[Marileangorifurnimaluim]

I like both for different reasons.

The fact Harry Potter isn't all good is what I find refreshing, and I enjoy the humor.

I enjoy the Lord of the Rings for it's depth and idealism. And I enjoy Tolkien's humor.

As far as witchcraft is concerned, I don't believe it exists. So a non-existent doesn't worry me. The two groups that believe in it, one opposes an imaginary concept, the other is a group of posers who visit scented candle shops and cultivate a mystique. The later is the more absurd.

I'll add: The real evil is hatred, greed, what different religions describe in various ways (the three poisons, the seven deadly sins, the ten non-virtues) but are pretty similar. Hatred for example, is a motive, as is greed. Someone who collects a bunch of religious material just to have something can be in principal just as greedy and accumulative as an investment banker. A kid who buys a rose-scented candle to help their friend's headache - well, it's not going to work, but the underlying motivation is positive. It's a mistake to condemn, say, Murphy Brown (if you remember Dan Quayle), and expect to have the sinners see the light and flock to the side of righteousness. In fact, this results in being laughed at by all but those who already agree.

Any action has multiple levels: the good/bad/neutral nature of the action, the motive driving it, and the attitude following it. Then there's the myriad causes that provoked it, and the effects it produces - the intended effects, and the unintended effects. The intended effects can be good or bad, as can the unintended effects (a bad intention can even accidentally cause something good - that's in fact how good can be produced in a negative environment, an oppressor can unintentionally be a cause of another's noble act; or someone intending harm can accidentally shove them out of the path of a speeding car).

Of these we have control over our motive, our choice of action, and our own attitude after. The internal causes. The effects we have no control over, no more than we can control the weather, because that would mean controlling others responses.
Garbage in, garbage out refers to computers, which mercifully we are not. Mandating good is as effective as Prohibition was in the 1920s.

What one can do however is teach, especially through example, the kind of positive self-discipline of action/motive/reflection. It's the mirror image of "give a man a fish.." in this case "Take away the poison, and they will desire it more. Give them something better, and they will never want anything less."

[ February 02, 2002: Message edited by: Marileangorifurnimaluim ]