Book thoughts

I’ve been putting off writing this particular entry for a while because I’ve been unable to understand how everyone around me could possibly disagree. I still haven’t been able to see the other side of the coin, so I decided to go ahead and try to work through this in word-form.

My ‘Law in Literature’ class recently read the novel ‘Skinwalkers’ by Tony Hillerman. Basically the story centers around two Navajo police officers, whose names are Chee and Leaphorn. Leaphorn is skeptical and demands conventional evidence, while Chee is immersed in traditional Navajo belief and who act primarily on hunches and tribal culture. Both are seeking to solve a series of murders on the reservation.

Ultimately, it turns out that a doctor on the reservation has been scamming Medicaid and Medicare for extra dollars - not for personal profit, but simply to keep his clinic open to the local Navajo. When it appeared as if someone might learn of his deception, thus closing the clinic and dooming many people to die without medical care, the doctor used local tribal beliefs (the belief that witches curse people and that killing the witch lifts the curse) to have killed people who would uncover his fraud.

In the end, one of the people the doctor frames as a witch is Officer Chee. Chee and Leaphorn, each through divergent methodology, uncover the plot, understand what the doctor has been doing, and solve the case.

The problem I’ve had with this novel is that the doctor is portrayed as if he did something wrong, and I just don’t really get how that is the case. Sure, the doctor lied to people and manipulated their laughable cultural beliefs to save their lives. Sure, the doctor ordered killed several people who would uncover his fraud. However, it is only by doing these things that the doctor was able to save many dozens of people’s lives. How is what the doctor did not the right thing to do?

Put yourself in his position. Suppose that you have a decision to make, and that if you choose one path, you will have to kill four people, but will save many dozens of people. On the other path, you will allow four people to live, but will condemn many dozens of people to die slowly. In this situation, I hope that, however distasteful we may find either option, someone would have the strength to kill the four people for the greater good.

I hope I would have the strength to do that