Was Harry in Danger from the Basilisk?

[Steve]

No: HPFGUIDX 108639

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "cubfanbudwoman"
<susiequsie23 at s...> wrote:

> 
> 
> Asian_lovr2:
> > Now the Basilisk and the danger to Harry, in this case, I think we 
> > are giving the too much weight to the intelligences of the 
> > Basilisk. This is a reptile, though very large, it probably had a 
> > brain the size of a walnut. ... A parseltongue might be able to 
> > communcate with it,.... able to relay primitive thoughts and
> > obey simple orders, .... 
> > 
> > Also, I'm not totally convinced that the Basilisk can tell a 
> > muggle from a wizard. The fact is that the eyes of a Basilisk are 
> > deadly to ANYONE who looks into them, wizards or purebloods have 
> > no special protection. 
> 
> 
> SSSusan:
> ... But I don't think I agree that the directions it was 
> receiving were super-simple.  Diary!Tom apparently controlled the 
> basilisk enough [through Ginny, am I right?] that it attacked ONLY 
> MUGGLE-BORNS.  ... Tom set it all up ..., still, other than NHN, all
>  the victims were right-on target. ...
> 
> This makes me believe that, had Tom decided to single out Harry, he 
> eventually could have done so.
> 
> Siriusly Snapey Susan

Asian_lovr2:

'...ONLY MUGGLE-BORNS...' you say, and you know this for a fact, or is
it really an assumption on your part? Is there anyplace in the book
where it is cleary stated that Penelope (Percy's girlfriend) is a
muggle-born? 

Do you also believe the Basilisk was sent to kill Hermione? Or did it
just stumble across her and Penelope? 

Or take the night Colin was attacked, why would anyone send out the
Basilisk in the middle of the night when everyone was in bed, unless
whoever sent it had prior knowledge of a person in a particular location?

If in Colin's case the Basilisk was just out hunting, who could it
have hoped to find, and wouldn't the chance of randomly stumbling
across someone be very high? Seem difficult for someone to see the
Basilisk roaming the halls without accidently getting killed by it.

Sorry, but I think it was either random luck, or the Basilisk was sent
to a specific location by someone with prior knowledge of a person's
presences there. Most likely a combination of the two.

Can't prove it, but I just don't see the Basilisk as a very selective
killing machine.

Steve/asian_lovr2