I think the problem is that "is" and "equals" are often conflated - and there are some other issues in play too. Interestingly, how to (or if we even should!)

I think the problem is that "is" and "equals" are often conflated - and there are some other issues in play too. Interestingly, how to (or if we even should!) resolve such issues in our (use of) language is itself a highly ideological matter.