"Sayid's Paradox"

Hey Sayidsgirl over at TLC, this pic's for you. :-) Seriously, this is such a good screencap shot, it would make a great painting (I should do that this hiatus). Poor Sayid has been through so much, and worked so hard on the island to do the right things in his life going forward, as well as simultaneously being the Losties' personal post-crash MacGyver. Yet after all he's done to attempt to chase down some redemption for himself from his past, he appears to be one of the Losties whose destiny seems doomed to follow purposes much less noble than he would like to choose for himself. Sayid knows some dangerous skills that he'd like to forget, but those abilities repeatedly come in handy for their survival since the crash on this crazy island. Events continually transpire that threaten the castaways' survival, and Sayid's experience is often the only option available to save them at that moment.

For instance, consider his decision to shoot Little Bennie at the edge of Dharmville. I wonder if TPTB want Sayid to be as confused as I am, about his decision to kill a mere boy in the attempt to stop an evil man? In the movie Kung Fu Panda, Master Oogway tells Master Shifu that, "One often meets his destiny on the road he takes to avoid it." Could Sayid's solution here fall under the causal loop paradox (Wiki:A time traveler attempting to alter the past in this model, intentionally or not, would only be fulfilling their role in creating history as we know it, not changing it"), or is he merely trying so hard to change the future, that he's actually bringing it to pass? Often in life we can cause something that we fear to happen, because our extreme behavior places us in that path after all. We are left to wonder if this will be the outcome of Sayid's questionable attempt to eliminate Bennie, in order to remove the trouble that the adult Ben has caused. Did Ben the man become evil because of his father, or because of losing his innocence via the island's magical healing due to Sayid's interference? Perhaps it would have happened either way, i.e., that was Ben's destiny and whatever happened between childhood and manhood, he would still end up being the little dictator of whatever world he lived in.

So TPTB leave us to wonder, will Sayid's intention really rid the world of a manipulating, conniving, sociopathic Benjamin Linus? Or does his attempt to eliminate Bennie actually cause the rising of evil adult Ben? These problems seem to plague Sayid across the board. He wants to be a good man, but circumstances and fate seem to keep thrusting him into a role that he doesn't desire to play in life. But as always Sayid comes to the rescue for the cause, even after taking Ben's future into his own hands, because he never gives up on helping the people that he believes to be on the side of good and sincerity. Are his motives still benevolent even if his methods are not? Hopefully Sayid will come to terms with that in Season 6, if he doesn't die from his gunshot wounds. TPTB often leave Sayid in precarious places emotionally and physically, but now that he's facing death for real he's going to need some peace of mind and personal redemption even more than before. I hope that TPTB let him find it either way.