"Left Behind"--This may sound silly but...

[skypilot]

...last night I was talking to a friend about Bush, Republicans, fundamentalists, etc. and somehow those "Left Behind" books came up. Suddenly, Bush's "No Child Left Behind" bill came to mind and I started wondering if this bill was given that name specifically to appeal to the crowd that reads those books. Could this be an example of him "speaking their language"? I don't know why this never occurred to me before. Do you think it's just a coincidence that the bill was given this name? Has this been discussed here already?

[Taxloss]

1. It's an eerie coincidence

But I think it's just that - a coincidence.

[Strawman]

2. That's interesting

I'll bet it was deliberate.

[bryant69]

3. I don't know

I think it's just a convergence of words, myself. But if you are interested in the books, you might check out this website --> http://slacktivist.typepad.com/slacktivist/left_behind/

Does a very good and very humorous analysis of the books.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[rox63]

4. I've wondered about this too

I keep wondering if the point of the "No Child Left Behind" bill was to defund education so badly that kids are forced to go to private religious schools, therefore ensuring that they won't be "left behind", as the books use that term.

[Mist]

5. Wow! I think you're onto something n/t

[farmbo]

6. Do Do Do Do...Do Do Do Do...Do Do Do Do...certainly a Twilight Zone moment

With Karl Rove...there ARE NO coincidences.

Good get!

[lectrobyte]

7. Now that you mention it, I think it isn't a coincidence. I've heard

before that Bush uses code phrases that have special meaning for the fundamentalists, so nothing would surprise me.

[monarch]

8. Actually , the phrase was stolen from

the Children's Defense Fund motto and it was around long before those tacky books. I'll bet that the books figured into the decision to adopt it, however.

[skypilot]

10. Yes, I see that the CDF's motto is

..."Leave No Child Behind". Could have just been a happy accident that this motto existed for them to tweak and make it their own.

[nonconformist]

9. Interesting. At first blush, it looks like a coincidence

But then again, this administration has never been above fundie speak. Like the gratuitous use of "crusade" until people started complaining loudly. Like the seemingly random mention of the Dred Scott case when Bush was asked in the town hall debate about appointing anti-choice judges. I'm sure others can bring up other examples.

Plus, they're excellent at little subtleties - it reminds me of commercials that would flash subliminal messages on the screen so fast that you wouldn't realize it but your brain would. That type of propaganda is very effective. No Child Left Behind is false advertising at it's finest so it creepily fits.

Anyway, my tinfoil hat is in the shop due to overuse so I'll assume this is nothing but a coincidence. But it does make one think.

[Squeech]

11. Dog whistle politics

Great phrase they use in Britain. The idea is that politicians know their constituencies so well that they can tailor their speeches so most people don't know what they're saying, but for the specifically targeted audience, the point shines through.

Apparently Rove knows how to use the dog whistle. In the debates with Kerry, Bush brought up the Dred Scott case, in a context that didn't make any sense to us-- but apparently it's a known signifier of anti-abortion politics (the idea is that mothers shouldn't "own" the fetus like masters owned slaves).

So you could well be right about "Left Behind."

It occurs to me that Rapturists are on the wrong side of Pascal's wager. What Pascal said originally was that we should act as if the received Judeo-Christian God is real. If He isn't, and we really die, we will still have lived a decent life. Whereas if He is real, and we live in apostasy, we lose the ultimate bet with eternity. But the rapturists (and their pet chimp pResident) are staking not only their own but all of our chips on Jesus coming back soon, and if they're wrong, we will all suffer horribly.

[jayctravis]

12. I don't think it was meant to coincide with the books...

but I think it's coded since it also has a provision to provide students' names to selective service...as in "No Child Left Behind...by the military..."