We have been discussing the propriety of public schools putting on worshipful performances about President Barack Obama. While I voted for him and support many of his policies, it does concern me to see children enlisted in such performances, which are not the norm in American education or politics. While some extreme conservatives have been campaigning on this issue, I do believe that there is a legitimate objection to the use of children to sing the praises of political leaders.
There are the lyrics of one of the videos published from these schools:
We believe in Barack Obama
He loves you and he loves your mama
We believe in Barack Obama, yeah
With all the change he’s building
Gonna bring hope to the children
We believe in Barack Obama, yeah
Change
That we can believe in
Change
That we can believe in
Change
That we can believe in
We believe in Barack Obama
He loves you and he loves your mama
We believe in Barack Obama, yeah
With all the change he’s building
Gonna bring hope to the children
We believe in Barack Obama, yeah
Change
That we can believe in
Change
That we can believe in
Change
That we can believe in
Yeah, haha, haha.
Alright, come on now, here we go;
You know we gotta get Barack and all of his crew
In the White House so they can prove that
In their hearts they know what to do
And that includes Michelle and the kiddies too
[kids chanting] “There is not a black America and white America and Latino America and Asian America — there’s the United States of America.”
We believe in Barack Obama
He loves you and he loves your mama
We believe in Barack Obama, yeah
With all the change he’s building
Gonna bring hope to the children
We believe in Barack Obama, yeah
[Chant at end of song – unintelligible
Another song includes such lyrics as:
Barack Obama there is none higher
Other politicians should call me sire
To burn my kingdom you must use fire
I create change till I retire!Democratic Party come correct
Our cuts are on time our rhymes connect
Got the right to vote and will elect
Others can’t feel us but give us respect
That strikes me as significantly over-the-top. I expect that, if such a song was performed about George Bush (defending us and our families), liberals would be equally upset over the use of children to lionize a conservative leader.
I have long objected to how this country is increasingly deifying our presidents through elaborate inaugurations and unquestioned loyalty. I spend a lot of time pushing civics in schools, particularly elementary schools. This is not a valuable civics lesson. These songs advance the same type of cult of personality. It is not the civics lesson that I would want kids to learn. Indeed, it is precisely the opposite lesson. Kids should view a president as a citizen leader who carries out the will of the people — not our divine protector and national father. Citizens, not the President, protect our rights and our future.
The hard-right voices who denounced Obama’s speech to the nation’s children were clearly alarmist and unhinged, here. Moreover, Obama is legitimately a figure for discussion and inspiration in the schools. However, we should recognize that some of these videos cross the line and tend to politicize our public schools. Putting aside the fact that conservatives and Republicans send their kids to public schools too, school administrators should not make adoration of a leader part of the curriculum.
For the story, click here.
Buddha–
I daresay that accidential propaganda is quite different from an organized bureacratic imposition or implementation of a program. Maybe you’re implying its a kind of “punctuated equilibrium” of a non-biological nature. I’m not clear about where you’re saying this so-called propaganda originated. It’s very likely it came from the bottom levels of the educational pyramid.
***************
Byron–
I do hope Sarah Palin remains on the scene for a long time. She provides great fodder for comedians–and me with lots of poetic inspiration for light verse of a political nature. Here’s a little poem I wrote about her resignation speech. Do you recall the waterfowl honking in the background as Sarah blathered on about why she wouldn’t finish her term of office?
Sarah Palin’s Swan/Duck/Goose Song
Hithery dithery dock,
I’m list’ning to Sarah P. talk.
Her thinking is muddled.
The geese are befuddled.
They’ve started to gather and squawk.
Hithering withering wits,
She’s sending the geese into fits.
They’re honkin’ and flappin’.
She’s breathless and yappin’.
They think that the gov is a ditz.
Hithery plithery pluck,
The geese are all running amuck
As the gov blathers on.
Ah, but soon she’ll be gone.
They’re so glad she won’t be a lame duck!
I would find it difficult to follow Palin’s train of thought in many of her speeches–even if I had a GPS. In her case, a GPS would be a Global Prose Scrutablizer.
Byron,
I think he meant pols would be content to eat feces if left to their own devices, but yes, this particular saying is one of his more enigmatic. I don’t know if he was obtuse as Kant, but he could certainly come hard out of left field at you. I didn’t just learn the Jedi Mind Trick from watching too much Groucho. I learned it from watching my grandfather. His Confusion Ray was a mighty weapon.
Jill:
I understand all of that, I was actually trying to make a joke and a point. Quit yanking on Palin, the more the left does the more the right likes her. I don’t want a Palin presidency.
If the left could just start saying how great she was and wonderful her ideas were the right would dump her like a hot potatoe (the Quail spelling)
Byron,
I used Sara Palin because she might possibly be a right wing female president. If people object to these verses being used to praise Sara Palin then to be consistent, people on the left, should object to this type of thing being sung about Obama. Indeed I might have put in Liz Cheney, my bet for a first female president. I didn’t make up the verses, I simply modified them with Palin instead of Obama. When you read the verses, whose change was a name (and one small other to rhyme), you said I was making propaganda, which indeed I was. So were the makers of the original lyrics. And that is/was my point exactly.
Buddha:
exactly, she should be marginalized. But it does seem that the more the left hates her the more the right embraces her.
“I wouldn’t trust him/her in a shit house with a muzzle on.”
what the heck does that mean? Shit house = outhouse? But what does the muzzle do? Locked away in the outhouse with a muzzle they still will figure out a way to screw you? Or bite you in the ass?
Your Grandfather was a more esoteric/enigmatic philosopher than even Kant!
“language of worship.”
Byron,
You’ll notice I rarely mention Palin. That is because she IS the devil. And the 15% she appeals to are the particularly insane branch of the GOP. Do you honestly think that moron is competent to lead? Not just Alaska or the U.S., but anything? If she wasn’t hot, she’d be laughed off the damn stage – by BOTH sides – and you know it. Everything that comes out of her mouth is either a lie, propaganda, or pure outright craziness. You’re a boss. I’m a boss. Would you hire Sarah Palin? For anything critical to operations? I sure as hell wouldn’t. Now to be honest, I’ve never totally understood this particular saying of my grandfather, but he used it all the time in relation to pols. “I wouldn’t trust him/her in a shit house with a muzzle on.” I don’t know why exactly but that phrase really comes to mind when I see that narcissistic freak on TV. But cut her slack? No. She needs to be marginalized and relegated to selling real estate ASAP. That Jill used her for an example is mere coincidence. You put DeLay or Bachus or Cheney or Bush – any pols name you want – and it’s still propaganda. It’s actually worse than propaganda. It’s language geared to engender worship. It’s messianic and uses the language of That’s far more dangerous than mere lying. If you doubt this, look at the world around you and ask what has been done wrong in the name of slavish devotion. It’ll be a huge list you compile, my friend.
Elaine,
It’s not a matter of conscious adoption with this kind of propaganda. This type of propaganda works because a certain percentage will willing adopt it. The layers of the systems are irrelevant to this tactic. It’s a shotgun approach. You don’t need anyone but a teacher to bite at the bait. Some kinds of propaganda attacks work specifically because they lack normative structures. It’s called a diffusion attack. Because of the origination of the song, I’m more in the accidental propaganda camp now where I was in the purposeful before. But this could have just as easily been purposeful. And irregardless, propaganda is propaganda, accidental or not, and has no place in the classroom.
CEJ,
I do not disagree it’s being played after the fact as a counter, but I do disagree that it’s same old same old. This song is pure brainwash. The last time I heard something this offensive, it was in German. The teachers need to be made to stop and stop NOW. But as to the import? Yeah, it’s way down the list, but this is the story this thread is about. I’m not nearly as pissed off about this as I am about Obama still abusing the Separation of Powers Doctrine by still using the blatantly illegal signing statements. Or torture. Or the Patriot Act. Or the various Constitutional crimes. Not all gorillas weigh #400.
Jill:
now that is “propoganda”. Sheeit, I wish the left did not hate her so much and think she is the devil. She really is not that much of a conservative, more like a warmed over populist with neo-theocratic leanings.
The more you guys revile her the more support she gets. Most on the right think “dam Palin is hated by the left she must be good”.
Can you layoff her and find an actual free market liberty loving conservative to hate? I want change but not her kind.
Mike Appleton: “First, they are cult songs. Second, they mischaracterize the role of the president. Third, the grammar and rhyming are terrible.”
How about the choreography and the overall cinematic aesthetic? And what do you think Pope Benedict (former Hitler youth) would have to say?
We believe in Sara Palin
She loves you and she loves your mama
We believe in Sara Palin, yeah
With all the change she’s building
Gonna bring hope to the children
We believe in Sara Palin, yeah
” Sara Palin, there is none higher
Other politicians should call me siren of Syre
To burn my kingdom you must use fire
I create change till I retire!
Republican Party come correct
Our cuts are on time our rhymes connect
Got the right to vote and will elect
Others can’t feel us but give us respect
Nope, no propaganda or indoctrination here. wouldn’t bother me a bit to have my kid sing this stuff. CEJ, this is exactly what you are saying. Is this really O.K. with you?
Also I agree that the fact that so many children are falling into starvation. This absolutely is hitting disproportionately in the black community and it is criminal. It’s another reason why I object to saying Obama loves the children and their mothers. His economic policy would say otherwise.
Buddha,
Gyges wrote: “So President Obama is aware enough of the lesson plans of every single teacher in the country that he could encourage or prevent a handful (by my count 3 famous examples, so let’s say 100 or so, which given the number of teachers in the country is a SMALL percentage) of teachers to do songs in his honor?
“That means that the administration would have to send their wishes down through layers of bureaucracy (Federal, state, county, and city governments, as well as the local school districts down through the principals) WITHOUT someone that opposed his wishes getting a hold of the message to report to the press.”
I’d have to agree with Gyges. I was a public school teacher for many years. I have a pretty good perspective of how things work in the field of education. I can’t imagine Obama or people in his administration being responsible for the singing of glory songs to our new president in public schools.
I can tell you this too: Lots of superintendents are clueless as to what goes on in the schools/classrooms under their supervision. I found that some administrators aren’t even interested in knowing as long as no parents or folks in their communities are making complaints.
What I’m saying is this faux outrage and the “meme of indoctrination” is just being stirred up by the “right wing nuts” just to create fear and hate!
It also works(successfully) at keeping us from looking at the things we should be concerned about!
The “11 more videos” of the children singing are not news (children relying on FOOD Stamps is news) nor anything to be outraged about given the “crap” (pardon my crassness) that goes on the “education of our children”!
This is just “same old same old” let’s “milk this for all it is worth”- again this is not an “epidemic” nor is it the “tip of the iceberg” or the edge of the “slippery slope”!
PS: I’ll spare you the link to Paul Simon’s “Kodachrome” right now.
Inadvertent propaganda is still propaganda.
But no matter the cause, it seems we all agree this song is entirely inappropriate. No?
or of “right wingnuts”, it is a spontaneous outpouring of affection for the man by people who voted for him and are happy he won.
but it has no place in a public school system.
I doubt this is some grand cabal of the “cult of Obama”.
CEJ,
You bring up a good point. Counter-ops. Given I know the origination of the song, it’s use as a counter tool is immediately apparent. The song is propaganda, no doubt about that, but really you are on to the core issue here. Who is promoting it as such?
Aye, propaganda can be a tangled web.
I believe in this instance if you are going to claim conspiracy you would have to point the finger at the right wing nut cases;
I just don’t see any evidence of purposeful (or for that matter unintentional) indoctrination. This one song cited, by The Hush Sound has been around and played in concert for well over a year; and so far only one video of school children singing it has surfaced.
SO what we have here is a confluence of coincidence making unintentional propaganda?
Not out of the question, but man oh man do I have to still say unlikely. That being said, getting hit by a meteor is unlikely too, but it has happened.
So sorry, I hope this link works or else just go to youtube and search The Hush Sound “We believe in Barack Obama”.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdKpWS-m39s
or here The Hush Sound are performing the song in Florida:
Gyges,
I have two words for you and Mike that could sink your battleship. Blind distribution. You create a document/song/whatever. It’s tailored to a targeted audience and built to appeal to them. You don’t have to tell them where it comes from. You just have to release it into the wild and see how well it sticks. Simply e-mailing it from a dummy account or mass faxing would do. It is, after all, just a meme. A meme acts like a virus. You just cut it loose and see how well it thrives. I will stipulate it could have been a overzealous amateur, but the lyrics reek of professional propaganda skills. What you two see is clumsy execution, I see as subtle. There is no one to point the finder at. That’s the very best kind of propaganda. We are probably all right to some degree.