Page 54 - Star Wars Insider #187

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the mission. The trip served as a pivotal
moment in Anakin Skywalker’s life, but
not for the better.
Playing protector to the senator
solidified Anakin’s love for Padmé, but
it also forced him to Tatooine where he
witnessed his mother’s death. The pain
and anger that Anakin suffered caused
him to drift toward the darkness, as he
mercilessly killed the Tusken Raiders
who kidnapped his mother. Losing his
only parent made Anakin cling more
tightly to Padmé, ultimately prompting
his quest for new powers and resulting
in a stronger bond with Palpatine.
For a group that draws upon a
living Force that connects all things,
the Jedi demonstrated a startling
failure to connect with the personal
needs of complex beings, particularly
in Anakin’s case. After Yoda sensed
Anakin’s distress over the slaughter of
the Sand People, the Jedi Master neither
contacted Anakin nor sent
any Jedi to check on the
tortured Padawan. When Anakin instantly
Anakin conveyed Obi-Wan recognized
Kenobi’s message to the
Jedi Council about the Mace Windu’s
Separatist presence on hypocrisy and
Geonosis, Yoda didn’t
mention what he’d sensed declared that
or offer any advice to the executing
young man—not even a
reassuring, “How feeling prisoners
are you?” clashed with
Years later, as Anakin Jedi doctrine.
tried to understand his
premonitions about Mace ignored
Padmé’s death, the young Anakin’s plea.
Jedi approached Yoda for
guidance. The Jedi Master’s
lackluster response, telling Anakin to
not mourn or miss those we lose, did
little to lessen his pain and drove him
further into Palpatine’s clutches.
As if those trespasses were not bad
enough, the Jedi would soon make an
even bigger error of judgment. The
Grand Army of the Republic, formed
by the Chancellor, consisted of the
clones that Obi-Wan discovered on
Geonosis. The order for a clone army
had allegedly come from the long-dead
Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas, miraculously
materializing more than 200,000 troops
just as the Separatists prepared for war.
That the Jedi don’t really question
this, or investigate further, is a huge
54 / STAR WARS INSIDER
DID WE ORDER A CLONE ARMY?
oversight. Indeed, the Jedi move swiftly
to command the soldiers and utilize
them in battle rather than treat them Hypocrisy
with suspicion. Palpatine deserves credit
for his ingenuity: the Jedi willingly
surrounded themselves with genetically
modified beings of questionable origin.
His devious enterprise worked to
perfection, as Order 66–the implanted
program that forced the clone troopers
to kill all the Jedi–did its job.
The sad irony surrounding the
Jedi’s lack of empathy also extended
to their clone troopers. No debate
occurred over the morality of creating
life as involuntary cannon fodder, or
modifying the clones’ genetic structure
to make them more obedient. Instead,
Yoda immediately threw the soldiers
into a bloody battle on Geonosis. Okay,
the old Master did deploy the forces
with the hope of saving lives, capturing
Count Dooku, and trying to prevent the
very war that eventually
broke out, but at what cost?
The Council routinely
discussed a future clouded
by the dark side. Perhaps
the Jedi’s expedient choice
to concede clone lives
on the battlefi eld even
furthered Darth Sidious’
power and infl uence?
Luke described the
situation with scathing
accuracy when he opined
to Rey: “At the height of
their powers, [the Jedi]
allowed Darth Sidious to
rise, create the Empire, and
wipe them out.”
03
Accusation: At times, the Jedi
behaved contrary to the beliefs they
claimed to represent.
-
Evidence: Luke Skywalker’s
second accusation struck at a
key issue: the noble and selfl ess
Jedi occasionally acted without
demonstrating an understanding
of those positive traits. Despite the
esteem with which they viewed their
belief system, Yoda and Mace Windu
sanctioned Anakin’s placement on the
Council as a way to spy on Chancellor
Palpatine. Treating a sacred seat in such
a way demonstrated no appreciation
or respect for their own institution.
Although the Jedi saw this measure as
necessary to protect their democracy,
they sent Obi-Wan to deliver the
assignment to Anakin in secret so that
no record would exist of the mission.
Such shadowy pursuits are not in
keeping with a group that touts they
work on behalf of the light.
A willingness to overlook their own
rules also bled over into Mace Windu’s
failed apprehension of Palpatine. Mace
intended to arrest the Sith Lord, but the
power and influence displayed by Darth
Sidious soon convinced the Jedi Master
to abandon his ethics and argue for
an immediate death sentence. Anakin
instantly recognized Mace’s hypocrisy
and declared that executing prisoners
clashed with Jedi doctrine. Mace ignored
Anakin’s plea, preparing to strike down