Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix--or An Illustration of the Dems Disbelieving Nanny State
Most of you know by now I'm a voracious reader and if you check out my "Library Thingy" with any regularity, you know I have all the Harry Potter books and have read them all numerous times.
I also collect the movies as they come out.
Such was the case last night when I decided to pick up the fifth installment, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix". For those not familiar with the series, it's this installment where things begin going "dark and dangerous"--the stakes are higher, the kids are more serious, you can tell war is brewing as Voldemort was revived at the end of the fourth installment, "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire".
Briefly, "Phoenix" starts with a dementor attack on Harry and Dudley right around the corner from Uncle Vernon's house. Harry conjures a Patronum to protect the two of them and gets Dudley home. However, he's expelled from Hogwarts for using magic in front of muggles and being underage while doing so. Dumbledore convinces the Ministry to give Harry a hearing as to the circumstances and reinstate Harry into Hogwarts. Mr. Weasley accompanies Harry to the Ministry for his hearing. While they are in the elevator, one of the "good guys" whispers to Mr. Weasley the time for the hearing has been changed--instead of the two having 3 hours to prepare, they have 5 minutes to appear--and it's a full court hearing, not just a simple slap on the wrist as the "crime" warrants. Dumbledore appears as Harry's defense, again not having been notified of the change, but just happening to be at the Ministry.
Harry is pretty much railroaded and not allowed to explain the circumstances for his use of magic until Dumbledore intercedes; he is finally exonerated.
Throughout the summer, Harry is vilified in the wizarding equivalent of the MSM, the "Daily Prophet", as being a liar for stating Voldemort is back and is rebuilding his army. The Ministry in general, and Cornelius Fudge in particular, don't want to believe the dark times are imminent so they feel by ignoring what Harry has told them, even with the proof he's provided, it will go away. In order to do that, they have to make Harry out to be a total whack job.
Is this starting to sound familiar boys and girls?
No one wants to believe Voldemort is back; no one wants to believe the disappearing witches and wizards are due to Voldemort, as before--it's much easier to continue the disinformation they were all murdered by "mass murderer" Sirius Black.
Enter the Order of the Phoenix--originally started by the parents of the current Hogwarts students and revived by the surviving parents and joined by the students.
There is one "juror" who becomes significant through the movie--she is known by her "pink" attire, and her name is Dolores Umbridge. Anyone who has read the books, now is the time to hiss at the appearance of the ultimate villain--even Lucius Malfoy is preferable to Umbridge.
Umbridge comes to Hogwarts as the Defense of the Dark Arts teacher. As Hermione says, it means the Ministry is interfering with the Hogwarts education. Truer words were never spoken. At the beginning of Umbridge's class, she hands out new books--defense by theory only, no need for magic in her class. The kids won't need practical applications for their OWLS (like our SAT's). When she's confronted by Harry and those who believe him, she sentences Harry to detention--and a most horrific detention it is. He is to use one of her "special quills" to "write lines"--"I must not tell lies". She provides him no ink, telling him it's not necessary. And it's not--for this quill cuts into the skin whatever the writer is writing and the ink is the user's own blood.
Slowly but surely, Umbridge takes over the school, "with the Ministry's permission"--to question her is to question the Ministry. She is always dressed in pink and the clothes look like Jackie Kennedy has been revived. She refers to the centaurs as "approaching human intelligence, half breeds"--very similar to how the dems feel about the proletariat. She keeps instituting more and more restrictive rules, keeping the use of magic down so the kids can't pass their OWLS with practical applications, starts "reviewing" the teachers curricula and teaching methods (trying to ban Professor Trelawney)--in short, complete nanny state.
The kids have ENOUGH and start "Dumbledore's Army", where they, under Harry's tutelage, start learning the defense of the dark arts from a practical viewpoint. They find the "Room of Requirement" which is only visible for dire need and supplies itself with what's needed. In the meantime, Umbridge has got Filch spying on the kids and institutes her version of the Nazi Youth to help him--and of course that would be Draco, Crabbe and Goyle. They capture Cho and through the use of Snape's Veritaserum, find out the details of the group, where they meet, etc. Dumbledore comes to the rescue and takes the blame for the group. When Umbridge and her ilk attempt to arrest him, he flees (rather spectacularly).
All along, the Ministry continues to deny Voldemort is back and rebuilding his army.
Through some more machinations of Umbridge and Hermione's quick thinking, Umbridge is finally disposed of. However, Harry finds he has a mental connection with Voldemort and Snape is trying to help him block that connection. Through this connection, he sees Sirius at the Ministry, being tortured by Voldemort. The kids race to the rescue and do what needs to be done. (What, you think I'm going to tell you all of it???); however, Sirius dies. Only at the scene's climax does Fudge see Voldemort and realize he can no longer deny what has been said all along. No matter how much he may try to discredit Harry, Dumbledore, the Order, etc., no matter how he may try to interfere with the education the children are receiving at Hogwarts, purposely dumbing them down with theory only and no practical application of their lessons, the fact remains, Voldemort is back--and definitely rebuilding his deadly army.
No amount of denial will work. None.
No amount of "nanny stating for the good of the people" will work.
No amount of interference in tried and true defense measures and education will work.
No amount of sleight of hand in the art of distraction from the real issues and the real dangers will work.
No amount of appeasement of the dark lord will work.
Voldemort is back. He is building his army. He will have his final war with Harry. Only one will survive. No one will stand in his way.
J.K. Rowling wrote this particular installment at least three years ago. Being a Brit, she's very familiar with what's happened on her home shores with the muslim appeasement and the attendant politics we are now seeing played out on our own shores.
Does any of this sound remotely familiar to anyone at this juncture in time--at least to those of use called haters and warmongers (when in actuality we're the ones seeing reality for what it is)? Or is it going over people's heads?
Art imitates life--are we smart enough to listen? Or are we going to continue down the road our politicians have chosen for us? Are we going to be part of the problem? Or part of "Dumbledore's Army?" Sphere: Related Content
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