Fewer funds are being spread among more and more college students. Enrollment is up, scholarships are in decline and tuition is soaring among many schools around the nation. (Needs reference/source!)

Note:
Brother Ali himself never finished high school, but regrets dropping out and as of lately has been encouraging students to finish school.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35s6IaqKGKE

It’s also a reference to his own song Chain Link:

[Hook]
Children growin', women producin'
Men go workin', but what’s the use
When the real strive hard and stress about the rent
And can still die poor and in debt without a cent

All the time, energy and effort put into your work may not get you anywhere, due to bad living conditions.

As Ali says in Only Life I Know, another track off of this album:

You’ll never get caught up, you’re caught up in a cycle.

He refuses to be anyone but himself, including the good and the bad. You, on the other hand, play a role and live two-faced life.
This is a recurring theme in Ali’s music. There will always be people who live up to and indentify with their stereotypes. He has criticized this on tracks such as “Palm the Joker”.

Smog (smoke and fog) is a type of air pollution and is common in LA and California:

California is also known for earthquakes caused by the San Andreas Fault. California is located on both the Pacific Plate (moving north) and the North American Plate (moving south):

Most people don’t want to do the effort needed to make a change, but would rather just rest.
I think this is partly directed to some of his fans. The ones who listen to him just becuase they enjoy the music. They would rather have him “rapping to the beat” just for the sake of it, instead of hearing his messages.

Since this is the first track off of this album, Ali tells us how this is made to inspire both the old and newer generation. The youth are the ones we expect are most capable of making a change in the future with the right mindset.

These two lines show the narrator’s insecurity. First he says he hates himself, then he says he pities someone that is like him.
In a sense the narrator says he feels pity for himself.
The “you” person may also be the one in a relationship with the narrator. The narrator sees himself in the other person, and so he pities them.

Lillies, which are typically (but not limited to) the color white, are often viewed as delicate, elegant and appealing. Whites/Caucasians continue to live comfortably and have more privileges than others just because of their appearance.

Reference Louis C.K.’s bit On Being White for more on this topic.

Ali is representing the demands of the poor. Social programs, like food stamps, are being cut because of the cost of war in the Middle East.

Ali is bemoaning the fact that people are going hungry. The justification (in defense of) provided for this situation is the fact that there is a serious shortage of resources to feed everyone.