[HPforGrownups] House Qualities (Was: Re: Slytherin Purebloods?)

[Ali]

No: HPFGUIDX 88228

> Meri now:
> Yes, but (and I say this if only to be argumentative) Hogwarts is
> not, and was not, ever what I would call a normal school, and I'm
> not talking about the whole wizarding curiculum. This is a school
> that, in the coming war between LV and DD, could not only be a
> potential target for attack, and a potential stronghold against LV,
> but also a potential recruiting ground for boh sides. While, in
> normal Haogwarts years, a little friendly competition is healthy,
> fun and beneficial (hey, I cried along with Oliver Wood when
> Gryffindor took the Quidditch Cup), at this point in time, when
> divisiveness and animostity among wizards could very well be the
> downfall of all magical peoples, I think that Hogwarts and DD owe it
> to the population to try to make the school a breeding grounds not
> for more animostiy and hate but for kindness, friendship, or at
> least cooperativeness.
< snipped >

I'd actually have to argue the opposite.  I think that keeping the house
system intact, now more than ever, is a good idea.  It's the kind of
stability you grasp onto when the world is swirling madly about you.  The
competition fostered at Hogwarts is a healthy one.  As it isn't fueled by
hate, there's no harm in it.

My argument is that, given the oncoming war against Voldie, the more
Hogwarts keeps itself running normally, the better.  Change, especially
sudden change of a major nature like putting a halt on the house system, is
always accompanied by stress.  The one thing these kids do not need is more
stress.  Assaulted with the turmoil of the Voldie war, it's much easier to
have stability to hold on to, even when that stability means competition
against your classmates.

Besides, the kids have already shown that, when they so desire, they are
able to reach across houses to form a united front against their foes.
Umbridge & the DA comes to mind.  I think they'll be fine regardless of the
house system.

~Ali, who firmly believes in the house system