Ethics, Schmethics

[Mike & Susan Gray]

OK.

So, I think there's lots of nice, Christiany-ethicy stuff in HBP. All
well and dandy. But honestly, folks:

Is it right to get people (and basically innocent people at that!) drunk
so they'll divulge information they wouldn't other divulge?

If so, is it also right to force turth serum on them? (Which Dumbledore
admits to doing to Horace.)

And, assuming the moral answer is yes but the informational answer is
no, why not take it a step further? Start out by making them listen to
some very loud music for a while. (By the time they've heard that ditty
about "come and stir my cualdron" for the 2843th time, they'll be
singing like pidgeons.) And if that doesn't work, just let them live in
an, umm, nice, politically unplottable little island not too far from an
evil-magical superpower somewhere in the Caribbean. Put them on a bit of
a diet (a little thinning never hurt anybody) and don't let them sleep
too much (sloth is evil too, you know) and play some other harmless
games with their precious wee noggins. 

Oh? Not so nice after all? I agree, very strongly. Moreover, everything
I know about JKR's ethical-social-political leanings tells me she would
too.

So what gives? How far can you slide down the slope of treating people
as Means rathers than Ends until Seriously Bad Stuff starts happening?
Is this a moral oversight on JKR's part or is she consciously steering a
difficult course between ethical idealism and Realpolitik? And if so,
what do her charts looks like?

Baaaaaa!

Aberforth's Goat (a.k.a. Mike Gray) 
_______________________

"Of course, I'm not entirely sure he can read, 
so that may not have been bravery...."