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It's also an English word that can be used for the same kind of thing without the law being involved at all.
by wccrawford 5y ago
It's also an English word that can be used for the same kind of thing without the law being involved at all.
- GavinMcG 5y agoAnd in situations where the law isn't involved, that's great. Here, though, it is. Talking about damages being paid, as the headline does, is especially indicative of the legal context.
- warent 5y agoYeah, context is key here... Damages can also mean physical bodily harm. By GP's reasoning, we could interpret the article as saying someone was medically wounded and claim that to be a correct interpretation because it's one of the many meanings depending on context.
- anm89 5y agoI see people make this absurd argument applied to various subjects constantly on HN. So a guy hits a triple, should I then say, "wow that guy hit a home run" because in business meetings "hitting a home run" means "doing a good job". Or can we agree that when talking about baseball we probably shouldn't use the term home run to mean good job because that would be incorrect in this context specific setting. Well, using the word damages in the general sense but in relation to a legal case is the same thing as calling a triple a home run. It's wrong, because the context makes it wrong.
- wccrawford 5y agoThis isn't a euphemism, though. In both situations, the loser is paying for damages they caused to the other party. It's the same thing, just settled out of court instead of being ordered by the court.