this post was submitted on 09 Jan 2026
944 points (98.0% liked)

Comic Strips

21092 readers
2070 users here now

Comic Strips is a community for those who love comic stories.

The rules are simple:

Web of links

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
 
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] zalgotext@sh.itjust.works 37 points 4 days ago (2 children)

Auror was his very first idea

Not to nitpick, but Auror was Rowling's first idea, as you suggest in your last sentence there. Rowling's narrow-minded world view wouldn't let the hero become a teacher, or a politician, or an activist, or anything else. Her view of the world says cops are the real heroes, so the hero of her story must become a cop.

[–] ShaggySnacks@lemmy.myserv.one 4 points 2 days ago

That's cause Rowling was a status quo loving Tony Blair labourite. As per a 4chan post:

“It very neatly describes the way liberals see the world and political struggle.

Lots of people complain about the anticlimactic ending, but really I don’t think it could be any other way. I’d like to imagine that there’s some alternate universe where Rowling actually believed in something and Harry was actually built up as the anti-Voldemort he was only hinted as being in the beginning of the books. Where he’s opposed to all the many injustices of the Wizarding World and determines to change their frequently backwards, insular, contradictory society for the better, and forms his own faction antithetical to the Death Eaters and when he finally has his showdown with Voldy, Harry surpasses by adopting new methods, breaking the rules and embracing change and the progression of history. While Voldemort clings to an idyllic imaging of the past and the greatest extent of his dreams is to become the self-appointed god of an eternally stagnant Neverland, Harry has embraced the possibility of a shining future and so can overcome the self-imposed limits Voldemort could never cross, and Voldemort is ultimately defeated by this.

But that would require a Harry that believed in something, and since Rowling is a liberal centrist Blairite that doesn’t really believe in anything, Harry can’t believe in anything. Harry lives in a world drought with conflict and injustice, a stratified class society, slavery of sentient magical creatures, the absurd charade the Wizarding World puts up to enforce their own self-segregation, a corrupt and bureaucracy-choked government, rampant racism, so on and so forth. But Harry is little more than a passive observer for most of it, only the racism really bothers him (and then, really only racism against half-bloods). In fact, when Hermione stands up against the slavery of elves, she’s treated as some kind of ridiculous Soapbox Sadie. For opposing chattel slavery. In the end, the biggest force for change is Voldemort while Harry and friends only ever fight for the preservation and reproduction of the status quo. The very height of Harry’s dreams is to join the Aurors, a sort of wizard FBI and the ultimate defenders of the wizarding status quo. Voldemort and the Death Eaters are the big instigators of change and Harry never quite gets to Voldy’s level. Harry doesn’t even beat Voldemort, Voldemort accidentally kills himself because he violated some obscure technicality that causes one of his spells to bounce back at him.

And this is really the struggle of liberals, they live in a world fraught with conflict, but aren’t particularly bothered by any of it except those that threaten multicultural pluralism. They see change, and the force behind that change, as a wholly negative phenomenon. Even then, they can only act within the legal and ideological framework of their society. So, for instance, instead of organizing insurrectionary and disruptive activity against Trump and the far-right, all they can do is bang their drum about what a racist bigot he is and hope they can catch him violating some technicality that will allow them to have him impeached or at least destroy his political clout. It won’t work, it will never work, but that’s the limit of liberalism just as it was the limit of Harry Potter.”

Source: https://www.tumblr.com/ryttu3k/672686578850840576/description-a-text-post-originating-from-4chan

[–] HCSOThrowaway@lemmy.world 12 points 3 days ago (2 children)

I think we're putting the cart before the horse here.

Assuming Harry is virtuous and good and brave and excellent at fighting dark wizards and helping people, wouldn't that be the perfect person to become a cop?

[–] zalgotext@sh.itjust.works 7 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (1 children)

Those things qualify you for a whole slew of jobs, and Harry has plenty of other interests besides fighting evil wizards. It seems like very shallow, hackneyed writing to have a 14-year-old latch on to becoming a cop in a community that he didn't even know existed until he was 11*, one which he literally isn't permitted to participate in until he finishes boarding school.

[–] HCSOThrowaway@lemmy.world 0 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Fair enough, but that argument also works against you:

Why become a cop? He has other interests than being a cop.

is equal to

Why not become a cop? He's interested in being a cop.

Surely you know cops don't eat sleep and breathe law enforcement too, right? As in they have other hobbies and interests? That goes for every job; a tailor has hobbies other than tailoring, and a taxi driver has other interests than driving.

[–] zalgotext@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 day ago (1 children)

What? Those aren't equivalent at all. My whole point is that it's bad writing and out of character for Harry to be interested in becoming a cop. Him becoming a cop is in no way equivalent to him pursuing literally anything else that would be more in-character.

Your second point has nothing to do with anything, and I don't know why you included it.

[–] HCSOThrowaway@lemmy.world 0 points 16 hours ago (1 children)

I think you just don't understand that cops come from the same schools, communities, homes, families, etc. as anyone else, including you; in other words, you have a significant mental rift that makes it impossible for you to walk the bridge of logic I built for you.

I don't know if I can build a bridge big enough for you to cross. I guess just stare at my previous comment for a while until it clicks.

TL;DR: If you think, and even shout from the rooftops, that the only people suitable for law enforcement are pieces of shit, guess who is going to become law enforcement? Oh my, we seem to have a Too Many Pieces of Shit in Law Enforcement problem! Wonder how that happened...

[–] zalgotext@sh.itjust.works 0 points 16 hours ago (1 children)

Hey you fucking acorn, wanna take a break from insulting me and putting words in my mouth to point out where I said that the only people suitable for law enforcement are pieces of shit?

My point, for the third (3rd) time, is that having Harry be interested in being a cop is out of character and poor writing because of Harry's traits and background

[–] HCSOThrowaway@lemmy.world 0 points 15 hours ago (1 children)

I didn't insult you other than to say that you're biased, which I don't think is an insult personally. I'm biased too, about different things. All humans are.

My point, for the third (3rd) time, is that having Harry be interested in being a cop is not out of character and poor writing because Harry’s traits and background don't preclude him from an interest in being one.

[–] zalgotext@sh.itjust.works 1 points 13 hours ago

You insulted my intelligence ("can't build you a logic bridge big enough blah blah blah") and then hit me with the ol "nuh uh, you're wrong I'm right" argument, so I'm forced to believe I'm talking with a child. Go to bed son, you've got school in the morning.

[–] ivanafterall@lemmy.world -3 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (2 children)

Only if you assume cops are there to help people. He'd do more good as a Batman/Dexter type.

[–] HCSOThrowaway@lemmy.world 4 points 3 days ago (2 children)

Again, cart before horse.

You're asserting that there are no helpful cops, therefore Harry being helpful means he should not be a cop.

In reality, Harry being helpful should be a cop, because he could be in a position to help people.

Dexter/Batman don't do a lot of helping, they just crack skulls of people they perceive as bad. Ironically for your point, much like most IRL cops.

[–] ivanafterall@lemmy.world 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

You’re asserting that there are no helpful cops

I asserted that?

[–] HCSOThrowaway@lemmy.world 0 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Fair enough, it was an implication that you might not have intended. Add to it that 99% of Lemmites believe "ACAB," and you can imagine why I made that conclusion.

[–] Dasus@lemmy.world -1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

First off, ACAB.

Secondly, in a lot of stories Batman defeats city-wide or even nation- or global-wide threats. Kinda like Harry. And whatever Batman happens to do, because it's somehow justified, it ends up being good. Because he's the hero. Like Harry.

But like the earlier dude said Harry hasn't even got an understanding of the wider world. He would be much better at being a professor, because it also includes studying instead of just enforcing the rules.

Even if you imagine a perfect cop, he wouldn't be acting like Harry. Harry constantly breaks some rules or laws. Not what cops should be doing. Yeah you need some of the virtues Harry has but Harry is also inpatient and a large risk-taker. Neither of which are particularly good characteristics in cops except in media. A perfect cop would be someone slightly autistic about the rules and literally doesn't do whatever they feel like, but defers to the rules.

Which Harry most certainly doesn't.

Imagine if the magical world was (for this analogy) the US. Some who grew up in another country and hasn't even lived in the US, just went to a mostly American school, wants to be an American cop? Even when they go through a necessary training (and we know the wizarding world isn't big on credentials or experience) to become a cop, he'd still have very little understanding of the actual law with just some weeks of training, and wouldn't have grown up hearing about the constitution of the US let alone all the amendments to it.

[–] HCSOThrowaway@lemmy.world 0 points 1 day ago (1 children)

But like the earlier dude said Harry hasn’t even got an understanding of the wider world. He would be much better at being a professor, because it also includes studying instead of just enforcing the rules.

This section is refuted by: He's 18, so "Duh" and "Nah," respectively.

Even if you imagine a perfect cop, he wouldn’t be acting like Harry. Harry constantly breaks some rules or laws. Not what cops should be doing.

A fair point, but essentially the opposite of what looks like most people's assertion about Harry becoming a cop, i.e. "He's good so he should not be a cop," and/or, "If some/most/all cops are bad, no one should become a cop." I find both of those asinine takes, hence my refuting them above.

TL;DR: Harry would be morally upstanding and a loose cannon (assuming he doesn't mature past 18), therefore a "good" cop, but not a "great" cop, and assuming his world is anything like ours, should absolutely be a cop to offset the bad.

Imagine if the magical world was (for this analogy) the US. Some who grew up in another country and hasn’t even lived in the US, just went to a mostly American school, wants to be an American cop? Even when they go through a necessary training (and we know the wizarding world isn’t big on credentials or experience) to become a cop, he’d still have very little understanding of the actual law with just some weeks of training, and wouldn’t have grown up hearing about the constitution of the US let alone all the amendments to it.

Yes, immigrant cops have a disadvantage to face, but I disagree in your analogy and its application to Harry that it means they're disqualified from the position; that's a training issue that is far from impossible.

[–] Dasus@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

TL;DR: Harry would be morally upstanding and a loose cannon (assuming he doesn't mature past 18), therefore a "good" cop

"Loose cannons" are never good as cops. No matter how much you delude yourself they're completely moral and even if that were 100% true they wouldn't be good cops. Cops aren't justice. They're law enforcement.

Someone applying their own morality all the time instead of laws should never ever be a cop. That's why ACAB.

[–] HCSOThrowaway@lemmy.world 0 points 1 day ago (1 children)

“Loose cannons” are never good as cops. No matter how much you delude yourself they’re completely moral and even if that were 100% true they wouldn’t be good cops. Cops aren’t justice. They’re law enforcement.

A reminder that we're talking about choosing between lesser evils here. Would you rather an immoral by-the-book Auror/cop in league with Voldemort/Hitler or a moral loose cannon like Harry?

Someone applying their own morality all the time instead of laws should never ever be a cop. That’s why ACAB.

How do you feel about ICE arresting people for immigration offenses?

How do you feel about the DEA prosecuting people for cannabis?

There's nuance here, and you're pretending there isn't.

[–] Dasus@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

"No but you have to understand, All Cops might Be Bastards but they're could be way worse bastards!"

Wow what a magnificent argument.

How do you feel about ICE arresting people for immigration offenses?

How do you feel about the DEA prosecuting people for cannabis?

Do you not understand that things are clearly immoral should lead to law enforcement refusing to enforce the laws. It doesn't mean they get to decide which laws to enforce or not, willy nilly, but if someone says "go an arrest every minority out there" they can say 'that's unconstitutional and I won't do it, you can fire me and then I'll sue you' or whatever it is you do there.

What you CAN'T do is become law enforcement and then use that authority while being completely arbitrary about laws.

The only reason I'm not a cop is because drugs are illegal (and some other laws but mainly those.)

[–] HCSOThrowaway@lemmy.world -1 points 16 hours ago (1 children)

“No but you have to understand, All Cops might Be Bastards but they’re could be way worse bastards!”

This strawman isn't even properly put together; it's falling apart. If English isn't your first language, skip the following: Write better.

Do you not understand that things are clearly immoral should lead to law enforcement refusing to enforce the laws. It doesn’t mean they get to decide which laws to enforce or not, willy nilly, but if someone says “go an arrest every minority out there” they can say ‘that’s unconstitutional and I won’t do it, you can fire me and then I’ll sue you’ or whatever it is you do there.

Evidently not, because my understanding of your argument is that it is an oxymoron: Cops should use their own moral judgement to selectively enforce the law, but also, cops should not use their own moral judgement to selectively enforce the law.

I'm not a Harry Potter encyclopedia so maybe your perception of Harry being a loose cannon is much more arbitrary than mine, but in the context of someone refusing to enforce a law on moral grounds, you're making zero sense to me. It seems like you're assigning "willy nilly" to selective enforcement you disagree with and "refusal" to selective enforcement you agree with.

[–] Dasus@lemmy.world 1 points 7 hours ago* (last edited 7 hours ago)

This strawman isn't even properly put together; it's falling apart. If English isn't your first language, skip the following: Write better.

I really wouldn't talk with that sort of syntax. "They" became "they're" due to my fat thumbs, not because I meant it to. I write pretty fast on a phone and like we all (should) know, the predictive algorithm sometimes get stuck with the wrong word, and I don't really care yoo much (see, now I have to fix "yoo" to "too". Better to remove "yoo" as a prediction really, but who's got time for thay).

I'll bet my left nut that if we both tested our English skills, I'd have a larger vocabulary and better syntax. More than ten years ago I surpassed the average native speaker in vocabulary size.

Cops should use their own moral judgement to selectively enforce the law, but also, cops should not use their own moral judgement to selectively enforce the law.

No, you're just a dummy. There are laws in place which allow cops — just like soldiers, to not do what they're commanded to do. They're called "illegal orders". So for instance if I were at war (and I am a sergeant in the reserves), I would never hesitate to question a direct command... unless it broke the core principles which are not my personal morals, but strict rules which are in place. At that point, if it's murky if it is a legal order or not (as superiors officers often do give them, to both cops and soldiers), the first step is to ask it in writing. Then you can show that you protested, but as it was unclear, you did it anyway. However if your superiors officers tell you to do something clearly illegal like torturing people and kidnapping children, you don't need to hesitate, and even getting it in writing wouldn't help, as any reasonably well trained person should definitely understand the immortality and thus refuse to obey.

I'm not a Harry Potter encyclopedia so maybe your perception of Harry being a loose cannon is much more arbitrary than mine,

See what did I tell you about the syntax. Gjeoddamn.

But also, vocabulary. My definition isn't arbitrary in the least. Are you sure you know the meaning of the word?

but in the context of someone refusing to enforce a law on moral grounds, you're making zero sense to me.

Probably because you have zero actual understanding of the topic..?

It seems like you're assigning "willy nilly" to selective enforcement you disagree with and "refusal" to selective enforcement you agree with.

Yes, you keep repeating your asinine and completely wrong argument. Did you just forget the other times, or do you repeat it so that you'll remember it? Either way, kinda weird, and super wrong.

Let's start small and check this out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_order_(international_law)

[–] tetris11@feddit.uk 3 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

You're putting the cart before the horse there.

If cops could be helpful to Harry, then why wouldn't he ride a time horse back in time to meet his grandaddy's prize-winning steed, a racehorse name you've likely not heard of. I hope you're happy with your assertions