tlb wrote:cthia wrote:There are still holdouts against me on this can-o-worms in my social circle. I must admit that my niece, and several of her cohorts (going to pay dearly for that one) have come up with a convincing argument. It is my niece's take on it, and many of her cohorts agree. Admittedly, even I can see the validity of her argument, which is as follows, paraphrased from a multi-way, STL international phone conference. In a nutshell . . .
"Uncle, you aren't allowing for Honor's own right of self-preservation. Only she knew whether or not she was in any condition to actually win the duel without every conceivable advantage she had. Giving up that advantage through full disclosure could have been tantamount to suicide, especially if Burdette had decided that her special skills were unfair and decided to stab her in the back much like what Pavel Young had tried to do."
I yield to her on that, because, as she said, only Honor knew. But! Other than still standing on the moral high ground, that argument will only suffice if it is presented as such at any empanelled hearings on Grayson. And if no one else in the forum drew that same conclusion other than my niece, how many lawyers or lobbyists on Grayson would.
At any rate, I yield.
"She was the only living holder of the Star of Grayson, which, by law, made her Protector's Champion". She would have dishonored her fealty to the Protector if she had done less than her best. If the Champion were a cyborg or a doddering old man, it really does not matter, they have to do the best that they can. To do other than that and so allow Burdette to win is unconscionable.
If the Champion were a feeble old man, who had won the Star of Grayson in his youth, then would Burdette back down because the fight was not fair? In the past you have said that this fight was not fair, because Burdette was not informed of Honor's advantage. Actually Burdette might have been better off not knowing, because overthinking and uncertainty interfere with performance.
If your niece has convinced you, then we can let this fade away.
We know that she's Protector's Champion. It is the entry point for this can-o-worms, because only on Grayson does that title exist. Grayson, a planet whose entire existence is rooted in faith and the knowledge that there is a God. I don't purport to know whether or not soliciting the help of an android as People's Champion would be acceptable by the people of Grayson. But I'd be willing to bet that the people of Grayson would not find it humorous if it was pushed through without full dosclosure. And for you to suggest such a thing is shocking. THIS IS GRAYSON. Your heretic views highlight the danger of Grayson allowing interaction from the outside. A point I'll get to, hopefully, in another thread.
Heretic views is not meant to be a personal swipe at you. Faith, or lack thereof, is a highly personal thing. But it can flavor ones understanding of faith based matters.
OTOH, in religious threads, I've been reminded that in people other than true Christians can one extol the virtues of morals, scruples and values. In that light, I am shocked that you can find having to battle Supergirl herself, or an android -- without someone informing you what you were truly up against, is fair. Even the RMN was decent enough to inform the SLN what they were truly up against. Leaving the RMN standing on the moral high ground for all of history to come.
An "old man" on Grayson as People's Champion is part of the process and is inherent in its design. And it is totally fair by the laws of Grayson. Sad maybe, but fair. The important thing is it doesn't offer a lever to cause a constitutional crisis or a breach of faith for an entire planet. Would Burdette still challenge if it was an old man? Probably. It would still remain fair, under the laws of Grayson.
My niece has convinced me only of the fact that we may ultimately need to call Honor to the stand to testify. Do remember, Honor would be under oath. And treecats know truth. I don't know if the cats would conceal her deceit, but it can't bode well in the long run for cat and Honor. And, well, knowing our heroine, could she herself lie.
The conversation amongst my STL conference group seems to be taking a serious religious turn. Some argue that Honor, having not wholly accepted Grayson's faith, is bound by her own. Faith is a highly personal thing. Honor certainly knows the Book of The New Way quite well. There is no reason to assume she doesn't know the Bible. Particularly under scrutiny . . .
Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
Tlb, I've informed you before that this can-o-worms has taken on a mind if its own. Its a large can, and recapturing all of the nuances and the worms therein -- once they've been set free -- is beyond my control. Especially in my social circles. I certainly take full responsibility for opening this can. However, the can itself, and its contents, are the soul ownership of the author's. Simply letting it fade away is something even you have proved easily said than done.
My friends and I have thoroughly enjoyed these intense discussions about the globe via international conference calls, which has an interesting side effect of mimicking STL transmissions. I think we laid unprecedented ground rules for parliamentary procedure during an otherwise unmanageable number of people jacked into a conference call. It is loads of fun and highly entertaining. And again, we all have a firsthand account of the combatants in the Honorverse trying to communicate from great distances during a battle -- trying to keep hot one's passion, anger or excitement while waiting your turn to speak again. Promulgated by this can-o-worms.
