jQuery UI in Backbone View adds elements, but doesn't respond to events
===

I'm building an app in which I'm using Django on the backend and jQuery UI/Backbone to build the front. I'm pulling a Django-generated form into a page with jQuery.get() inside of a Backbone View. That part works fine, but now I want to add some jQuery UI stuff to the form (e.g. a datepicker, some buttons that open dialogs, etc). So, here's the relevant code:

    var InstructionForm = Backbone.View.extend({
      render: function() {
        var that = this;
        $.get(
          '/tlstats/instruction/new/',
          function(data) {
            var elements = $(data);
            $('#id_date', elements).datepicker();
            that.$el.html(elements.html());
          }
        };
        return this;
      }
    });

The path /tlstats/instruction/new/ returns an HTML fragment with the form Django has generated. What's happening is that input#id_date is getting the hasDatePicker class added and the datepicker div is appended to my &lt;body&gt; element (both as expected), but when I click on input#id_date, nothing happens. No datepicker widget appears, no errors in the console. Why might this be happening?

Also, somewhat off-topic, but in trying to figure this problem out on my own, I've come across several code examples where people are doing stuff like:

    $(function() {
      $('#dialog').dialog(...);
      ...
    });

Then later:

    var MyView = Backbone.View.extend({
      initialize(): function() {
        this.el = $('#dialog');
      }
    });

Isn't this defeating the purpose of Backbone, having all that jQuery UI code completely outside any Backbone structure? Or do I misunderstand the role of Backbone?

Thanks.