Sirius vs. Snape

[nkafkafi]

No: HPFGUIDX 99535

Potioncat: (who also served in a war zone):
An officer tells a subordinate that they'll continue later. The
officer comes back and finds the subordinate reading his personal
papers. Something would happen to that subordinate!

Neri: Heh, definitely! Snape's authority problem here is that he had 
gave Harry so many punishments in the past, usually unjustified, that 
now when it IS justified he has nothing left in storage that will 
make any impression.

Potioncat:
At this point throwing Harry out makes sense.

Neri:
Agreed.

Potioncat:
If Snape goes to DD and reports the incident and DD says to stop
lessons. Then Snape has not aborted his mission.

Neri:
Well, he still failed in it. Most officers I know would do just about 
anything to succeed in such a critical mission. Flunking it because 
they didn't manage to control their subordinates would be the worst 
disgrace in their career. But I agree: the responsibility in such a 
case is on DD.

Potioncat:
If Snape keeps quiet until much later...say just before the DoM
battle, then he did abort his mission and was a poor commander.

Neri:
Worse than just a "poor commander" where I come from, especially when 
a comrade got killed as a result (and many more might have).

Potioncat:
We don't really know which way it happened. Too bad no one
officially told Harry that the mission had changed.

Neri:
Agreed. They (Snape or DD, whoever was responsible) left Harry alone 
and open to attack with no warning. 

Potioncat:
Also, not to carry the comparison too far, but Occlumency was a
Training session, not a combat mission.

Neri:
Technically you are correct. Practically, Harry's mind was a front 
position. A most critical and the least defended position. 

Potioncat:
And if someone's duty was to be at a certain place to give the
arriving general a briefing, I'd want him there!
<snip>
Someone needed to stay and at this point, Black was really the best
choice. The others were better suited by training to go to the MoM.

Neri:
Here we arrive at another rant I have, not about Snape but about DD. 
Read this carefully:

OotP, Ch.37 :

"When, however, you did not return from your trip into the Forest 
with Dolores Umbridge, Professor Snape grew worried that you still 
believed Sirius to be a captive of Lord Voldemort's. He alerted 
certain Order members at once.'
    Dumbledore heaved a great sigh and continued, 'Alastor Moody, 
Nymphadora Tonks, Kingsley Shacklebolt and Remus Lupin were at 
Headquarters when he made contact. All agreed to go to your aid at 
once. Professor Snape requested that Sirius remain behind, as he 
needed somebody to remain at Headquarters to tell me what had 
happened, for I was due there at any moment. In the meantime he, 
Professor Snape, intended to search the Forest for you.
    'But Sirius did not wish to remain behind while the others went 
to search for you."


Do you believe this? DD, the supreme commander of the forces of Good, 
does not have an immediate way of communication with his own HQ??? 
Would someone please give him a two-way mirror, or a portrait of 
Phineas Nigelus, or just a cell phone??? What would have happened had 
DD got delayed and taken an hour, not five minutes, to reach 12GP? 
Was Sirius supposed to wait for him all that time while his fellows 
are butchered in the DoM? Had DD got a message from 12GP (or better, 
directly from Snape) he could have apparate, from wherever he was, 
straight to the DoM, arriving at the same time the other order 
members had arrived there, and most likely saving Sirius' life and 
preventing Harry from nearly getting killed. And where were Arthur, 
Molly, Diggle, Vance and all the rest??? Why don't they have and 
immediate way to summon them to any place? Should they ask Hermione 
for fake Galeons with a Proteus charm on them?

Ah well, JKR is clearly not versed in basic military communication 
procedures. But if you want to blame it on the characters, DD is your 
man, not Sirius. 


Potioncat:
Snape has set himself up to be distrusted by Gryffidors. But I'll
bet if you had a group of "good" Slytherins, Snape could lead them.

Neri:
Could be, but I'm not that sure. Would they trust him when taking on 
Lucius Malfoy, say, after he'd known to be Malfoy's lap dog for years?

Potioncat:
I'd bet a number of teachers would follow him too.

Neri:
Could be. The teachers had a chance to work with him as equals. 
However, it is not your relationships with the person during 
peacetime that matters. You might like each other or hate each other, 
it's almost irrelevant. The question is: do you absolutely trust him 
to come and get you out of a difficult spot under fire?   

Potioncat:
I'd still rather have Snape protecting the rear than Black. At
least I'd know he would be there while Black might be charging on to
the front.

Neri:
No person is a perfect soldier, but I've met the Sirius type and the 
Snape type during my service. The Sirius type might not be the right 
man in certain positions but a priceless asset in others. The Snape 
type I wouldn't want on my platoon at all. He'd ruin any mutual trust 
in it long before the first shot.

Dumbledore (in SS/PS, ch. 1): "I would trust Hagrid with my life"

Yes, Hagrid is another emotional, not-very-reliable Gryffindor. And 
when it comes to guarding someone's life, I'd take an emotional 
Gryphindor over a sophisticated Slytherin any time.   

Neri