Inaugural address and Mandy Croyance on Assumption

[pippin_999]

No: HPFGUIDX 97932

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "arrowsmithbt" 
<arrowsmithbt at b...> wrote:

> A meritocracy has it's problems too. Who, on merit is best
> fitted to 'lead' the WW? Probably Dumbledore. But he's refused
> once already, condemning the WW to a weak, vacillating 
> government. A  government cannot be strong if the most 
> powerful person in society is outside it, no matter how 
> benevolent that person may be. All it needs is another 
> powerful, ambitious individual with some support and such
> a government is on the skids. The struggle is between the
> supporters of the powerful, the government is irrelevant 
> except as an incidental prize to the winner. 'Merit' is such a
> slippery concept in these circumstances; who decides who
> merits success? It boils down eventually to power. DD  has
> power and abdicated his merited position, Voldy has power
> and will fill the vacuum left if he can. If he does, he can be
> considered to have merited it.
> 

Whoa! Dumbledore was not outside the government. Besides 
being one  Fudge's advisers  in the earlier days of his ministry, 
he was also Supreme Mugwump  (or Chairman) of the 
International Confed. of Wizards and Chief Warlock of the 
Wizengamot (the Wizarding High Court).   He held those 
positions until he was forced out by Fudge and his allies for 
telling people something they didn't want to hear. And since they 
didn't want to hear it, being Minister would have made no 
difference.

 In Book Four, Dumbledore concurs with Fudge that 
telling people that Voldemort is back, the Dementors should be 
kicked out of Azkaban,  and it's time to make a  deal with the 
Giants would probably cost Fudge his job. It's probably why 
Dumbledore didn't want it in the first place--he knew the day 
would come.

If the Ministry vacillates, it is probably because like most bodies 
politic, the people it represents aren't terribly logical or
consistent about what they want. We can see that in Book Two: 
Knockturn Alley is no place for a respectable wizard...unless he 
needs slug repellent, of course.

Pippin