I just noticed something. In the GoF movie when Rita pushes Harry in the cupboard she says, "You must be used to this." So does that mean she knows about his life? How the hell did the writers screw up so bad? Did Dumbledore tell anyone? It may just be the movie, but that's definitely fishy.

 

Well, first he says, "It's a broom cupboard", and she says, "You must be used to these." I just took it to mean his childhood.

 

Maybe, I mean who wouldn't want an anorexic, messy, dirty, blind without glasses, boy toy.

 

In fourth year, why did he not stop the tournament? Magical contract my ass. Dumbledore just wanted to get to the bottom of the mystery by putting Harry\\\'s life in danger.

In fifth year, why did he not sack umbridge because he supposedly knows what\\\'s going on in the school. Shouldn\\\'t he know about the blood quil? There is a stupid scar on his hand saying I won\\\'t tell lies. Is Dumbledore blind, or is he senile? I am sure he probably spies on Harry a lot... especially when he is taking a shower.

Edit: I already have high blood pressure, but seeing Harry Potter made into some stupid good vs evil childrens book just makes me want to scream and strangle something.

Another thing. What was he doing with Harry\'s invisibility cloak? How did he get it anyways? And why the hell did that stupid idiot Sirius follow Dumbles orders and left HIS godson with an overwieght half-giant? suspicious.

The old man had them all on their pinky fingers. That is fine and all because he is doing it for the good of the wizarding world (bullshit) and sacrifices have to be made, but then he practically commits suicide by letting Drakey-pooh trap him. Instead of putting a body bind on Harry he could have just went BAM and murdered the blonde haired pansy. Stupid honor, and saving people and redeeming shit. It\'s all bullshit. I wish somebody would rewrite the entire Harry Potter series and make it so everyone aren\'t such pussies... Didn\'t they do something like that in Harmony site but instead they had H/Hermoine instead of H/G or something?

 

On your first point. Dumbledore could not have stopped the contest. It was supposed to be a MAGICALLY binding contract, i.e. he would need to break a very powerful bond to pull Harry out or cancel the tournament. Now considering that they spent months arranging the thing I don't think he would call it off lightly. Not to mention there was no telling what would have happened to the participants if the contract was nullified. Personally I think he should have spent more effort to finding out HOW Harry's name got there rather than just go along with it.

Second point. He couldn’t sack Umbridge as she was appointed by the retard for a minister. If he sacked her then the Fat One would have descended on Hogwarts with Aurors on some trumped up charges. And remember he had lost his position as Head of Wizzy-got too. Still he should have done something to curtail her actions. After all is said and done he is a very respected wizard and a few public word from him (without being offensive to the Fat One) could have greatly effected her actions. I have to agree on the point of the Blood Quill. Why he didn’t do anything (even after he was reinstated to all his titles) is beyond me.

Third point. He had the Invisibility Cloak because James Potter left it with him.

I have to say that I think JKR wanted Dumbledore to appear as the wise, but human leader of good. He makes mistakes, but his heart is in the right place. However, if you look at things from a certain light (which I have you bunch of psychos to thank for ) then all his actions can be seen as that of a manipulative old man. He sent Harry to the Dursleys so that he wouldn’t grow up with the idea of being famous (says so in the first chapter of PS) and thus be spoilt. There is the whole Philosophers stone being guarded by a series of tests that 3 11 year olds could get through. Hell the maze in GoF was so much harder.

Is he a manipulator? I say yes. Not the evil ‘I want all the glory’ or ‘I have to be in control’ type (though those are fun to read). Instead he’s merely pushing Harry in a certain direction which he feel is for the best.

 

I'm pretty sure Rita was alluding to the fact that she THINKS he's been in tons of broom cupboards with random girls over the years at Hogwarts.

 

Keep in mind too that the maze was only a small percentage of dangerous. Moody removed most of the obstacles out of Harry's way.

Drop a fucking Sphinx into the Philo stone chamber, give it a SS suppository or something, Voldemort ain't going in after that hiding place.

 

Ah...a fool proof plan. Voldemort would be stupid to go against a possibly PMS-ing, rectally violated Sphinx with sharp claws.

 

Of course where would Dumbledore get a sphinx. Remember that the philosopher\'s stone\'s hiding place was supposed to be a SECRET. He obviously can\'t advertise the location by putting sphinxes and what not. Besides, those challenges were pretty hard. Would you have been able to solve that logic problem of Snape\'s? WOuld you have been able to fly and get that key for the door? Those three were talented first years.

I still think Dumbledore is manipulative though.

 

I think you miss the point. About the logic thing of Snapes, any halfass wizard would use the flamenumbing charm or whatever it is called or just shoot water out and put the flames out. Plus it is Voldemort, the guy made himself immortal at 16, an age when all Harry did was beat off in the bathroom.
As for the key, one word, "accio" that does not require talent, any person that has taken their OWLs could do that, much less one of the most powerful dark lords around, a person that is equal to Dumbledore himself.
If he wanted the stone to be safe, put it in his office, or keep it on him. No ghost of Voldemort is beating Dumbledore, hell even fullpower Voldemort can only tie him.
Those tasks were for the trio, nothing more.

The dog, Avada Kedavara
The vines, if Voldemort does not know incendio I will eat my keyboard
Keys, accio
Troll, Avada Kedavara
Chess Set, imperio, reducto, any blasting curse etc, plus the guy led a war, he can probably beat a first year in chess
Potions, flamefreezing charm, water
Not sure if I missed anything, but the point is clear, the only thing that was actually a challenge was Dumbledores, all the others could be dealt with by Draco in 6th year, hell Neville in 4th (after learning accio), could have done it.

 

Most of the readers for Harry Potter are children. For us, the highly educated teens and old people, we like something with a little more flair. That is why we have fanfiction where we can make our own scenarios based on our reasonings, or whatever the hell we want.

 

I think JK probably did make Dumles manipulative on purpose, but she didn't make it too obvious. Maybe she wanted the adult readers or teens to notice that Dumbles was manipulative and pretty stupid at times but she made all the clues to it really subtle, so that all the kiddies can read a nice little 'happily ever after story' (except for the deaths) but the older ones got a more interesting read. She might have based her character personalities on diferent points of view; someone could look completely different to an eight year old and a twenty year old.

 

Hum... Myself, i think that dumbledore is supposed to be an old man, with an old man's failing. Still intelligent and all that, but not as he once was, like rita said. or maybe not. maybe he is supposedto be all good, but too forgiving. Whatever.

That is what he is "supposed" to be. on the other hand, like ro's math if we look closer, dumbledore is definitely a manipulative man. After all, he *knew* that draco had twice attempted to kll him and twice almost killed a student, and once tried to crucio harry, and did *nothing*.

 

To me, he came across as manipulative from the start, since we have proof since PS that he knew the conditions Harry lived in, because he didn't want Harry to be a "spoiled little prince".

And who guards a powerful artifact that's being hunted by an overpowering dark wizard inside a school, and announces to that school that there is something being guarded? (well, not exactly, but come on, you tell a kid not to go somewhere, and what's the first thing he does?)

And there's another thing:

Lupin, in the third book, said that Peter had spied on the order for a year before Voldemort fell; how could Dumbledore miss this? If he knew there was a spy inside the order, and if the order knew the Potters were going into hiding, maybe Dumbledore arranged more than for Harry to live with his aunt; I think he has a larger part in the Potters' death than we realise.

Also, could it be that James and Lily didn't fully trust him? For some reason, they didn't choose him as secret keeper, and we know he volunteered.