PT Was it ethical of Qui Gon to test Ani's blood without asking?

If someone tested my blood without getting my permission, I'd consider it a serious breach of my rights. Was it an ethical thing for a Jedi to do?

 

How do you know he didn't ask.

 

ANAKIN : What are you doing?
QUI-GON : Checking your blood for infections.

Qui-Gon clearly does not tell the truth here... (or at least not the WHOLE truth).

If someone checked your blood for infections but did, say, a DNA test on it as well without asking, that's a breach of trust surely?

 

How is that even comparable? And Anakin didn't complain when Qui-Gon told him that he was testing his blood. Checking midi-chlorians is like checking mitochondria on your cells. It's there, there's nothing to hide or make a fuss about.

 

Please tell me that you are not being serious Doc. Qui-Gon Jinn is the most underrated character in the entire Star Wars saga. He suspected that he discovered the Chosen One on some remote planet in the Outer Rim. He believed that bringing him to Coruscant to meet the Jedi Council would convince them that his discovery would bring balance to the Force. The idea that he should have approached a judge in order to secure a warrant is silly. Sometimes the ends justifies the means. Just ask Abraham Lincoln.

 

Where do I mention a judge? My question is should he have told Ani what he was doing not should he have got a judge?

'Ani, I'm just going to do a special test on your blood...'

Not difficult is it?

 

You're the doctor. You tell me

 

If that does not imply that a warrant should have been issued I do not know what would. That is why I made a reference to a judge.

 

"and now the next case...

10 year old Anakin Skywalker is Suing 40 something Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn for unauthorised testing from a blood test. Qui-Gon says "the balance of the force depends on it"

Cue...

JUDGE JUDY.

 

Well Anakin did have the big race, better he focus on getting rest than him wondering about midiclorians.

 

Dude - someone should totally make a parody youtube video about this and how it completely ruins the PT and shows what horrible people the Jedi are

 

As far as I know, if you go around jabbing people to draw their blood without their permission, or in Anakin's case, Watto's consent, you are committing a few crimes. I suspect Qui-Gon had the best intentions, but it was still illegal what he did. On the other hand, Tattooine may have different laws though.

 

One of the things I like about Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan for that matter is that they are kind of... slick to me. Like, they never actually outright lie unless absolutely necessary, but the kinds of tap dancing they do around the truth sometimes makes them more interesting.

 

Is this a serious thread?

 

I thought Anakin had already gotten a cut through working on the Podracer - and Qui-Gon was cleaning the injury (and taking a drop of blood for medical analysis) in the process.

 

It was supposed to be a serious question about medical ethics but only Phiery and Sepra seem to understand the reasoning behind me asking.

 

If you go by the books, midi-chlorian testing at birth is mandatory. And the film alludes to something like this "Had he been born in the Republic, we would have identified him".

Outside of the Republic, it may be trickier - but I could see Qui-Gon feeling that he doesn't owe Watto the slaveowner any consideration.

 

Yeah Qui-Gon was in the process of cleaning Anakins cut, Then Shmi tells Ani to come inside, Qui-Gon then quickly jabs Ani with something sharp. Anakin lets out a scared "ow" and asks "what are you doing?"

I want to know why Qui-Gon was so deceptive. He should have asked Watto for his consent, or Shmi's at the very least.

 

Because he knows that if Watto realizes he has a powerful Jedi candidate on his hands, there's no way he will let Anakin go when he can continue to make money from him.

Qui-Gon deceiving Watto isn't exactly new- "I have acquired a Pod in a game of chance" anyone?

 

Remember, Anakin's a slave at this point. He doesn't HAVE rights. Would it have been nice if Qui-Gon offered him a brief explanation or a question before jabbing him with a sharp needle to 'test his blood'? Sure, but Anakin would have had no reason to expect anyone to ask him permission before they did anything to him. He was property. I could be reading into this too deeply, but this could hint at Qui-Gon using this to his advantage and performing a medical procedure on Anakin without his (or Shmi's) consent. On a planet with sketchy laws and viewpoints on what does or does not deserve ethical treatment.

Was it ethical for Qui-Gon? Probably not, but interestingly enough Obi-Wan didn't seem to raise an issue about this later. Something like, “Master, the Council does not condone unmandated blood tests on random natives. Why did you do it?” He seemed willing to question Qui-Gon's defiance at the Council later, so I would imagine he'd really want to know how they managed to get saddled with a little boy, and how and why Qui-Gon performed a blood test that, by all Republican laws, he should not have performed.

 

Quite a bit of what Qui-Gon does in TPM can be considered unethical. This is at the bottom of that list.

 

Yes like stealing Watto's pod (since I assume anything his slaves built belongs to him).... .but for some reason it's not ok to just take the hyperdrive parts?

Meh

 

Watto doesn't know that Pod exists. From Qui-Gon's perspective - slavery is immoral - which is why it's illegal in the Republic's bounds - so he has no problem bending some ethical principles to get Anakin out from Watto's grip, as well as to get themselves off that planet quickly (Naboo's citizens are starving, after all, and time matters).