I need a reasonable explanation for this. Bear with me as I build the argument leading to the questions:

FACTS (in linear time):

Ben finds out he has a tumor
He has an excellent surgeon at hand, Ethan
He has a huge boat, a small boat and a sub
He has communications with the outside world
A plane falls from the sky
He sends his number one surgeon to infiltrate the group of survivors
The Tailies are kidnapped
Ethan kidnaps Claire
Ethan faces the Losties alone to get Claire back
Ethan dies
Tom asks Jack never to cross the line
Ben is captured by Danielle, imprisioned in the hatch and tortured
Ben escapes
The Others capture J/K/S
The hatch implodes, the sky turns purple
The Others comms go downQUESTIONS:

If Ethan was such a great surgeon, why didn't he operate Ben right away? Was the tumor not that bad then? Did the island somehow accelerate its development without anyone noticing? Was being so close to the magnet in the hatch responsible for the tumor getting worse?
If Ben has access to the outside world, why would he not immediately request crash carts, and any other materials he needs for surgery? If they can get fuel for two boats and a sub, why not medical supplies?
Why would Ben send his top surgen into a potentially dangerous situation as spying on the Losties and kidnapping Claire? If Tom was good enough to kidnap Walt and get Desmond's boat (both successful missions) why not send Tom instead of Ethan? After the violent reaction of the Losties to Claire's kidnapping, why allow Ethan, the top surgeon, to go back for her when you have a tumor on your spine?
When Ethan died, and while having access to the outside (before the Swan's implosion), why not request another surgeon right away? What exactly is preventing Ben from getting everything he needs? Is The Others society akin to the one in that movie "The Village"?
Why didn't Tom take J/K/S in THP? Did they not know yet that Jack was a surgeon? When exactly did they find out? If Ethan told them, Tom should have taken Jack right then and there, if Ethan didn't tell them, they must've found out through their connections with the outside, so, again, why have all the crappy equipment? If we assume that at some point the island became inaccessible from the outside world, and that's why Ben can't get anyone else in, how did this blockage happen? What happened between Juliet's arrival and present time that caused the island's inaccessibility?
If we are to believe Ben that escape is possible (when navigating in the right direction that is) and if he wants to keep this society and whatever it is they are doing a secret, and if they are such good actors pretending to be savages and all, why not show up with the big boat, pretend they are just passing by and spot the wreckage (or cook up some emergency signal story, black box transmission, etc.) and "rescue" the Losties? Take them over to the shipping lane, wait for a big vessel and tell them they had some other direction, dump them off on the bigger vessel and go back to their beloved island? Or better yet, get them all in the big boat with the pretense of rescue, and choose the "good" ones then? They have guns, they could have easily taken them all in one big swoop or taken a few and come back to "rescue" the rest. Why was it necessary to infiltrate them?These are just a few questions I hope will someday be answered, because as it stands now, some of these actions make absolutely no logical sense.

These are just a few questions I hope will someday be answered, because as it stands now, some of these actions make absolutely no logical sense.
Totally and utterly agree with you, CL! I can only hope eventually they will actually address all this stuff. They don't have to answer every little thing, but right now, there is so much that is just out of hand and nothing is really connecting, especially about Ben and The Others. It's starting to get under a lot of our skins and I hope TPTB realize that.

Ben found out about his tumor only two days prior to the supposed ''plane crash''.Ethan didnt have the time to operate on him.the only weird is why he sent him to be an inside man..But on the other hand,with ethan being a great doc and all(accordin to bens words)maybe he was the most apt for the job...
we still dont know if any of this is true

WOW, I am very impressed with your well thought out questions. I'd like them to be answered too. As for sending Ethan into the jungle, maybe he was lying when he said he was their top surgeon just to make Jack feel bad. We all know how easy it is to do that.

QUESTIONS:

If Ethan was such a great surgeon, why didn't he operate Ben right away? Was the tumor not that bad then? Did the island somehow accelerate its development without anyone noticing? Was being so close to the magnet in the hatch responsible for the tumor getting worse?
If Ben has access to the outside world, why would he not immediately request crash carts, and any other materials he needs for surgery? If they can get fuel for two boats and a sub, why not medical supplies?
Why would Ben send his top surgen into a potentially dangerous situation as spying on the Losties and kidnapping Claire? If Tom was good enough to kidnap Walt and get Desmond's boat (both successful missions) why not send Tom instead of Ethan? After the violent reaction of the Losties to Claire's kidnapping, why allow Ethan, the top surgeon, to go back for her when you have a tumor on your spine?
When Ethan died, and while having access to the outside (before the Swan's implosion), why not request another surgeon right away? What exactly is preventing Ben from getting everything he needs? Is The Others society akin to the one in that movie "The Village"?
Why didn't Tom take J/K/S in THP? Did they not know yet that Jack was a surgeon? When exactly did they find out? If Ethan told them, Tom should have taken Jack right then and there, if Ethan didn't tell them, they must've found out through their connections with the outside, so, again, why have all the crappy equipment? If we assume that at some point the island became inaccessible from the outside world, and that's why Ben can't get anyone else in, how did this blockage happen? What happened between Juliet's arrival and present time that caused the island's inaccessibility?
If we are to believe Ben that escape is possible (when navigating in the right direction that is) and if he wants to keep this society and whatever it is they are doing a secret, and if they are such good actors pretending to be savages and all, why not show up with the big boat, pretend they are just passing by and spot the wreckage (or cook up some emergency signal story, black box transmission, etc.) and "rescue" the Losties? Take them over to the shipping lane, wait for a big vessel and tell them they had some other direction, dump them off on the bigger vessel and go back to their beloved island? Or better yet, get them all in the big boat with the pretense of rescue, and choose the "good" ones then? They have guns, they could have easily taken them all in one big swoop or taken a few and come back to "rescue" the rest. Why was it necessary to infiltrate them?These are just a few questions I hope will someday be answered, because as it stands now, some of these actions make absolutely no logical sense.

All great questions and thoughts - here are my guesses for what it's worth:

1. Ethan may have been a great surgeon but that doesn't mean he was qualified to remove a spinal tumor. I believe that type of surgery is generally performed by a neurosurgeon.

2. Access to the outside world is tricky. My theory is that they have windows of opportunity to make contact with the outside world. However, that doesn't mean they can get whatever they want when they want it. Also, something like gas is probably brought in once every few years and stored.

3. Ben sent Ethan because he felt Ethan would do the best job. Ethan's job at the time was simply to observe what was happening. Kidnapping Claire was cooked up after Ethan had reported back to Ben. As for sending him back to get Claire I chalk that up to the Others code of conduct. Ethan screwed up by letting Claire go so it was his responsibility to correct the problem.

4. See answer to Q2 ... don't think they can simply order up new equipment/personel.

5. This is a great question to which I don't have a good answer. The only thought that I have on this (and actually it relates to some of your other questions) is that Ben isn't in charge. While Ben cares about saving his own skin, Jacob (or whoever is running the show) has a different set of priorities. Capturing Jack to save Ben was not one of them.

6. I'm not sure that escape is possible. Could be a one-way ticket to crap-hole island. Kind of like Hotel California (but I digress). We know that Desmond tried to leave and he just came right on back. Michael and Walt have disappeared. Juliette doesn't appear to be all that excited about the prospect of getting out of there. One more point - I'm not sure that the initial plan was to capture anyone. Remember, Ben asked Ethan and Goodwin to watch what was happening, create lists, and then report back to them.

Anyway, just my thoughts. Again, you raise some very important and serious questions to which I'm not sure we will ever get answers to.

One more point - I'm not sure that the initial plan was to capture anyone. Remember, Ben asked Ethan and Goodwin to watch what was happening, create lists, and then report back to them.

I have to disagree here. After Goodwin turned in his list the Tailies kidnappings started. We've been told the purpose of the list was to identify (and take) the "good ones".

Ethan certainly knew Jack was a doctor, but not necessarily a neurosurgeon. And we don't know the criteria for being on the good list, but it's clear Jack wasn't on it.

In my mind, until the Losties got in the hatch, Ben had every intention of going to the mainland to get an operation, but kept putting it off because the Losties demanded his full attention. He didn't know how serious his tumor was.

Tom told Jack not to cross the line on Day 52.
Ben shows up as Danielle's prisoner on Day 58, which is, I presume, a ploy to get Jack.
On Day 62, Klugh tells Michael to bring back Jack (and Ben) in exchange for Walt.

That means that something happened between days 52 and 58 that convinced Ben he needed Jack to do the surgery. In my opinion, Ben (or someone else among the Others) has a vision of the sky turning purple. Ben realizes this means he will not have an opportunity to get surgery, so he tries to go to the Losties to manipulate Jack into doing the surgery.

En route Ben either gets caught (accidentally or purposely) by Danielle, and somehow manages to convince her into bringing him to the Losties.

While there, Ben begins to try to arouse sympathy from Jack and play people against one another so he can escape and bring Jack. His plans are fruitless, and his gamble seems like it won't pay off (when Ana Lucia almost kills him), but then Michael (maniipulated by Ben's crew) intervenes.

One other item to add to the chronology: Ben tells Locke that Ben never pushed the button while Locke was trapped under the blast door, creating doubt in Locke about the need to continue doing so, leading to the button not being pushed, Desmond turning the failsafe key, and the sky turning purple.

I have always wondered why Ben lied to Locke about that. When the sky turned purple in the Season 2 finale, Ben seemed to be the only one who was not surprised. I think he must have had some idea of what could happen if the button wasn't pushed, yet he was willing to risk his life (and everyone else's for that matter) in order to lie to Locke, let alone screwing up his chances of getting another surgeon from whoever is really running the show.

Your No.1 may not be No.1 we don't know at what point Ben learned he had a serious problem and needed a surgeon to handle it. We also only know that he described Ethan as a surgeon, that may not equal great surgeon or specialised surgeon capable of spinal surgey. If Ben had know he needed somone with Jack's specilised set of skills earlier they would not have turned Jack loose the first time they had him as a captive.

No.3 - Huge boat? I know about the small boat & the sub but huge boat?

I suspect contact with the outside is intermittant and or limited. That would explain a lot of their problems.

QUESTIONS:

If Ethan was such a great surgeon, why didn't he operate Ben right away? Was the tumor not that bad then? Did the island somehow accelerate its development without anyone noticing? Was being so close to the magnet in the hatch responsible for the tumor getting worse?
If Ben has access to the outside world, why would he not immediately request crash carts, and any other materials he needs for surgery? If they can get fuel for two boats and a sub, why not medical supplies?
Why would Ben send his top surgen into a potentially dangerous situation as spying on the Losties and kidnapping Claire? If Tom was good enough to kidnap Walt and get Desmond's boat (both successful missions) why not send Tom instead of Ethan? After the violent reaction of the Losties to Claire's kidnapping, why allow Ethan, the top surgeon, to go back for her when you have a tumor on your spine?
When Ethan died, and while having access to the outside (before the Swan's implosion), why not request another surgeon right away? What exactly is preventing Ben from getting everything he needs? Is The Others society akin to the one in that movie "The Village"?
Why didn't Tom take J/K/S in THP? Did they not know yet that Jack was a surgeon? When exactly did they find out? If Ethan told them, Tom should have taken Jack right then and there, if Ethan didn't tell them, they must've found out through their connections with the outside, so, again, why have all the crappy equipment? If we assume that at some point the island became inaccessible from the outside world, and that's why Ben can't get anyone else in, how did this blockage happen? What happened between Juliet's arrival and present time that caused the island's inaccessibility?
If we are to believe Ben that escape is possible (when navigating in the right direction that is) and if he wants to keep this society and whatever it is they are doing a secret, and if they are such good actors pretending to be savages and all, why not show up with the big boat, pretend they are just passing by and spot the wreckage (or cook up some emergency signal story, black box transmission, etc.) and "rescue" the Losties? Take them over to the shipping lane, wait for a big vessel and tell them they had some other direction, dump them off on the bigger vessel and go back to their beloved island? Or better yet, get them all in the big boat with the pretense of rescue, and choose the "good" ones then? They have guns, they could have easily taken them all in one big swoop or taken a few and come back to "rescue" the rest. Why was it necessary to infiltrate them?These are just a few questions I hope will someday be answered, because as it stands now, some of these actions make absolutely no logical sense.


And now here's your answers from the wrtiers/producers:

1. Oops, we hadnt taught of that

2. Oops, we hadnt taught of that

3. Oops, we hadnt taught of that

4. Oops, we hadnt taught of that

5. Oops, we hadnt taught of that

6. Oops, we hadnt taught of that

Any other questions?

Your No.1 may not be No.1 we don't know at what point Ben learned he had a serious problem and needed a surgeon to handle it. We also only know that he described Ethan as a surgeon, that may not equal great surgeon or specialised surgeon capable of spinal surgey. If Ben had know he needed somone with Jack's specilised set of skills earlier they would not have turned Jack loose the first time they had him as a captive.

No.3 - Huge boat? I know about the small boat & the sub but huge boat?

I suspect contact with the outside is intermittant and or limited. That would explain a lot of their problems.

As to No. 1, yes, that's why I also asked when did they get the complete file on Jack?

As to No. 3, the small boat is the one they gave Michael, the huge boat is the one we see at the end of SIASL, which is presumably carrying Jack, Juliet, Ben, Tom and the bunch of Others gathered by the beach when Ben was being rowed towards the boat in the horizon. Perhaps it's not huge, but it's definitely bigger than the boat they gave Michael.

And now here's your answers from the wrtiers/producers:

1. Oops, we hadnt taught of that

2. Oops, we hadnt taught of that

3. Oops, we hadnt taught of that

4. Oops, we hadnt taught of that

5. Oops, we hadnt taught of that

6. Oops, we hadnt taught of that

Any other questions?

:rotflmao2:

for question 5, I think that Ben realized that Jack was a surgeon when Ben was captured and Jack had to do some doctor type stuff. also, Ethan probably reported back to Ben that Jack was a doctor. another possible answer is that they know an awful lot about all of the lostees, so perhaps they already knew he was a doctor.

for question 5, I think that Ben realized that Jack was a surgeon when Ben was captured and Jack had to do some doctor type stuff. also, Ethan probably reported back to Ben that Jack was a doctor. another possible answer is that they know an awful lot about all of the lostees, so perhaps they already knew he was a doctor.

If they knew before "The Hunting Party", it was really stupid not take him then. It was several weeks for us, but less than a week in Lostie island between THP and LTDA

the huge boat is the one we see at the end of SIASL, Oh that one, that's where I got lost. I don't think of that boat as being huge.

[quote=CrazyLatin007;1392639]IBen finds out he has a tumor


Ben is captured by Danielle, imprisioned in the hatch and tortured
mmmmmmmmm......I belive Ben is too smart to be captured by chance......secret plans, or anything else (like Ben needs to know losties to make his own list)

QUESTIONS:

If Ethan was such a great surgeon, why didn't he operate Ben right away? Was the tumor not that bad then? Did the island somehow accelerate its development without anyone noticing? Was being so close to the magnet in the hatch responsible for the tumor getting worse?
If Ben has access to the outside world, why would he not immediately request crash carts, and any other materials he needs for surgery? If they can get fuel for two boats and a sub, why not medical supplies?
Why would Ben send his top surgen into a potentially dangerous situation as spying on the Losties and kidnapping Claire? If Tom was good enough to kidnap Walt and get Desmond's boat (both successful missions) why not send Tom instead of Ethan? After the violent reaction of the Losties to Claire's kidnapping, why allow Ethan, the top surgeon, to go back for her when you have a tumor on your spine?
When Ethan died, and while having access to the outside (before the Swan's implosion), why not request another surgeon right away? What exactly is preventing Ben from getting everything he needs? Is The Others society akin to the one in that movie "The Village"?
Why didn't Tom take J/K/S in THP? Did they not know yet that Jack was a surgeon? When exactly did they find out? If Ethan told them, Tom should have taken Jack right then and there, if Ethan didn't tell them, they must've found out through their connections with the outside, so, again, why have all the crappy equipment? If we assume that at some point the island became inaccessible from the outside world, and that's why Ben can't get anyone else in, how did this blockage happen? What happened between Juliet's arrival and present time that caused the island's inaccessibility?
If we are to believe Ben that escape is possible (when navigating in the right direction that is) and if he wants to keep this society and whatever it is they are doing a secret, and if they are such good actors pretending to be savages and all, why not show up with the big boat, pretend they are just passing by and spot the wreckage (or cook up some emergency signal story, black box transmission, etc.) and "rescue" the Losties? Take them over to the shipping lane, wait for a big vessel and tell them they had some other direction, dump them off on the bigger vessel and go back to their beloved island? Or better yet, get them all in the big boat with the pretense of rescue, and choose the "good" ones then? They have guns, they could have easily taken them all in one big swoop or taken a few and come back to "rescue" the rest. Why was it necessary to infiltrate them?These are just a few questions I hope will someday be answered, because as it stands now, some of these actions make absolutely no logical sense.


if i had to answers these right now i would say that..

1. Ethan needed time to prep for his surgery. What i mean was, he HAD the time to prep for his surgery. It isn't likely that his tumor was as bad as it was when Jack got around to opperating on it.

2. I think Bens too secretive about whatever purpose that they have on the island to go outside their island, even though they CAN, He wouldnt risk it. They also might have had a lot of supplies from the Dharma days.

3.Ben never said that Ethan was the one who was preforming his surgery. And even if he was, he may have thought he'd be back before Ben was in a seriously critical condition.

4. Same as #2 they might not want anyone else in on their secret.

5. I had to think on this one for a minute, but I think that none of the others knew prior to Ben's kidnapping that Jack was a spinal surgeon. I think that Ben informed the others while he was imprisoned the hatch that they needed Jack to come back with him so that he could possibly save him. Thats what I think Ben DID when Locke was trapped and Ben used the computer to communicate with his people the same way Walt and Michael did. Then after that they researched all about Jack and how to get him to do the surgery.

6. They may be using all of the losties for something... like a "project" of some sort.

Also, if Ben is not calling the shots (Jacob or someone else in charge) then he would have had to wait to get permission to take Jack and might not have had this permission in THP