Draco as Victim in GoF (was: Re: The Huge overreactions...)

[Tonks]

No: HPFGUIDX 150264

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, Joe Goodwin 
<joegoodwin1067 at ...> wrote:

> Betsy Hp:
> Legally?  You bet.  At least, here in the United States.  Words 
don't count.  And, considering the fact Crabbe and Goyle didn't say 
> anything, you're going to be hard pressed to convince me they 
deserved to be hit so hard with magic hexes they were knocked out.
> 
> Joe: 
> Most States and municipalities have statutes that taken into 
acount just this sort of provocation as well. Also if we are going 
to bring real world law into it then we should mention that Malfoys 
words could also be considered both "menacing" which is a crime. 
Note: Goyle and Crabbe using their size in the manner they do is the 
legal deffinition of "menacing". They could also be considered 
many "hate crime" statutes.
>    
> Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle got exactly what they deserved. I have 
not once ounce of pity for them. They should have leaned not to let 
their actions write checks their rear ends coudn't cash.

Tonks:
I tend to agree with Betsy. But there is another point as well.
If a person responds to verbal abuse with physical abuse they have 
lowered themselves at least as low if not lower than the verbal 
abuser. If I were in Harry's position I would probably say something 
nasty back since I am not a physically violent person. I can be very 
nasty verbally, but that would be just as wrong. And I would have 
allowed the other person to dictate my response and my emotional 
reaction. In that case, I would not be in control of me, they would 
have been. I think a wizard needs to be in control of himself and 
not allow others to control his emotions and from that his 
behaviors.  There are people like Draco that want to push your 
buttons, and a wizard especially has to learn self control otherwise 
there could be even more serious consequences. Remember the snake in 
the zoo when Harry was younger.

I think we need to ask ourselves in a situation like that, what 
would DD do?  I don't think he would have been violent and not nasty 
either. I do wonder what he would have done. It is hard to not let 
someone push your buttons, and I am as guilty of it as the next 
person. But I think that there is a better way and I do wonder what 
DD would have modeled for us. What would he have done???

Tonks_op