S06.E07: Opiates and Antibiotics

[2727]

Walt wonders if a presumed dead member of the Irish Mob is alive. Mathias questions Cady about Catori. A mobile clinic raises Henry's suspicions.

[2727]

Oh, fer crissake, Cady. She's as much of an idiot as her father.

Leaving aside abetting a kidnapper, why didn't she have the teacher speak before the council in the first place? They'd be a little more likely to listen to one of their own.

Cady used to have a busy legal clinic with an assistant and now the place is completely empty? I guess every person on the reservation got their problems solved. Time to fire her sorry ass, Nighthorse!

[Netfoot]

Stealing the kid -- no matter how noble the motive -- was a very stupid thing to do.  If that kid had died in the teacher's care, the parents would have had every reason to lay the blame for the death on the kidnapper.  If the kid had made it to a hospital and then died, the parents could still say it was because he had been kidnapped and removed from his parents care. Even if he had been returned to his home and then died, the teacher could have been blamed for interrupting his treatment.  

Cady had nothing to do with the kidnapping, nor any prior knowledge of it.  It was stupid to involve herself in any way, other than to offer proper legal advice to the teacher.  

Now, she gets to pay the price for kidnapping the kid, which she really didn't do.  Which is a bit unfair.  But she shouldn't have tried to help the teacher achieve her goal, which might have been laudable, but was not legal.  

Fortunately or unfortunately, parents have the right to choose what course of treatment they want for their kids.  There is a legal remedy by which this can be overruled, but Cady tried, and failed to achieve this.  That being the case, her only remaining option was stand back, and (yes, horrible though it may be) let the kid die.   @2727 is totally correct.  The smart thing to do would have been to have the teacher herself put the case before the council.  

Still feel a bit sorry for Cady.  She didn't commit the crime, and when she found out about it, she tried to resolve it to everyone's benefit.  Now, she's up Shit Creek and no paddle!

[Paloma]

2 hours ago, Netfoot said:

Fortunately or unfortunately, parents have the right to choose what course of treatment they want for their kids.  There is a legal remedy by which this can be overruled, but Cady tried, and failed to achieve this.  That being the case, her only remaining option was stand back, and (yes, horrible though it may be) let the kid die.

It was an interesting dilemma: At what point does the parent's right to choose the course of treatment cross over into neglect that would warrant removing the child from their custody? There have been cases where parents have been taken to court for refusing to have their child treated, and the court has ruled against the parents when life-saving care. (Here is a short article about this issue from the AMA Journal of Ethics: http://journalofethics.ama-assn.org/2006/10/hlaw1-0610.html) The  history of mistreatment of Native American children by white people certainly complicates the issue, and it is understandable why the parents and community were suspicious of Western medicine and especially of a white lawyer getting involved, but at the end of the day the child's life was in danger and I feel that it was irresponsible of the parents and the community to prevent him from getting standard medical treatment that would almost certainly save his life or at least save him from the serious complications that can result from scarlet fever being untreated.

[Netfoot]

3 minutes ago, Paloma said:

I feel that it was irresponsible of the parents and the community to prevent him from getting standard medical treatment that would almost certainly save his life or at least save him from the serious complications that can result from scarlet fever being untreated.

I am in agreement.  But Cady tried to seek a court ruling in favour of hospital treatment, and failed.  Unless there is some other approach I'm unfamiliar with that could have been tried, I guess it was entirely up to the parents.

[babs1226]

19 hours ago, 2727 said:

Cady used to have a busy legal clinic with an assistant and now the place is completely empty? I guess every person on the reservation got their problems solved. Time to fire her sorry ass, Nighthorse!

The people all left her because of her involvement in the kidnapping.

[Pallida]

While I'm exceedingly frustrated that Cady is so thoroughly oblivious to the Native experience, I am glad that this show approached the topic. Still today, Native children are removed from households because "someone else knows better." It's perfectly reasonable for the parents to be reacting to both personal and community trauma regarding children being taken out of homes. Coming in and saying "this is how you do it - you don't know what you're doing" is NOT going to be effective. It's basic cultural competency, and Cady really needs to learn about the historical (including contemporary history) actions that are part of the experience on the Rez.

I realize the sense of urgency and immediacy likely led to poor decisionmaking. There are effective ways of respecting traditional healing practices while incorporating Western biomedicine, but it requires respect.

[madam magpie]

48 minutes ago, Pallida said:

While I'm exceedingly frustrated that Cady is so thoroughly oblivious to the Native experience, I am glad that this show approached the topic. Still today, Native children are removed from households because "someone else knows better." It's perfectly reasonable for the parents to be reacting to both personal and community trauma regarding children being taken out of homes. Coming in and saying "this is how you do it - you don't know what you're doing" is NOT going to be effective. It's basic cultural competency, and Cady really needs to learn about the historical (including contemporary history) actions that are part of the experience on the Rez.

I realize the sense of urgency and immediacy likely led to poor decisionmaking. There are effective ways of respecting traditional healing practices while incorporating Western biomedicine, but it requires respect.

How old do we think Cady is supposed to be? Maybe 30? I actually really liked this dilemma because she was 100% right, but she didn’t have the best strategy. Talking to the tribal council was a good start, but Cady should have made the teacher do most of the talking and persuading. I found the teacher more useless than Cady, honestly, because she should know better what was needed to persuade. She grew up in the culture and had much more insight into how to make this happen. Instead, she—who should know the history of kids being taken from their parents—wanted to take a kid from his parents with the help of a white woman! Cady was young and stupid, but still! I wish Henry had given more guidance too. He started off strong, but then dropped it.

I don’t think the storytelling this season was particularly good. They hit on a lot of great topics, but covered them superficially. There are some great legal, historical, and diplomatic lessons to be learned here, but the writers just dropped them, mostly.

I did like how reluctant Cady was to help the teacher commit a crime and how she kept stumbling on both sides of the ethical line. I liked how it introduced her to Zach. And I love that Cady is such a softie. I really do.  She’s so compassionate, gentle, and loving. There’s not much I like more in my fiction than a young bleeding heart lawyer. But I wish the show had taken the time to let her learn the lessons. I think the writers tried to cram in way too much story this season.

Edited November 21, 2017 by madam magpie

[Pallida]

Excellent points in the weak character writing @madam magpie. I think the teacher was reacting with panic and urgency, but it seems like those deeply held cultural traumas would still come to mind to her.

[madam magpie]

3 minutes ago, Pallida said:

Excellent points in the weak character writing @madam magpie. I think the teacher was reacting with panic and urgency, but it seems like those deeply held cultural traumas would still come to mind to her.

True...she was. And she was much more involved than Cady and had a relationship with the kid. It was so sad when he called out, “see you in school” as she was arrested. 

[Pallida]

2 hours ago, madam magpie said:

True...she was. And she was much more involved than Cady and had a relationship with the kid. It was so sad when he called out, “see you in school” as she was arrested. 

I think that's one of the things I truly love about this show: perfect example of "show, don't tell." As a viewer, that one line really drives home all of the ramifications for her actions - including the fact that the kiddo didn't even fully grasp what was happening, but also the loss of a good schoolteacher.

[Clanstarling]

Cady is a chip off the old block. She gets on my last nerve when she's like this. She acted more like an accomplice than the teacher's lawyer, in my opinion. And a shitty accomplice at that - getting out of the car and walking toward the crowd in front of the hospital? Way to draw attention to yourself and your client. Also, way to look like you're an active participant in the kidnapping.

Were there no Native American doctors or PAs at the rez clinic? I don't recall. Seems like there would be - and that one of them could have talked to the parents about the chances of reactions to penicillin and eased their minds. 

I'm afraid I don't have a lot of sympathy with her naivete - and I'm a bleeding heart liberal. She's grown up in the area, had Henry around all her life, worked on the rez, and been adopted into the tribe, and yet she has made seemingly no effort to really understand and absorb the history and culture that surrounds her. She's still as boneheaded and flat footed as ever. I'm very tired of her big eyed deer in the headlights look. I really liked it when Zach told her he wasn't going to do anything against the law.

I do like that Walt's thick hide of hatred for Nighthorse is getting penetrated, however slowly, by reason. I also liked the way Henry laid it out in a logical, non-judgmental way. Didn't care for Vic's reinforcing Walt's biases, but then again, I suppose she has her reasons.

I'd totally forgotten about Eddie Harp. I guess it was worth it to have Ferg kill him, even if it means they don't get to Malachi right away. But I hate mob and drug storylines.

I would have liked to see Ruby doing surveillance. There's not enough Ruby in the show for my tastes.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

How is it that Zach was able to track down the silver Suburban before anyone in the sheriff's department could do it? They had the license plate number! That should have been the first number they ran!

I'm glad that Zach told Cady he wouldn't do anything illegal.

Cady, on the other hand, was an idiot to begin with. First she went to the tribal council and basically said, "I know what is better for this child than his parents do." Don't get me wrong - I'm all for modern medicine. She just went about this in the worst way possible. She definitely should have had Catori address them.

But then after her "I can't help you commit a crime" speech, she got in the car with a woman who had just kidnapped a kid. And their plan was for Cady, a white woman, to take Tate, an obviously not white little boy, into the hospital and get him treatment? I'm sure that wouldn't have raised any suspicions if they'd managed to get that far in their boneheaded plan!

I know that Walt wanted to get answers from Eddie Harp, but chances are that he wouldn't have told them anything so I kind of wanted to high five Ferg for shooting him.

Edited November 26, 2017 by ElectricBoogaloo

[ratSenoL]

I've always enjoyed the show's willingness to tell stories that aren't often told on TV today, especially about modern Native American life, but I don't think it did any favors to this sick-child-whose-parents-won't-treat-him storyline.  I can't help but feel if the boy's (Tate?) teacher had done all the testifying before the tribal council, the outcome might have been different.  I get that Cady is supposed to be a "chip off the old block," but her role in this story was out of character for the Cady we've come to know. (I know, as Mr. ratSenoL always says, "It's in the script ....")

And, what is the deal with Zach? He's got nothing better to do all day long than to watch a drug dealer's home and record its comings and goings  down to the minute?  No one has thought to ask him, "What are you doing here?"  I'm wondering if he's either (1) DEA (or some other type of Fed) OR (2) NeoHector? 

[SimoneS]

Good grief, Cady. I can't believe she went along with Catori. At least, Zach has better judgement. Also, I wouldn't let any child be treated by some unknown doctor on a mysterious mobile medical clinic. What was Cady thinking there?

Awww, Walt doesn't want Vic to leave his place. I don't know why he didn't just ask her to stay. 

Oh, Jacob, Malachi got you good. 

Way to go, Ferg. Eddie Harp was freaking annoying. Good riddance.

[Magic]

At least there was almost no Walt/Vic romance to be distracted by.

[Kohola3]

On 1/8/2018 at 1:15 AM, Magic said:

At least there was almost no Walt/Vic romance to be distracted by.

Lawd, yes, what a relief.  That mopey pining stuff is getting on my last nerve.  Although with the writers raining down anvils on our heads, unless a miracle occurs, we are going in a direction that will make me gag.

On 11/25/2017 at 7:37 PM, Clanstarling said:

I do like that Walt's thick hide of hatred for Nighthorse is getting penetrated, however slowly, by reason. I also liked the way Henry laid it out in a logical, non-judgmental way.

Finally Walt seems to be using his brain (which in so many instances has been remarkably nimble except when Jacob is involved) to actually look at both sides of the story and use critical thinking about the evidence.  And Vic needs to keep her damned mouth shut.  Walt needs to listen to Henry;  with her hero-worship, Vic just validates anything Walt says or does.

And while Jacob is not altogether altruistic, I do feel for him being locked up at the TCJ.  He looked scared shitless and I would be too.  How can they even trust the guards there?  Malachi has a really long reach.

Way to go Ferg!   It's not like Harp was going to tell them anything anyway.

Since the Federal government is involved in repatriating stolen artifacts, I think somebody in the government (or several people) are involved in this.  My first suspect would be that FBI guy that visited Henry late at night in the bar.  Fishy, fishy, fishy.