"Being a Slayer Doesn't Give Me a License To Kill"

[Joshua]

Oh but it gives Warren the right to try to kill YOU (Buffy) at every possible chance, then he almost killed you with a gun and then killed Tara

imo I think Buffy should have killed Warren. Warren isn't Human imo. A Human doesn't try to kill a person even if that person is a Supernatural Being for no reason.

Did Warren even have a reason to try and kill Buffy?

 

[david4wt]

People can be evil and do bad things, that's just it. I don't believe in revenge or making your own justice so, to my eyes, it truly wasn't Buffy's duty to punish Warren's actions, it was the legal/justice system's duty. The only thing she should have done was to make sure he was handed to the police (which is what she was going to do).

 

[dexeded]

No, it doesn't give Warren the right. He didn't have the right but he took it anywya. Buffy doesn't have a license to kill humans because humans already have laws for them. Warren is under the jurisdiction of human law. What's more debatable is how Buffy should deal with evil witches or wizards like Ethan Rayne, because the law can't deal with them though they are still human.

 

[funsmiley]

Warren had no reason what's so ever to want to kill buffy. He was a pointless villain to me, i mean can you even really call him that? im glad buffy didn't kill warren she would have wasted way to much slayer energy lol

But seriously, it doesn't matter what he did or who he hurt he was still human regardless and buffy could never kill a human, that's not her job, her job is to kill demons and vampires, not stupid men who think they have a LICENCE to kill. He was more of a criminal then a villain so handing him to the police would have been the way to go, though i cant say i was disappointed when he was skinned alive by evil willow.

 

[Ripper666]

I think Warren wanted to make his "Trio" more populare in the demon-world. Look we are so strong we killed a Slayer. That would be a great fame-giver.

Warren is under the jurisdiction of human law.

On the one hand I agree on the other hand I disagree. I think Buffy was right to kill Warren because he crossed the human-line. He used magic and demons to kill others, that makes him become something like Witch, the human law are not valid for such people.

 

[ashleigh]

Personally, I think if humans start using magic etc to do 'bad' things then they become Buffy's problem.

 

[JCoatsworth]

She doesn't kill him for the same reason that Batman doesn't intentionally kill people. Buffy's no executioner. People like Warren should be brought to trial.

 

[AmelRIOT]

It doesn't give Buffy the right to kill humans, if you look at the past episodes like "Earshot" it was the dinner lady a human who was trying to murder people Buffy knocked her out and she got through in jail, that is what Buffy can do really just knock humans out and they get punished being put in jail, even though Buffy would LOVE to kill Warren she couldn't do it, I think if she found him it be the knock him out through in jail situation.

 

[white avenger]

I think that the whole "Slayers can't kill people" thing is Buffy's own interpretation, rather than any sort of policy of the Watchers' Council, nor even the original intent of the Shadow Men. If it were, I think that they would have added an inhibition into the spell, something similar to the way that vampires can't touch holy artifacts. It certainly didn't seem to stop her from personally killing more than a few of the Knights Of Byzantium, and even when Giles killed Ben, he said that he was doing so simply because Buffy was too much of a hero to do it herself, with his humanity not the real issue.

Even when Faith killed the Assistant Mayor, despite Buffy's obvious upset at Faith's actions, Giles didn't seem nearly as worried about the loss of a human life as he was in Faith trying to make him believe that Buffy was the one who actually did it.

Certainly the Watchers themselves had no inhibition against the taking of human life, as illustrated quite graphically by the wet team that they sent after Faith, a group of men far too well equipped, trained, and motivated to be just a group of random Watchers assigned to bring back the rogue Slayer. Also, just before their headquarters was detonated in Season 7, Travers was issuing orders for all "tactical" units to report to headquarters. The implication is that the Council has, not one, but several teams of men and women scattered about the world who do more than just watch. Though he doesn't actually say so before everything went "Boom," I got the distinct impression that if tactics demanded it, those teams would have no inhibition in killing human enemies just as quickly an non-human ones.

Buffy might not have believed in killing humans, as long as they weren't wearing chain mail and trying to kill her baby sister, but I have very little doubt that she was stating a personal sentiment rather than any sort of official rule.

 

[SinisterPledge]

Sadly it is very human to kill people. Mostly out of profit, but some individuals have an unquenchable thirst for taking lives... 🙁

 

[RogueDemonHunter]

Well, in fairness to Buffy, even though Warren is an awful person, theres so many other ramifications to taking an ensouled life. BUT, to a similar point, I would like to point out that in Seeing Red (or whichever episode Warren got those little orbs that gave his invulnerability and strength), Buffy positioned Warren under a over head of rocks, then made them fall on him, and when she assumed he was dead from that blow she turned to Andrew and Johnathan looking comletely normal. Then, two seconds later, of course Warren got back up, but still.

 

[Robb Stark]

I'm agreeing with most people here. I think that what Buffy said was right; just because she was gifted (or cursed) with extraordinary power doesn't give her the right to kill people (and no matter what they do or who they hurt, they are still people) when she believes the situation calls for it.

It's very similar to Batman in both the movies and the comic books. Sure, he could kill the bad guys he apprehends, but in a very real sense, does that make him much better than the people he kills? I don't think so, I really don't. I'm not saying it's black and white, because obviously it isn't, but for the most part I think Buffy made the right call. Yes, Warren did horrible things and yes, he's a killer, but there are (or at least, there were) ways to take him down without killing him. In my books, you're not much of a hero if you kill when there are other options available.

 

[Astral]

I don't believe in "An eye for an eye" but he went around poking way too many eyes. He had it coming to him. I am glad Dark Willow got to him.

 

[white avenger]

think that what Buffy said was right; just because she was gifted (or cursed) with extraordinary power doesn't give her the right to kill people (and no matter what they do or who they hurt, they are still people) when she believes the situation calls for it.

There has to come a point, however, when the taking a human life is the only viable solution to an existing problem. The final question, to me at least, is just what the Slayer's ultimate mission is. Was the First Slayer, and all of her successors given her power to protect those too weak to help themselves, or was she created to simply be predator whose natural prey is vampires and demons? I in no way advocate the kind of piecemeal slaughter that Blade engages in, making no effort to determine vampires from their human familiars, but there most definitely are circumstances where a Slayer's duty to protect humans combines with her mission to rid the world of demons, vampires, and supernatural enemies simply has to require the taking of human life, in exactly the same way in which a police officer, under very specific and limited circumstances, is justified in the taking of another's life in the accomplishment of his or her mission.

What the question boils down to for me is, "Is the Slayer's mission simply to kill vampires and demons, or was the Slayer line created to protect the helpless from supernatural enemies?"

If the former, then the Slayer might be required to fight blindfolded and with one foot in a bucket of sand, because there ARE evil humans, humans who have chosen to ally themselves with dark forces, humans who have been empowered in such a way that normal humans could in no way deal with them. Ignoring that fact would make their mission impossible.

If the Slayer was, as I truly believe, created primarily to protect mankind from the dark forces, things that they by themselves are incapable of standing against, then that would have to include the ability, as well as the sacred duty, to take human life under some circumstances.

 

[Robb Stark]

There has to come a point, however, when the taking a human life is the only viable solution to an existing problem. The final question, to me at least, is just what the Slayer's ultimate mission is. Was the First Slayer, and all of her successors given her power to protect those too weak to help themselves, or was she created to simply be predator whose natural prey is vampires and demons? I in no way advocate the kind of piecemeal slaughter that Blade engages in, making no effort to determine vampires from their human familiars, but there most definitely are circumstances where a Slayer's duty to protect humans combines with her mission to rid the world of demons, vampires, and supernatural enemies simply has to require the taking of human life, in exactly the same way in which a police officer, under very specific and limited circumstances, is justified in the taking of another's life in the accomplishment of his or her mission.

What the question boils down to for me is, "Is the Slayer's mission simply to kill vampires and demons, or was the Slayer line created to protect the helpless from supernatural enemies?"

If the former, then the Slayer might be required to fight blindfolded and with one foot in a bucket of sand, because there ARE evil humans, humans who have chosen to ally themselves with dark forces, humans who have been empowered in such a way that normal humans could in no way deal with them. Ignoring that fact would make their mission impossible.

If the Slayer was, as I truly believe, created primarily to protect mankind from the dark forces, things that they by themselves are incapable of standing against, then that would have to include the ability, as well as the sacred duty, to take human life under some circumstances.

Like I said, grey. The decision, in the heat of the moment, to take a human life for a police officer or a soldier is clearly (and I would hope) never easy, and never done rashly (or at least, that's ideal). I'm not saying that in the "real world" the taking of a human life when circumstances get dire is always avoidable. Clearly, that's not the case. Batman is so amazing because he's freaking Batman. Sure, he's the "no power" superhero, but when you think about it, he's so smart and so good at what he does that he's far, far beyond regular humans. Police officers are, at the end of the day, just people like us.

Back to Buffy, take the Knights of Byzantium instance, where she clearly has a hand in the death of a few of them. Those occurred in the heat of the moment, when the weight of the world was bearing down on her and she had to protect the lives of her sister and her friends. Warren is different. Yes, he's a bad guy, no doubt, but Buffy (and Willow) had outs with him. They didn't have to kill him. I really think Buffy was right. There was no immediate need to go out and kill Warren for what he'd done. It would have been just as easy for Buffy to knock him out, "arrest" him and turn him over to the police. That's (in most nations anyways) how regular police operate. Killing is only justified when there's no other alternative, and with Warren, there clearly was.

 

[EVIL UU]

I'll ask a different question. Why wouldn't Buffy kill humans?

She's not a human being, why does she follow human rules? Yeah OK, all of the obvious boring reasons but really, it's counterproductive, in her line of work so to speak human morality is a weakness. Every time Buffy refuses to kill a human someone else has to die, often a member of her tribe. She really needs those people, it's a matter of her own life and death.

So Summers, some stupid sod stands in your way? Kill the bastard, no mercy no regrets. Keep the body count somewhat reasonable though, you don't want to antagonize you friends. You need those poor idiots, like air.

Well, unless you don't, go nuts then 🙂

 

[Jod]

Well i think for one Buffy didnt even get a chance to try and kill warren as he shot her and tara same time..willow was already on her way to do the job herself. Plus if Buffy did kill humans she would end up in that prison (just like when the police were after her with that Ted and that guy faith staked by accident) which would be no help at all to anyone if she ended up there. Still..when its needed she does give 'evil humans' a wee beating or a punch 🙂

 

[white avenger]

This thread just reminded me of something. When Giles was stalling Buffy in "Lies My Parents Told Me," he brought up how adamant she had been about not killing Dawn in order to keep Glory from getting her. She said that, now (in Season 7) she WOULD have killed Dawn, or at least let her be killed, if it was the only way to save the world. Then, later in that same episode, she warned Wood that, if he ever bothered Spike again, Spike would kill him, "And what's more, I'll let him."

Granted, standing back and letting Spike kill Wood isn't the same thing as killing him herself, but it could still be seen as an admission of the fact that a single life can't be allowed to jeopardize her mission. She's gone from "not having a license to kill," to "I'll let someone die if I believe that they're jeopardizing my mission." She might not be actually doing the deed herself, but allowing it to happen at all is an indication that her belief isn't as solidly set in stone now as it was before.