05-06-2020, 03:46 PM
(05-06-2020, 03:34 PM)Coke6pk Wrote:(05-02-2020, 09:06 PM)ijmorlan Wrote: If the weapon was anything other than a car, nobody would bat an eyelash at the use of the word “killer” (although the police would say “suspect”). So, I conclude that your terminology is entirely fair. As soon as one sees it, the usual media practices start to seem really weird.
If the weapon was a gun, and it was an "accidental" (quotes are mine, no gun shot is accidental) shot by a 6 year old, do we call them a killer? If a person uses a weapon to defend themselves against a life threatening attack, do we call them a killer?
I'll be the first to admit, I know almost nothing about this incident. But if the driver was drunk/distracted/etc., the moniker may apply. (At the risk of being labeled as a victim shamer), if the cyclist was in all black at night w/ no lights and was hit by a car, there would be a big difference between "Person who killed another person" and a "Killer".
If they stopped and then left the scene (I read that above), there is no excuse for that.
Coke
The word "killer" means "one who kills"...the word kill means to make not alive anymore.
We choose not to use the word "killer" not because it is inaccurate, but because we choose to not make people face the reality of their actions.
Yes, a person who kills another person in self defense is a killer, by definition. When that person does so in self defense as you describe, usually we choose to focus on the person being a victim of an attack rather than a killer because that's how our society feels about those cirumstances. That focus does not change the correctness of the term "killer", it just reflect our social values.
The same is true in the case of driving. We choose not to use the word "killer" and associated direct words because we want to take focus off of the person who has caused this, to absolve them, not of legal responsibility, but of the idea that they have caused someone to die, intentional or not. We do this because people see themselves as drivers, and being faced with the reality that as a driver you may kill someone--be a killer--is difficult for people to face. I however, believe that this is a mistake, that leads to all sorts of negative outcomes.
Of course, as our society is composed of angry mobs, who are largely in denial about virtually everthing, my position too has negative outcomes.