.

He said Canada's humanitarian tradition and moral convictions are the reasons he's a "fan" of Canada and why he comes here with his band to play.

"The Canadian people are ahead of the prime minister on these global poverty issues," he said. "There is something about Canada that sets it apart.

"This is it. It's this kind of leadership, this sense of decency and a kind of awakeness to what's going on in the wider world - that's what sets Canada apart."

Bono and Martin have been friends for some time - he spoke to the Liberal party convention two years ago - and has long campaigned for Canada to give 0.7 per cent of its GDP to world relief.

He said he's "crushed" by Martin's refusal to meet the target. He said he thought that Martin, as a former finance minister, would "make the numbers work" in a surplus economy.

"I just want to appeal to the better nature of what I always thought of as a better country," he said.

A Conservative MP later suggested the party would increase foreign aid to the 0.7 per cent target.

International co-operation critic Helena Guergis said Canada's foreign aid contributions are roughly half of what they were under the previous Conservative government.

"Bono's efforts towards ending global poverty are both noble and heroic (and) a Conservative government would ensure that such calls are no longer ignored," said Guergis.

International Trade Minister Jim Peterson met Bono briefly seeking his support for the Doha development round and talks taking place later this December in Hong Kong aimed at opening world markets to less-developed countries.

Peterson handed Bono a letter pointing out the benefits of free trade for developing countries. He asked the singer-activist to go to Hong Kong.

He stressed the talks are a unique opportunity to lift millions out of poverty and emphasized the need for opinion leaders like Bono to motivate the public to support opening up markets to the developing world.

"For developing countries, the road to prosperity is riddled with unfair barriers and difficult obstacles," Peterson wrote, citing billions of dollars spent by wealthy nations to unfairly subsidize their own farmers.

"The rich remain rich, and poorer countries suffer the consequences," said Peterson. "We must open up our markets to developing countries.

"We must rein in the obscene level of agricultural subsidies in the U.S. and the EU, which continue to deny essential economic opportunities to the world's poorest."

Wanted: Rocker-Activist's Support

Hoping His Help Will Salvage Free-Trade Talks, Officials Brief U2's Bono on U.S. Agenda

Source: The Wall Street Journal, written by Staff Reporter Greg Hitt

November 23, 2005; Page A4

WASHINGTON – Rocker-activist Bono helped cajole world leaders into embracing African debt relief. Now, U.S. officials hope U2's lead singer can help salvage global free-trade talks. Early this month, Trade Representative Rob Portman briefed the Irish singer and top staffers of his advocacy group on the U.S. agenda in talks taking place under the auspices of the World Trade Organization. The half-hour telephone call was the latest attempt to get the singer to help push for a deal. His organization, DATA -- "debt AIDS trade Africa" -- fights poverty and AIDS, particularly in the developing world.

"We just want them to be involved. That's our objective," said a Portman spokeswoman. A DATA spokesman said the group is pressing the U.S. to stay committed to the talks and "to make sure African farmers are part of this deal."

Mr. Portman was in Geneva for more meetings with major WTO players this week. But the global initiative remains stalled, underscoring the importance of his overtures to Bono, which are part of a larger strategy among Bush aides as they head to Hong Kong next month for crucial negotiations. The Hong Kong talks are the next step in the Doha Round talks, which began in Doha, Qatar, in 2001.

Mr. Portman and other officials are seeking support from antipoverty groups -- not just Bono's DATA, but a wide alliance of nongovernmental organizations -- and from African nations.

The stepped-up American trade diplomacy has two aims. One is to build an expanding coalition of countries and advocates to join the U.S. in putting pressure on Europe to make steep cuts in farm tariffs. Europe's refusal so far is widely seen as the most significant factor in the stalled WTO talks.

The second, more modest goal is to prevent the Hong Kong meetings -- scheduled to start Dec. 13 -- from collapsing. The last major attempt to advance the Doha Round, in Cancún, Mexico, in 2003, fell apart when developing countries essentially revolted amid complaints that the U.S. and Europe weren't doing enough to ensure the deal would help poor nations. U.S. officials have in recent weeks all but given up on the idea that the Hong Kong gathering would produce an ambitious framework deal. They had argued a framework was essential to ensuring the negotiations could be concluded in time for President Bush to submit a deal to Congress before his special trade-negotiating authority expires in mid-2007.

But yesterday in Geneva, key WTO members outlined a plan to conclude the current round of talks by the end of 2006, and acknowledged that they would be unable to agree to a framework treaty in Hong Kong. Mr. Portman, who hosted a one-day meeting with ministers from the European Union, India, Japan and Brazil, said the Hong Kong ministerial meeting won't bring an agreement on cutting tariffs and subsidies over a wide range of trade topics as previously hoped. So now, U.S. officials are shooting for a more modest goal in Hong Kong. By cultivating African nations, along with Bono and his allies, they are betting they can get enough interest from the newly influential poorer countries to prevent a Cancún-like setback and perhaps add momentum to the Doha Round.

The American outreach includes specific measures, such as a proposal to streamline U.S. and EU health and safety regulations on food imports and new aid grants to African countries making economic reforms.

But U.S. efforts to win over Africa -- and raise pressure on Europe -- are limited by the Bush administration's own intransigence, including on calls by cotton-producing African nations to end all subsidies to U.S. cotton growers.

The U.S. push to increase world-wide pressure on Europe was on display last week at a summit of Asia-Pacific leaders in South Korea, where officials from many nations demanded bolder farm action from Geneva. Before the summit, Mr. Portman traveled to India and China, where he urged officials to help break the WTO logjam.

Mr. Portman also made a point of stopping in West Africa, along with Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns, for two days. "We've definitely been looking for ways to orient programs in Africa," said an administration official involved in the latest round of economic diplomacy. "We're trying to stretch a little."

The trip took the two U.S. cabinet secretaries to Burkina Faso for meetings with trade officials from five African cotton-producing nations, which emerged as an important bloc in Cancun. Messrs. Portman and Johanns said the proposed American trade concessions would eventually address African concerns about U.S. subsidies. In the meantime, they handed out $7 million to improve the efficiency of cotton production in West Africa and issued a statement noting Burkina Faso was in line for "hundreds of millions of grant dollars" after joining Benin, Mali and Senegal as eligible for assistance from the U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation, which steers development aid.

Separately, Josette Shiner, the Undersecretary of State for Economic Affairs, has been meeting regularly in Washington with antipoverty groups, promoting the U.S. agenda but also exploring ways to steer more benefits to Africa. Since Cancún, U.S. officials have recognized the influence of NGOs in shaping perceptions of trade talks and are recruiting their ideas and support in the buildup to Hong Kong.

Emphasizing market-based solutions to poverty, Ms. Shiner has suggested that setting common U.S. and EU sanitary standards for imports such as fruits and vegetables would benefit African farmers.

Poor nations with scarce resources and technical expertise often have trouble navigating these standards, which cover issues such as germ-fighting treatments for chickens. Ms. Shiner said complying with different standards from around the globe poses a "daunting situation for African countries," and suggested U.S.-EU recognition of standards for even two or three products could pay dividends.

While Ms. Shiner has yet to approach Europe on the issue, she has broached the idea with international antipoverty advocates. The NGOs meeting with her praise the effort. The changes "could make a big difference for African exporters -- probably a bigger difference than getting rid of trade" tariffs, says Kim Elliott, a research fellow at the Center for Global Development, an antipoverty think tank and advocacy group in Washington.

U2 Sets New Dates, Pledges Music Rising Support

Source: Billboard, Jonathen Cohen

November 21, 2005

As tipped here last week, U2 has confirmed the first dates for the 2006 portion of its mega-successful Vertigo tour. A run of five shows in Australia and New Zealand will begin March 17 in Auckland; U2 guitarist the Edge tells Billboard.com additional, as-yet-unannounced dates are on tap in Japan and South America.

"We're just really, really proud of the tour and how it has been going. It has been amazing," he enthuses. "We could do a lot more shows in the States and in Europe, but in some ways, we figure, how could it get any better than this? Let's stop before we push it too far."

The current North American leg of Vertigo runs through Dec. 19 in Portland, Ore., and has of late seen a more frequent change in the set list from night to night. "We've a lot of songs to draw from, and there's a strong thread through the show," the Edge says. "You want to stay on track, but also be able to break away from the set list and draw in things people aren't expecting as much as we can."

As previously reported, the Edge has joined producer Bob Ezrin for the Music Rising initiative, which will provide instruments to musicians affected by the recent Gulf Coast hurricanes. Music Rising is supported by the Recording Academy's non-profit MusiCares Foundation, which will manage the organization's grants process.

The Edge spent last Thursday (Nov. 17) in New Orleans, where the program was kick-started. "I saw the devastation first hand," he reports. "I met the first musicians to receive instruments, so I had the double experience of fully appreciating how bad the situation is. But I also saw the glimmers of hope as I met these musicians who were telling their stories of lucky escapes and what they were able to salvage and how they were coping in their new situations. Most of them are in other parts of the area and some of them found themselves by complete coincidence in the same city as people they'd played with in New Orleans. So there are new bands forming in these other cities."

The guitarist says the goal of Music Rising is simple: "To put instruments back into the hands of those musicians and try to give them the first step toward regenerating the music scene that surrounds New Orleans and the whole Gulf Coast." And while U2 has no plans to perform in the New Orleans area at present, the Edge says, "We as a group are absolutely ready to do whatever we can."

"There are a lot of people I've come to know since this initiative and the stories are amazing," he continues. "But what is so amazing also is the determination to rebuild the culture and the city. People are very upbeat and positive, but nobody is under any illusion that this is not a monumental task."

U2's The Edge Announces Music Rising, a Campaign to Aid Musicians Affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita

Nationwide Effort Supported by Industry Giants and Administered by MusiCares

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 21, 2005--Following a visit to New Orleans late last week, U2's The Edge announced today the unveiling of Music Rising, a campaign to raise funds to replace the lost instruments and accessories of musicians affected by the hurricanes that devastated the Gulf Coast region two months ago. Lead partners Gibson Guitar and Guitar Center Music Education Foundation have spearheaded the initial effort by collaborating on the design, manufacture and sale of an exclusive Gibson guitar with all proceeds going directly to the Music Rising program. The guitar will be available through Guitar Center. The instrument captures the essence of the Gulf Coast's musical tradition. A very limited quantity will be produced with all proceeds benefiting Music Rising and a pledge of $1 million in support. The Gibson Music Rising guitar features hand-painted designs using the colors of Mardi Gras, and each guitar will be individually painted and handmade so no two will be alike. All of the usual plastic parts (back plate, pick guard, toggle cover, truss rod cover) have been replaced by woods from the States affected by the hurricanes, and the Music Rising logo -- exclusive to this guitar -- is etched into the pick guard.

The Edge visited New Orleans on Thurs., Nov. 17, between U2's current "Vertigo" tour dates in order to see the profound impact on the area first-hand and to spend time with local musicians, listening to their experiences and trying to understand their needs. During his stay, he toured several neighborhoods and struggling venues.

"My recent visit to New Orleans gave me a first-hand look at the devastation which tragically destroyed the lives of thousands," said Edge. "The area's rich and spirited culture must be restored and can be by assisting those musicians affected by the disaster, which in turn will bring back the essence of the regions. Providing replacement instruments through Music Rising will not only help the professional musicians to regain a foothold on their future, but will also ensure that one of the Gulf Coast's greatest assets, its music, will rise again."

Adding to the power of Music Rising, a core group of iconic entertainment industry partners join The Edge in this nationwide effort. Participating partners include Conn-Selmer, the largest US distributor of band and orchestral instruments, VH1 and MTV Networks, Ticketmaster, SpinCo (formerly Clear Channel Entertainment), and Kennedy-Marshall. These industry giants have pledged their support through both financial and media contributions and are setting the tone for support from the rest of the industry and music fans worldwide.

Legendary music producer Bob Ezrin, who is leading the initiative with The Edge, added: "While government and business are concentrating on rebuilding the infrastructure of the region, artists and lovers of music from around the world can help to replace its heart. Once the music is playing, the people will once again have a reason to gather. We believe: if they hear it, they will come."

The application and qualification process for musicians will be handled by MusiCares®, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping music people in crisis, which already has provided more than $1.5 million in direct financial assistance to more than 1,800 Gulf Coast music people. MusiCares will manage all eligibility for Music Rising grants and fulfillment of the grants will be managed by Musician's Friend, one of the country's largest online music retailers.

During the next few weeks The Edge will appear in a series of public service announcements and media interviews highlighting the efforts of Music Rising. His face and name will symbolize the effort, and he will represent all of the musicians who are trying to rebuild their lives after one of the worst natural disasters in United States history. The program organizers are calling to action every citizen and organization willing to help now and well beyond the initial launch.

In addition to the purchase of the Music Rising guitar, interested supporters can make tax-deductible contributions to Music Rising at www.musicrising.org or by sending a check made payable to: Music Rising, c/o MusiCares Foundation, 3402 Pico Blvd., Santa Monica, CA 90405. For more information on Music Rising or how to purchase the Music Rising Gibson guitar, go to www.musicrising.org.

About Music Rising:

Music Rising is a national campaign created by U2's The Edge and producer Bob Ezrin with various partners including Gibson Guitar Chairman and CEO Henry Juszkiewicz, Guitar Center Music Education Foundation's CEO Larry Thomas, members of MusiCares and other industry executives. Inaugural partners MusiCares, Gibson Guitar, Guitar Center, Musician's Friend, VH1 Networks, MTV Networks, Rolling Stone magazine, Ticketmaster, and SpinCo (formerly Clear Channel Entertainment) constitute the most dynamic and comprehensive organized group to launch a relief program since the Hurricanes hit the United States. The campaign's goal is to put musical instruments back into the hands of all musicians who lost everything in the hurricane disasters and to help them regain their livelihood while rebuilding the heart and culture of the Gulf Region. Music Rising is administered by MusiCares. For more information on Music Rising, go to www.musicrising.org.

Music to the Rescue

USA Today, written by Edna Gundersen

November 20, 2005 

Convinced that music is key to New Orleans' survival, U2's the Edge is launching Music Rising, a campaign to replace instruments that were lost after hurricanes Katrina and Rita struck.

He and producer Bob Ezrin have joined forces with VH1, MTV, Ticketmaster, SpinCo, MusiCares and others to provide up to 3,000 instruments for players, plus gear for churches, schools, repair shops and music academies. Lead partners Gibson Guitar and the Guitar Center are pledging $1 million and issuing a limited-edition guitar to benefit the program. (For details, visit www.musicrising.org.)

"We can't overdo this," says Edge, who spent Thursday in the Crescent City meeting musicians and surveying the devastation on the ground and by helicopter. "Anyone who has earned money from music owes a huge debt to New Orleans. It's the birthplace of jazz, it has origins of rock 'n' roll, and it's spawned some amazing hip-hop. The music culture is so rich and unique that it's absolutely crucial to support it."

The guitarist visited the city between stops on U2's tour and was staggered by the damage.

Recalling the area's vitality before Katrina, he says: "You'd see and hear things you'd get nowhere else. We all need New Orleans. We can't let that culture vanish in the flood."

Edge Aids N.O. Musicians

In hurricane's wake, U2 guitarist brings instruments to Gulf Coast musicians

Source: Rolling Stone

November 17, 2005

U2 guitarist the Edge and producer Bob Ezrin have teamed with Gibson Guitar, the Guitar Center and MusiCares to create Music Rising, an initiative that provides instruments to Gulf Coast musicians displaced by Hurricane Katrina.

"New Orleans is a crucible for great music," says the Edge, who fell in love with the city during U2's 1981 Boy tour. "The idea that it would be just a place of history for music is awful to me. Coming from Dublin in the seventies, when music was something you had to search out, I'd never dreamt that somewhere like New Orleans could exist. Music was coming out of the walls. It seemed not just a form of escapism, but like it was weaved into everybody's life."

After Hurricane Katrina, the Edge met up with Ezrin -- who heads the board of the Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation, which donates new and refurbished instruments to school and community music programs -- and they agreed to create a program that would restore music to the ravished city. "We both concluded instantly that the human disaster was indescribable," Ezrin says, "but what was being wiped out at the same time was the culture of the entire region."

Ezrin, who has produced the likes of Pink Floyd, Peter Gabriel and the Darkness, had been contacted by Gibson CEO Henry Juszkiewicz and Guitar Center CEO Marty Albertson about a custom Gibson guitar -- details of which are yet to be announced -- they were creating to raise money for flood victims. Albertson and Juszkiewicz pledged a minimum of $1 million from the sale of the guitar to the effort and even agreed to eat the design and manufacturing costs. "I wish every CEO of a major company in America would do even a fraction of what these guys do," Ezrin says.

After Music Rising reaches its primary goal of replacing every single instrument lost to professional musicians in the Gulf Coast region, the program hopes to expand to reach local churches, marching bands and schools. "It's clearly achievable," the Edge says. "Something should be done and not just because New Orleans deserves it, but because the world needs New Orleans."

Those wishing to make donations can do so at musicrising.org.

Bono in the World

Source: San Francisco Chronicle, Editorial Opinion

November 11, 2005

The world's richest countries cut a remarkable deal last summer: In one swoop, some $40 billion in back-breaking debt owed by 18 poor countries, mostly in Africa, was erased.

But the job isn't finished, and U2 singer Bono, who played a role in getting the foreign-aid party rolling, plans to keep up the pressure. His band is in the Bay Area this week for a pair of sold-out concerts that double as aid-relief rallies -- and he visited The Chronicle's editorial board Tuesday to talk about the global crises that command his attention.

Bono arrives with his trademark wraparound tinted glasses, cowboy hat, denim jacket and three-day beard. It's clear from the start that he's ready to talk substance -- and big-time change in overseas aid.

His recent two-hour White House lunch with President Bush is a measure of his influence as well as his comfort with pitching traditionally liberal causes to conservatives.

He freely hands out praise, crediting Bush with spending more on AIDS than any other president via his five-year, $15 billion plan. Then comes the kicker: It's not enough, Bono asserts. Congress should support, not cut, a $600 million pledge to a U.N.-run global disease fund. The Millennium Challenge, another Bush foreign-aid rescue package, has gone nowhere since its 2002 launch.

Farm subsidies in this country make American exports so cheap overseas that African farmers can't compete in their own markets -- another crisis on Bono's radar.

There would not seem to be a worse time for big spending ideas, considering hurricane relief, frantic plans to fight avian flu and growing deficits. Bono begs to differ.

Spending more on foreign aid, especially in Africa with a 40 percent Muslim population, is a chance to rebuild the U.S. image. "The neon's fizzling and crackling a bit" around "Brand USA" name, he said.

Bono is using his concert stage to enlist supporters in an advocacy group he hopes will become the "NRA for the world's poor."

Don't bet against him.

© San Francisco Chronicle, 2005.

U2's Bono Makes Fiery Case for Rocking the World with Ambitious Mission to Eradicate Global Misery

Source: San Francisco Chronicle, written by Joel Selvin

November 11, 2005

If there's one thing Irish rocker and citizen of the world Bono knows, it's how to open a show. He proved that earlier this week when he sat down to talk about his efforts to fight disease and poverty in Third World countries: He launched into the topic with The Chronicle's editorial board by praising the Bush administration.

Wearing pink-tinted, wraparound glasses beneath a beat-up, perfectly molded straw cowboy hat, the U2 front man said that although the United States has much work to do and more money to give to fight poverty and AIDS, the Bush administration had gone from a "standing start" to tripling its aid to Africa over the past four years. He singled out the president's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, which has put a quarter-million Africans on antiviral medication in the past year.

"It is an amazing thing he's pulled off," Bono said. "Three years ago, people would laugh openly, in your face, at the idea that we could work with the administration on this stuff."

The firebrand rock star, in town for two sold-out shows earlier this week at the Arena in Oakland, has been signing up audience members for his One Campaign to Make Poverty History all along the Vertigo tour, which has been playing to packed houses in America and Europe since March. He hoped to get a million people; he got 2 million.

"By the next election, the One Campaign to Make Poverty History will be larger than the National Rifle Association," he said.

Perhaps one of the most important steps is the recent cancellation of debts owed by a number of Third World countries to the world's richest countries.

"For these, the poorest of the poorest countries, they have a new beginning," the U2 vocalist said Tuesday during a meeting with The Chronicle editorial board. "They are not spending money servicing old debts to the United States, to Europe, to the World Bank, to the IMF; they're spending that money on health and education for their people. That's a really, really amazing thing. I've been working on it for a long time. A lot of people have been working on it for a long time...I'm pausing and going, 'That really happened, that really did happen -- this stuff works.' "

Bono's commitment to Africa goes back to 1984, when he and his wife volunteered for six weeks in an Ethiopian refugee camp at the same time a record by a little-known Irish band about the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., "Pride (In the Name of Love)," was making noise on American radio. Bono is now a leading spokesman in Western politics for the entire continent. He has been seriously considered as a Nobel Peace Prize candidate.

He has held three meetings with President Bush. He is on a first-name basis with Cabinet members. He is conspiring on matters of Third World poverty with Bill Gates. In one of his most public persuasions, he got conservative former Sen. Jesse Helms, R-N.C., in a private meeting, to change his position on AIDS ("he got emotional," Bono said). And, perhaps most surprisingly, he has forged a remarkable alliance with evangelical Christian groups.

"We have an emergency," he said. "We can't really afford to divide the country in two. That's probably the only original idea I've had, and (it) doesn't sound that original. But it just made a lot of common sense to me. The vulnerability of these people whom we represent is such that we cannot afford to divide the country. We have to find a way to work with the right on this. I knew that always, just from growing up on the streets of Dublin. You find the tough guy and make him your friend -- especially if you're my height."

But Bono, raised as Roman Catholic, has his own means of reaching these people. "The way to get the right is through their religiosity," he said. "When polled, American evangelicals in 2000, only 6 percent felt it incumbent to respond to the AIDS emergency. That's outrageous. We went to work with them. I met with every evangelical church I could. I talked them through the Scriptures. I talked to them about leprosy. I talked to them about Christ and his mission to reach the people who were supposedly the untouchables of their age."

Bono has his sights trained on malaria, too. "The No. 1 killer disease in the world is malaria. Three thousand Africans dying every day of a mosquito bite. And they're children, and it really doesn't have to happen. We think that within 10 years, that can be all but eradicated."

At the same time he is involving American political and religious leaders, he is also working with the corporate world. "We need the marketing firepower," he said. "We have the churches, the students, the rock stars, the movie stars, the cowboys. What we need now is corporate America."

He thinks that the United States can reach out to the entire world through Africa. Sept. 11 "wasn't just an attack on physical America. It was an attack on the idea of America, too. When we looked at crowds celebrating the twin towers turning to dust, most Americans and fans of America like me were deeply disturbed and shocked. I think in the middle of America, on the coast, everywhere, there was a mood to, whoever you are, stop that. We're the country that liberated Europe, Omaha Beach. We put a man on the moon. We're that America. What has happened?

"When I'm speaking to corporate America, I always talk about countries being brands. Brand USA is in a bit of trouble. The neon is fizzing and cracking a bit. The storefront's looking a bit grubby. Someone threw a brick through the window. What would you do? I think you'd bring in your regional branch managers and say, 'We have a bit of a problem, don't we?' What is it? Maybe the regional branch manager might say, 'maybe we've lost touch with our customers and the problems that they're having on the ground...'

"This is not about charity anymore," he said. "This is about justice. This is not bleeding-heart liberal, misty-eyed Irish-rock-star nonsense. This is actually serious stuff. There's a movement in churches and campuses that people want America to be that America again, the one that put the man on the moon. This time we're not asking for a man to be put on the moon. What I say at the shows is that we want mankind to be put back on Earth. But with the same kind of excitement of showing off what America can do with its technology, its pharmaceuticals, its firepower...

"In a funny way, it's not even about Africa. It's about who we are, what reasons we have to get out of bed in the morning. And if you're a rich, spoiled rotten rock star, this is a very good reason to get out of bed in the morning and put your Catholic guilt to work, why don'tcha? I'm doing it because we can. And because we can, we must."

To hear Bono talk about his motivation for tackling the AIDS crisis, Part 3 of three podcasts, go to sfgate.com/blogs/podcasts.

© San Francisco Chronicle, 2005.

U2 Gives Musical Comfort to Fans

Sometimes you can't make it on your own, especially when emotions ebb in the aftermath of a crisis.

Source: The Olympian, written by Chuck Myers

November 08, 2005

Often, a few comforting words can help lift spirits. But nothing quite rivals the tonic provided by a stirring tune -- or a set list of inspiring material.

When catastrophe befalls America, providence seems to intervene, sending in a musical emissary: U2.

Leave it to four Irish guys named Adam, Bono, The Edge and Larry to reassure the citizens of the world's most powerful nation about the healing power of "One."

Not long after the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, D.C., on Sept. 11, 2001, U2 landed in North America for a planned second round of "Elevation" touring, in an atmosphere punctuated by enormous pain and badly shaken confidence.

This year, after Mother Nature unleashed her ruinous wrath on the U.S. Gulf Coast with powerful hurricanes, the band called on America again for a scheduled tour, bringing with it a message of perseverance and hope.

Few events rally the faithful like U2 live. An air of celebration permeates the gathering, as euphoria swamps the arena audience in a thunderous din, reaching deafening crescendos when the band launches into "Vertigo" and "Beautiful Day," or on set-list stalwarts "Sunday, Bloody Sunday, "Pride" and "Where the Streets Have No Name."

When tragedy unfolds, U2 concerts assume a safe-haven quality, where audiences engage in a collective rejuvenation that builds with each number from Bono and his bandmates. The stage becomes a rampart where U2 plants its flag of optimism, and declares war on cynicism and defeatism.

By the time the show arrives at U2's opus of unity, "One," Bono has hit full-sermonizing stride.

In 2001, the charismatic frontman reflected on the danger of blind revenge when performing the song. He appealed for understanding and tolerance in the wake of Sept. 11, noting that followers of the principled tenets of Islam reject the perverse, self-serving religious fanaticism behind the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon.

This time around, Bono rounds out "One" with a few verses of "Ol' Man River" -- a tune about life along the Mississippi River from the Broadway musical "Showboat" -- to convey compassion for the victims of the hurricane devastation along the Gulf Coast.

He also pays tribute to the thousands of volunteers who have put altruism into action in the beleaguered region, adding as a closing thought, "The worst of times bring the best out in America...It's a great idea -- America."

Long ago, U2 made it cool to care. Its ideals have remained unfailing and consistent: embrace human diversity and dignity, pull together in difficult times and wage the battle of ideas not with fists, but with words and compromise in the best tradition of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

As for frustration, hostility and pessimism -- leave them behind.