Conspiracies and re-assessments

[pippin_999]

No: HPFGUIDX 111901

> > Pippin:
> > Ahhhh...community standards. Okay, but the community 
which should apply is not yours, or mine, but Hogwarts. Is 
'pantsing'  normal student fun at Hogwarts? Have we ever seen 
anybody  'pantsed'  at Hogwarts before? Lupin says they were 
out of line  and he ought to know. This is not considered a bit of 
dirty fun.  Lily doesn't tell Snape to be a good sport and buck up, 
does she?

Nora:

> Lily doesn't, but...
> 
> "Students all around had gathered to watch.  Some of them 
had gotten  to their feet and were edging nearer to watch.  Some 
looked  apprehensive, other entertained...
> 
> Several people watching laughed; Snape was clearly 
unpopular...
> 
> 'It's more the fact that he exists, if you know what I mean...'
> 
> Many of the surrounding watchers laughed, Sirius and 
Wormtail  included, but Lupin, still apparently intent on his book 
didn't, and  neither did Lily."
> 
> Loathsome as we may (and I certainlny do) find James' 
behavior, there  are very strong textual hints that a lot of the 
students are,  frankly, getting a kick out of it.  It's Lily the 
Muggleborn who  doesn't buy into the larger community 
standards here.<

Pippin:

 Lupin is not a Muggleborn. He is the one in charge of  enforcing 
community standards and keeping them from being corrupted, 
and he admits that he failed to do so. How is the behavior of the 
watching students different from the behavior of the crowd at the 
QWC? 

GoF ch, 8
"Loud jeering, roars of laughter, and drunken yells were drifting 
towards them; [...] More wizards were joining the marching 
group, laughing and pointing upward at the floating bodies."


Nora:
> I think James is certainly being cruel, and it's an awful action, 
but  I personally am reluctant to term it 'evil', partially because
of the  rather unclear motivation and intention--the pantsing 
seems to be a  misdirected vengeance for Snape's calling Lily a 
Mudblood.  There's  also questions of scale, and let's not 
succumb to the slippery slope  here.<

Pippin:

I don't see any slope to slide down here. James's motivation isn't 
unclear at all. He hated Snape 'because he exists' and his friend 
was bored with celebrating. How is that different than hating Mr. 
Roberts  and being bored with celebrating? 

 James was not a willing, conscious ally of Voldemort, nor do I 
think he ever wanted to become one. But the world isn't divided 
into evil people and non-Death Eaters either.


Pippin