this post was submitted on 23 Dec 2023
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No Stupid Questions
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I don't know, but by calling inmates criminals, you are 1. Assuming guilt, and 2. Implying that crime is their identity, which is pretty short-sighted and dismissive.
Call them inmates.
But inmates are by definition criminals? They have been judged guilty and sentenced to time in prison.
There are people who are awaiting trail who are in prison. These people are have not been convicted of committing a crime, and are therefor not criminals.
...but honestly, most of the people awaiting trial have actually been convicted of other crimes in the past, so they could still be called criminals.
If they're awaiting trial, they are in jail, not prison.
*trial
A criminal is someone who has committed a crime. Using criminal as a blanket term to refer to all inmates assumes that 100% of them are guilty, which is demonstrably false.
This is a bit of chicken and egg, but if you've committed a crime, you are a criminal. If you've been accused of a crime, you are not a criminal, until you are proven to be guilty.
If youve been convicted, you've been found guilty. If you've been found guilty, that means you've committed a crime, and are a criminal.
In order to be an inmate (barring those await trials in jails) you must be a criminal.
Your concern, I think, is stemmed from the unfortunate stigma that follows criminals long after their rehabilitation/incarceration, which is a valid stance. However, if someone is currently in a prison, as an inmate, they must be a criminal in the eyes of the law. That doesn't mean they are criminals from then until the end of time, however.
This is a jump in reasoning, because you are declaring the justice system to be perfect. Wrongful convictions occur. Have you never heard of people being released after decades of incarceration, after it was determined they were innocent?
I like how you impose a generalization and include its counterexample. That's like saying "all left handers are dumb except the smart ones".
Your logic train derailed at "if you were found guilty, you commited the crime" have you not watched how many people they release with DNA evidence overturn or witness recanting, and say Oops, guess it wasn't you.
If you were found guilty by the courts, then yes in the eyes of the courts you have a committed the crime. If and when there are appeals, new evidence, or overturned verdicts, then that evaluation would change.
The whole point ends up being that criminal as a word has a specific definition, and those who have been convicted of crimes fit that definition.
How does the word “criminal” imply that crime is their identity?
Everyone had told a lie at one time or other in their life. Are you a liar or a person who has told lies? There is your answer.
According to Wiktionary, a liar is a person who frequently lies, whereas a criminal is someone who is guilty of a crime (possibly just a single one). So this is a false equivalence.
Yes they are.
It doesn't unless they identify as a criminal and change their pronouns.
I mean…technicallyyyyyyy they initially asked about prisoners, then asked if fat criminals lose weight; which means they're asking about all prisoners, everywhere, around the world, and also all fat criminals as well
(Yes I'm being pedantic, and yes, the OP was worded clumsily, and yes you are correct , but but BUT I'm correct as well and that doesn't make me less of an ass)
You must be trolling right?
You think the justice system is perfect?
Me asking OP to respect the demonstrable reality of some inmates being wrongfully incarcerated does not make me a troll.
No