Board Thread:Skyrim/@comment-105.158.238.148-20140417030552/@comment-94.234.170.31-20140417150539

While I totally agree that killing Paarthurnax is wrong you have to see it from Delphines point of view too. She's afraid that the Greybeards(and to an extent the Dragonborn) have become something like a new version of the dragon priests.

The following is from the dragon priest page on this wikia: Dragons embraced their role as god-kings over men, but rather than deal with the actual ruling itself, they granted small amounts of power to dragon priests in exchange for absolute obedience. It is never actually stated anywhere but i think its safe to assume that the absolute obedience is something like a permanent bend will-shout, since the dragon priests still protect their lairs/catcombs after their deaths.

So I think Delphine is just deathly afraid of that Paarthurnax has manipulated the Greybeards and the Dragonborn and that when Alduin is dead he(Paarthurnax) will take Alduins place and with the Greybeards and Dragonborn under his command he would be unstoppable. So she puts the ultimatum on the Dragonborn: kill Paarthurnax or get shunned by the Blades.

Now IF this is remotly accurate do I think her motives are justified? Heck no! If I could I would bring her up to Paarthie and let him sentence and judge her.