Okay, since I've just been reading the other thread about the list of questions, I've just been noticing people's ideas about Judy.

Now, the reason I started this thread about Judy is, I was wondering what everyone's theories of Judy are at the moment.  And yes, I know we have a zillion on the old board, but I've never really discussed Judy in depth before, or thought about it/her at length before, so now I would like to as I think it could make for some interesting new discussion.

Here are my own ideas:

Well, first off,  I don't believe Judy is Laura Palmer, or a Jane Doe name for her.  I think that is an excellent theory though, but somehow something doesn't quite feel right about that to me.

My reasoning for that is:

1) The scene with Jefferies.  When he walks into the room, he does indeed talk about Judy or "we're not gonna talk about Judy at all we're gonna keep her out of this."  But bear in mind, that the reason Coop might be yelling at Gordon could be something to do with the fact that he has just told him about his dream -maybe what happened in Cooper's dream is some sort of premonition of exactly what's happening then.

2) He (Jefferies) then points at Coop and says "who do you think this is there?" 

Now.  What I think is happening at this point is that it is still Cooper's dream coming true, BUT that Jeffries, when he points at Cooper and speaks about him in that disgusted tone of voice is not talking about Laura Palmer or Cooper, but infact referring to the fact that it is a year later and he somehow knows that Cooper is BOB.  He thinks he has escaped from the lodge/come forward in time to confront Coopers' doppelganger when really he has gone back before Laura was murdered, so he is talking to the wrong (good) Cooper at the wrong time.  Now I know this type of thing may have been said before, but it relates to my idea of Judy so bear with me.

When Jefferies vanishes, I think he is somehow sucked back into the lodge because he has gone the wrong way.  We do not see or hear anything more about Judy until the end. 

I have two theories about who Judy could be.  The first I won't go into yet, because I haven't the evidence I need to support it, even though I KNOW that part of the scene exists.  I just can't find it for some bizarre reason at the moment.

The second will probably strike some as stupid, but I still  think it's possible so what the hey. :)

The entire concept of Judy is based on a dream, OR the viewers, possibly brought about by the wizard of Oz. It wouldn't be the first time Lynch has used that (think WAH).

Think about it.  You have the "flying monkeys" which could be who the monkey represents, Major Briggs mentions Judy Garland in Episode 28 when he is doped up, ( Lynch's way of paying homage to her maybe?)

First of all,  Cooper already tells Cole that he was "worried about today because of the DREAM he told him about."  I get the feeling that the scene which follows IS Cooper's dream. 
But again I also had thought this dream was referring to the dream Laura had, because of this same piece of evidence I cannot find that I was SURE existed.

Oh now I'm so annoyed.  I'm flicking through FWWM try ing to find it and I can't and I know it's there!  It's so weird!  How can something in a scene just up and vanish?!  Oh it has to be there somewhere.  Bollocks.  Unfortunatley I can't do say anything else about this without this evidence to back me up.  Well, I could, but I don't want to just be accused of saying things without concrete proof and going on hunches, as I have seen some people doing.

In the meantime, (until I find what I am looking for, which I WILL because it's bloody here somewhere!) I would like to know other people's theories on Judy.

"watch out for my cousin.."

To be honest, I've never cared for that part of the movie for some reason, even though I know its important. As for Judy, well, all we can do is specualte, eh?

Has anyone ever fancied the notion that Judy could have been someone who was a victim of the Lodge denizens? Either has the possesed or the murdered? Someone Jeffery knew, someone before Laura Palmer or even Teresa Banks? I have no evidence to prove this, but if Judy can possibly be Josie's sister, than she could be a "Leland" or "Laura" from the past.

I'm the person who proposed that Judy is Laura Palmer, and I actually agree wholeheartedly with both of those points. I don't think they're contradictory to my theory at all. I'm not going to try to sway anyone toward accepting my theory because that would obviously be pointless with something that's left so much to interpretation. But I think it's interesting that, even though we have different theories about who Judy is, we still came to some of the same conclusions about the other aspects of the Jeffries scene.
 

Yeah, but I think in vertigo, they, (Madeline and Judy), well, remind me more anyway of the characetrs of Laura and Maddy. Or even Diane and Camilla in MD but that's getting off-topic.   Sheryl mentions somewhere that if the series had continued, she could have come back as someone's long-lost something. I don't think she is the same Judy, but then as Lynch is a vertigo fan, and he already used Madeline, he could use Judy too...

Does this mean that perhaps Judy could have been the long-lost sister of Maddy rather than Laura herself or the sister of Josie Packard?  It makes more sense to me that she would be connected to the Palmer family.

lelandloveslaura, I don't think Judy had anything to do with Teresa Banks, but it's a good idea.  I don't think there is anything to connect Teresa to anyone really.   

I know my ideas sound wacky and I'm just kinda throwing them out there.  But you never know which ones poeple are going to agree with or we will all click with and I need to find a reson behind Judy.  For my own sanity. :) 

"watch out for my cousin.."

there might be a connection in this. watch the end!

 http://lynchnet.com/mdrive/movies/leno2001.mov

The references to Judy in FWWM are perhaps more of Lynch's jabs at Hollywood producers & executives who interfere with his plans and creative processes in filming.  Maybe Lynch was told to limit the allusions to Judy Garland and OZ metaphysics within the stories of TP, FWWM, or another work.  Agent Jeffries' words during his metaphysical appearance may be a transcript of a producer's or co-writer's dictation that "I'm not going to talk about Judy. In fact, we're not going to talk about Judy at all. We're going to keep her out of this."

Lynch gets the last laugh, as the final word spoken in FWWM is "Judy"

youre thinking of episode 16. donna brings cooper to the tremonds after hearing andy say harlod last words at the diner. the grandmother and grandson are no longer there and never seemed to be and the mrs. tremond who answers the door is much younger, as well as the interior of the house seems completely different from how it was in ep. 9, yet somehow harold left a page of laura's diary for donna with this woman, and donna reads it our loud, confirming for cooper that he had the same dream as laura.
if i remember correctly, the diary page of laura's says that she tried to tell the old man(cooper) in her dream about leland/BOB, but found it hard to speak(refrencing the backwards/forwards speech in the lodge) and that she hoped that he could understand and help her.
i dont think this has anything to do with the dream cooper has of 10:10 on feb 15,1988 in FWWM. he had the red room dream a few days after laura did, that is if you go in for the linear time stuff.
also, im not sure if there's an answer to what cooper's dream was.
i agree that jeffries seems to know that cooper would eventually be inhabited by BOB
but as for judy, and the monkey who's first shown seemingly in the same physical place(under the plaster mask with no eyes) of the grandson(who some say could be the magician in the FWWM poem) when he pulls the mask off the second time, so that at first its the grandson and then the second reveal is of the monkey's face where the grandson's face used to be without a scene cut. and then yeah, basically the last shot of FWWM(if you think of laura's joyful crying, cooper's calm, and the angel scene as a sort of coda to the film) is the same monkey, and it whispers judy.
to me its just conjecture to project a reality not in the film in order to make the scene understood rationally. sure it has connotations with the wizard of oz or maybe josie's cousin, but there's really no context for "judy" other than that bowie doesnt want to talk about her and wants to keep her out of all this(what that is is not answered in the fim). to me, judy kinda sounds related to how jefferies was able to go their meetings and/or the lodges. or he was working with her in some capacity. again, i think there's no rational or logical(western that is) reason for that imagery and sound juxtaposition of the monkey speaking the name at the end of FWWM. its part of the mysteries that arent answered in the movie, and are left up to the viewer. but, at least to me, as i said before, we're not in a position to answer or make concrete the irrational, so accepting the ambiguity is a mood all it own, instead of its more tradtional definition which is being blurred between more than one state or quality of defintion. and that mood is prevelent throughout lynch's films.

I'm no longer convinced by the idea of Judy being Josie's sister, for reasons that have been argued quite compellingly elsewhere on the internet. I can't remember where I read it but if you google "Judy" with "FWWM" I think you can easily find it.

She may have been Josie's sister at some point or another but it's clear that this was abandoned in the final cut. The theory on the internet is that Lynch probably wanted to remove Judy completely but still had to deal with a loose end in Agent Jeffries' dialogue (that could not otherwise be cut). The scenes with the monkey were meant to tie this up. Note that the shots in question seem curiously isolated from the rest of the movie, suggesting that they were actually pick-up shots made during post-production.

Not that this brings is any closer to a theory about Judy and the monkey... The difficulty is in establishing a clear link between four seemingly unrelated characters: Agent Jeffries, Judy, Pierre Tremond, and the monkey. Somewhere in between, there are also references to Agent Cooper, the mask, Garmonbozia, and Laura Palmer.

I've been thinking that some progress might be made if we knew who speaks the final "Judy" line in the movie. From what I can make out it seems to be a man's voice, but whose...?

I think it's less like to be a reference to "Wizard of Oz" as there is another clue in the name of the David Bowie character - Jefferies, as in L.B. Jefferies from "Rear Window", only James Stewart also played another Twin Peaks related character in Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo" and this is what I think is being nodded at with "Judy" as this was the name of the character played by Kim Novak who pretends to be Madelaine to fool James Stewart's character Scotty Ferguson, Madelaine Ferguson being the dual roll played in Twin Peaks by Sheryl Lee.

You can find more detail at in my blog post about FWWM : http://www.online-inquirer.com/cinema/fire-walk-with-me/

Online-Inquirer

An interesting note is that in the film "Rebel Without a Cause" Jim asks his girlfriend Judy if she wants to see a monkey before showing her her reflection in a compact mirror she had left behind. Jim is another word for James, Laura's boyfriend and both a monkey and reflections figure prominently in FWWM.

i like your post. not sure about the time traveling, but the red room/lodges supposedly exist outside of time and space so who knows...

but this:

gotta disagree here. mike/gerard was talking about teresa.
the corn being her garmonbozia(pain and suffering).
she wore the owl ring, its in a picture chet and sam find in her trailer(and remember its found on a mound underneath the trailer of the chalfont/tremond grandmother and grandson).
mike is telling BOB(in leland's body) in the car scene that he broke the rules, the corn was mike's, but BOB killed teresa and took it.
which is what mike more or less does at the train car with laura.
the ring somehow has power over BOB and prevents him from possessing her(which is what he wanted).
and with the ring, and leland yelling "dont make me do this", it seems like he has to kill her, and give the garmonbozia to mike and LMFAP.

If you can pause the scene of Teresa being murdered you can supposedly see that she is not wearing the ring.

Does BOB truly feed on pain and sorrow? It only states in the series that he feeds on fear and pleasure. We can see him feeding on Laura’s when she finds him in her bedroom. Likewise, it was Josie’s fear that drew BOB to her. I think that BOB’s feeding is immediate hence why Josie weighed about only 65 pounds when she died.

I think that the garmonbozia that was stolen was Mike’s own pain and sorrow. He does not say that BOB ate the corn, merely that it was stolen.  Near the end he never demands the corn from BOB only saying that he wants his pain and sorrow.

I still believe that it was the pain and sorrow Mike felt over the death of Laura, a death he knew was necessary for her soul’s survival and peace. If the corn was from Teresa’s death it is odd that Mike would have noticed it missing after almost a full year had passed. On the other hand it is important that Mike mentions the corn having been stolen only after Cooper has told Laura not to take the ring. This would be the night following Laura having removed the picture from her wall. Mike could have hoped that even if Laura did not take the ring the first time she may the second night. With the picture off the wall and possibly thrown out this nixed that completely.  This prevented the ring being given to her this way and the chance of Laura becoming BOB increasing.

Mike says "my" pain and sorrow, not "her", "yours" or "our". I think this indicates that the pain and sorrow in question belonged to him alone and were his own feelings.

But Mike does not say “give” me my garmonbozia either merely that it is something that he wants. It is during that scene where the viewer finally knows what the corn is and I tend to believe that Lynch did it this way to create more impact until the final reveal.

Yes he feeds on it but wouldn’t pain and sorrow be essential to Mike’s existence? The moment he stops feeling pain and sorrow over BOB’s actions is the moment he no longer cares and no longer wishes to stop his former friend.

It reminds me of Stephen Crane’s poem “In the Desert”:

 Don't worry. I don't take it as being too argumentative. I just happen to think that most people's theories are made up of "what ifs" etc... With David Lynch you have to make those. If I am being too "what if" about the garmonbozia being Mike's pain and sorrow than the same can be said about it being Laura's pain and sorrow. Nothing is stated for sure. If it can be argued the one way it can be argued the other and without a definitive answer it is never confirmed. Youre statement that Mike must get the garmonbozia through BOB is equally as speculative. Nothing confirms it definitely within the series or the film.

The first time I saw FWWM I believed that the pain and sorrow was Mike's feelings and this hasn't changed. If it is thinking outside of the box so be it. 

I turn to the scripts etc... to color in areas but my theories are never dependent on them or formed by them alone. They are just interesting to look at and wonder how they tie in with certain aspects. I think that the European ending does hold a lot of weight with the series though. In episode 3 Dale describes the dream in full even scenes that were cut out of episode 2, as in Mike shooting BOB.

The scripts would probably make some things clear for certain viewers. Some people believe that BOB is taking the corn from out of the blood on Leland's shirt at the end of FWWM. They think the blood belongs to Laura. In fact this is what the scene is described as at wikipedia. This isn't the case. What BOB is really doing is healing Leland's wound, the one he made to write "Fire Walk With Me" with in the train car. The script would have cleared up this misconception.

I like reading the scripts etc... for this reason especially. I want to make sure that something does not contradict a theory that I have. If it does, and also the finished project, I know that the theory is not valid. I particularly pay close attention to the Lynch written objects.

What ifs, the script, and European pilot aside I find my theory supported by the film and series.

-BOB feeds on fear and pleasure. It does not state he feeds on pain and sorrow.

-On the day of Maddy's death Mike felt great pain.

-Teresa Banks was not wearing the ring when she was killed.

-The corn is only mentioned having been stolen after Laura has not taken the ring, influenced by the future Cooper's appearance in her dream.

-This takes place 1 year after Teresa's death. That is a long time not to notice one's source of sustenance has vanished.

-Mike connects this somehow with a thread being torn and a look of stillness on a woman's face, definitely not Teresa because her expression was more one of fear than of peace. These 2 statements are tied to the stealing of the corn.

-The corn is returned at the end of the film when Laura has been murdered. This is followed by the shot of a monkey and the look on Laura's face when the plastic was opened.

What ifs are tied in with why. The most insteresting part of the film is finding out why and I believe there is a purpose to all the strange things David does. He does not do weirdness for weirdness sake. There is a reason. It is up to the viewer to discover these.

This is just a somewhat random thought that just popped into my head but I'm going to put it out there anyway. You all can shoot it down, or tell me what you think:

Does anyone think (and this could've very well been brought up before on this board, I don't know) that creamed corn in the lodge may be the parallel to cocaine in the "real" world? Creamed corn connects to Garbonbozia, which is pain and suffering. Cocaine is a drug that is bad for your body, but eliminates pain and suffering - at least for awhile...

It may be crazy - but what are your thoughts??

Yes Sourdust! That's the difference between a look of stillness and one definitely not!

Interesting to note that Laura initially didn't have that look when she died. Not from the flashback at the end of episode 8 and not in FWWM. Only after the plastic had been opened did Laura have the look of stillness like the Angels she loved so much. Having been responsible for the pilot, episode 8 and FWWM Lynch would have been aware of the change in Laura's expression. It has to be significant.

 Spot on garlandbozia! I think Laura's expression probably changed the moment she ascended to the White Lodge with the Angel, the one we see at the very end of FWWM. Mike was definitely working with the Angels. Laura only remembers to get the picture the Tremonds gave to her after staring at the Angel picture and it is through the picture they hope to give Laura Mike's ring. During this scene you can faintly hear "Voice of Love" playing. I always find it significant that the Angel disappears from the portrait the night BOB will try to possess Laura and she does not have the ring.

This always cements to me that the corn that Mike references during the traffic jam scene has got to be Laura's and not Teresa's. Everything is connected in that scene to the picture, the ring, Laura's stillness and Leland being BOB's host.

You raise a lot of interesting points Forgiveness, including some pertinent questions regarding the "stolen" corn which I never gave much thought before.

I have difficulty accepting two things, however: the idea that the Lodge meeting takes place after the show's finale, and the theory that Mike conspires with the Angel or sets out to do good. For me, the Lodge meeting is about the death of the old Mike (represented by the Jumping Man), and how the Lodge spirits choose to deal with this (by introducing the green ring). It is the violation of the "contract" outlined in this scene (between the MFAP and Bob) that ultimately drives much of the plot in Twin Peaks, so it would not make much sense to me if it took place in the future.

For reasons related to the Lodge meeting (and others) I cannot accept that the MFAP or the Tremonds are "good". I think the MFAP is just as evil as Bob, in fact more so, since FWWM reveals that it was he who was pulling the strings all along. The green ring is the MFAP's weapon and denotes ownership of Garmonbozia. Bob is bound by the Lodge meeting contract to kill those victims the MFAP targets with the green ring, which is usually passed around by the Tremonds in the real world (remember the trailer, the picture).

When he offers the ring to Laura, Cooper tells her not to take it because he knows (through Jeffries) that the ring means certain death, so it is not ill advice. The only reason why she chooses to take the ring in the end is because it saves her from possession by Bob, but it's still a suicide.

 Warning: A post that is way too long and may induce drossiness. Do not operate heavy machinery while reading it.

It’s a simple difference in interpretation. Yet this one thing can change the whole meaning of a scene. Is it future or it it past?
 

I can’t see the meeting scene as anything but dealing with BOB getting a new host: Dale Cooper. It just explains a lot more for me.
 

 It makes sense that the Jumping Man represents Dale. When Jeffries points at Dale and he asks “Who do you think this is there?” the image of the Jumping Man appears. Lynch as Gordon Cole even intones this to the audience restating “That’s Special Agent Dale Cooper”. The logical assumption is that there is a connection between Dale and the Jumping Man. Mike or the MFAP do not coincide with this image placement . Cole does not give the indication that Dale has ever met Jeffries saying “Cooper meet the long lost Phillip Jeffries”. However, Phillip already seems to know him. Jeffries does not seem to like Dale. Even when Dale is behind him, Jeffries seems to become weak just from the sound of his voice. He does not appear to be giving a warning to Coop but rather about him and seems protective about Judy in association with Dale.
 

Since Jeffries mentions the ring and seems opposed to Dale this seems like a source of contention between them. What is known is that Dale will definitely give Laura the advice not to take it. This could have been the reason for Jeffries animosity.
 

If this indicates that the meeting takes place following Dale’s possession it could not be the formation of a contract between BOB and MFAP/Mike. The ring would have been in existence already.
 

Mike and the MFAP are the same. The MFAP is the physical appearance of Mike. In the script it refers to the MFAP as Mike a few times. I think that the arm was removed due to the tattoo not because it was evil. It is a part of Mike as seen in FWWM. Another reinforcement of Mike and the MFAP being the same is the fact that after having seen Mike/Phillip Gerard Laura is left with the feeling that she knows him. She does. She had seen him in her dream offering her the ring.
 

The formica table is green. Possibly the spirit forces and the spirit world is considered to be green. The giant turned into a green glowing object in Episode 8. The glow from the train car was green in the same episode. Harriet stated that Laura was glowing in her dream and that the glow was life. The ring is green. It transfers specially selected people into the spirit world ex. Chet, Laura. I do not believe that Chet died. His body was not found which indicated more of a disappearance.
 

This ring could mean the wearer has promised themselves to Mike. If Mike required a new host it would be logical that he would remove the host’s arm. Both Teresa and Laura’s arms went numb. It is possible that by wearing the ring someone has vowed to be Mike’s host. Having been wed to Mike, BOB can not possess the wearer.
 

The boy appears lifeless. He is slouched on the couch rather than sitting straight as he did in his first appearance on the series or anytime else. The boy is Leland. Leland is dead at the time the meeting takes place. He would be the one to say “Fell a victim” while pointing at BOB because he was the last host. In episode 17, I think, Dale refers to the next host of BOB as a victim. The boy’s pointing corresponds with the previous pointing at Dale Cooper. A connection: Dale is the next victim, as in host, of BOB. “Fell a victim” corresponds with the wording of the felling of a tree. When the feeling of BOB overcame Laura, and after her face turned to the colors of the oil pool at Glastonberry Grove, she said “The trees, the trees”.
 

At the establishment of BOB finding a host, Mike/MFAP references the ring. It is in regards to BOB not being able to possess Laura. She could not be his victim in that sense for the ring saved her. Mike/MFAP laughs at his joke, gloating. The woodman slaps his knee (a real knee slapper).
 

After this gloating BOB claps his hands together and glares at Mike/MFAP to which the Mike/MFAP seems shocked. The Jumping Man stops moving and is retired at BOB's movements. BOB controls the Jumping Man not Mike/MFAP. At this same time the boy’s foot begins to move. There is a connection between the Jumping Man and the boy. We never witness Mike/MFAP having any effect on either. BOB showed he can reverse time inside the Lodge in the finale when he made it so Earle did not destroy Cooper. Dale also mentioned that the conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter presented the chance for a large change. With that handclap BOB has reversed time to a time when Laura Palmer was alive, specifically the time to match the discovery of Laura’s secret diary. The discovery of the diary was integral. It proved to BOB that Laura knew he was real for certain. His desire to become her had reached its climax.
 

Time reversing explains why the boy now wears the mask and why a monkey is seen under it as well. A thread was being made connecting BOB possessing the father to BOB possessing the daughter. The monkey represents Laura’s possession.
 

The assumption that Mike/MFAP were the ones pulling the strings is dependent on what theory you believe in. Since it is BOB’s actions that directly influence the Jumping Man and the boy I’m not convinced that Mike/MFAP held more power than BOB or that the Jumping Man was Mike. This is not stated for sure just as it is never stated that the convenience store scene is a contract in place.
 

The theory that the meeting is a contract presents a few holes for me. If the ring meant that Mike/MFAP gets the garmonbozia from a kill why wouldn’t BOB just make sure that he kills only those not wearing it? BOB did not require a contract in order to kill. It would be simple enough of his own volition. Also if BOB was able to steal garmonbozia belonging to Mike once he could do it again. The ring would be invalid and useless. Unless the ring served a separate purpose.
 

Teresa was murdered because she was blackmailing Leland/BOB. Her death was caused by this. Teresa had the ring before she found out who her john really was. She only suspected him after he supposedly chickened out of the foursome. She also was not wearing it at the time of her death. It is never shown if she even received the ring through the same way that Laura had.
 

Once again it never states that the garmonbozia is anything but pain and sorrow. BOB feeds on fear and pleasure. Also Mike stated that BOB needs a human host in order to feed. He had one in Leland. He was getting plenty of food from terrifying Laura and raping her on a nightly basis, not to mention the prostitutes he visited. We see evidence of this when Laura discovered him looking for the secret diary. We literally see her fear entering his mouth. He was planning on feeding through Laura once he had possessed her as well. “I want to taste through your mouth”. There was no motivation for BOB to steal the corn created from Teresa’s death. Already promised a healthy supply of sustenance from Laura I do not see what would propel a big war over garmonbozia.
 

What BOB did want was Laura Palmer. She was his obsession and probably the closest thing he ever felt to sadness was when he lost her. It would make sense that BOB would use any opportunity present to get that chance again. The conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter and the failure of Cooper in the Lodge presented BOB with that opportunity.
 

The script contains the Mike/MFAP asking if it is future or if it is past to Dale. This also shows that there is a reversal in time and that FWWM was made with this intention. Though these references were deleted it is present in the meeting scene as it is present with Dale telling Laura not to take the ring. This is the good Dale as Annie tells us and the one from the future. Otherwise he would not know Laura’s name. The film is the logical next step for the series. Once Dale was inside the Lodge BOB wanted to have one last try at Laura. This is why her face appears in the coffee cup at the series end. The coffee represented an evaluation or trial. Laura was meant to be put through hers again due to Dale’s intervention with the ring. It is interesting to note that in her dream concerning the 25 years later, Laura believed that Dale was Mike. BOB could have used this mistake to his advantage. It also explains why the end of the movie was supposed to return to Annie in the hospital and Dale at the Great Northern Hotel after his head had been smashed against the mirror, after Laura had been killed once more.
 

To me, Mike/MFAP are good. Mike had seen the face of God. It is only by looking at the Angel picture that Laura remembers to go and get the picture through which the ring will be attempted to be given to her. Likewise, the Angel in the train car frees both Ronette and Laura’s bonds. Without Ronette to help him open the train car door, Mike could not have opened them. He could not have thrown in the ring. Without her hands having been freed, Laura could not have worn the ring. The Angel worked in conjunction with Mike. It seems contradictory that the ring could be bad and Mike through this association with the Divine. They are not working against each other, as Mike and BOB appear to be doing, but rather with one another.
 

I am not convinced that from his viewing of the ring Dale could have discerned positively that it meant certain death. It would be a case of Dale assuming something he could not possibly know and putting Laura at risk when it was left for her to make her own decision. He knew far more from his investigation of her murder that she had escaped BOB and was safe. That she had also triumphed over BOB through death and this was her wish. Jacoby describes that the last time he saw Laura she was at peace having decided to end her life. We do not see her with this peace in the film and I can't help but coincide it with her not having the ring.
 

Dale also must have been aware of the connection between the Giant, who he saw as benevolent, and the MFAP. They are the only 2 beings he saw make that whooping sound. The MFAP also had echoed the Giant’s “Hallelujah!” They did not seem opposed to one another.
 

If Dale sees death as always avoidable then it could be a factor in his downfall inside the Lodge. When Peter told Jesus that he need not die Christ replied with this:
“But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.”
 
There is a life after death. If Laura had lived and been possessed it would have been at the cost of her own soul. When it comes to spiritual faith it is more important for the soul to survive than the body. Mike, who had removed an arm because of a tattoo, would have known this.
 
As Dale says in episode 8 "Laura Palmer did not commit suicide." to which Jacoby answers that she allowed herself to be killed. Mike did not kill Laura. Laura did not kill herself. She would have had plenty of opportunities to do so in a less painful way. BOB killed Laura Palmer because she would not invite him in. He had planned on forcing her to do so that night. Either way it is stated the ring saved Laura from a worse fate: damnation and letting the monster who tormented her win. If Laura's action of taking the ring was suicide than Dale's advice not to take it was at the murder of her soul.

Who else would have helped Laura Palmer?