Well precisely! It's like people arguing that the DA's actions at the end of the book were just 'defending Harry'. Well, yes, there's defense - for instance, incapacitating an opponent so they're unable to attack, and then there's rendering them unable to move by themselves and unrecognizable to their own mothers (ha ha ha, what a laugh!)
If you can perform the last, at least be honest and not say 'But I was just being protective of Harry!' (who, let's face it, could probably take on all three Slytherins and win at this point, what with his many Super Special powers.)

And yeah, Hermione would be a lot more likeable if she didn't try to intellectualize her more dubious decisions away by denying that she would ever do something that wasn't for the greater good.