It’s rare for Italian lawmakers from across the political spectrum to agree on anything. But on Tuesday, the lower house of Parliament unanimously ratified a law introducing the crime of femicide into Italy’s criminal code, punishable by life in prison.
(title from entry in NYT’s The Morning newsletter)
And the etymology of “nice” is that it used to mean “foolish, ignorant, frivolous, senseless”. Does that mean that saying, “Have a nice day” is to tell people to be foolish?
Of course not. Meanings evolve, and if everyone understands “homicide” as meaning “killing a human” (gender-neutrally), then that’s the wisest way to interpret it today, regardless of what it meant when it was first coined in Latin.
It’s a bit worse than that though.
The law in Italy literally defines homicide as the killing of a man. God knows how long it’s been on the books with that wording.
Of course that hasn’t stopped anyone from being prosecuted for that crime even with that wording, and that use is clearly understood to be synonymous with human, the same way that noone thinks that the word mankind excludes women. No lawyer, judge of citizen has any doubt with regards to that.
Nevertheless, in this day and age that wording does feels dated, even to me.
The incels are out in droves! You lot are about as bad as the .mlers.
Lol, wut?