Hagrid and Draco

[wynnleaf]

No: HPFGUIDX 168710

 
> Carol:
> <SNIP>
> 
> > I guess you must be frequently annoyed in both the HP books and 
RL
> > because people *do* say bad things about people they've never 
met 
> and
> > know only by reputation (George Bush, anyone?). And it's quite 
true
> > that Hagrid lives in a hut on the grounds and gets drunk rather
> > frequently. If Ron rather than Draco had told Harry the story of
> > Hagrid trying to do magic and setting his bed on fire, chances 
are,
> > Harry would have believed it, even after he'd met Hagrid.
> 
> 
> Alla:
> But actually, yes, sometimes I will be very annoyed when people 
say 
> bad things about people they never met or things they have no clue 
> about. Here is the good RW example.
> <snip>
> I am sure you heard about Russian poet and writer Boris Pasternak 
and 
> read his book "Doctor Zhivago". The soviet regime did not accept 
the 
> book well, to put it mildly.
> 
> So, there had been massive campaign in the newspapers at that 
time, 
> printing letters from "good citisens" saying basically:
> "I did not read the book, but I condemn Boris Pasternak for 
writing 
> it"
> 
> People doing  staff like that makes me angry in RL. 

wynnleaf
This was a rather fascinating and, it seems to me, revealing example 
you gave.  I'm not sure if you really meant to do this, but you 
appear to be drawing a comparison between people putting an 
uninformed personal and negative opinion into a letter, signing 
their name to it, and sending it out for the public to read it in 
the newspaper, to an 11 year old child making some casual negative 
remarks about a teacher.

I just don't see a kid making casually disparaging remarks about a 
teacher as anywhere at all on the same level as an adult sending out 
a written letter to the newspaper.

But if Draco's remarks are that seriously wrong, it amazes me that 
Ron's remarks concerning Snape could be considered perfectly 
acceptable.

wynnleaf