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by TheCoelacanth 1929 days ago
When you are doing crystal ball voodoo based on stuff that has no connection to the defendant's choices and no direct connection to criminality like whether or not their parents were separated and whether their parents were ever arrested, then you're damn right there should be a blanket rejection of any inequitable outcome.

I'm not even convinced that you should be allowed to make a decision based on stuff like that even if it is somehow equitable.
1 comments
Rule35 1929 days ago
> no direct connection to criminality like whether or not their parents were separated and whether their parents were ever arrested

Again, not right at all. These things heavily correlate with crime. A broken home is the primary indicator of someone's future success, even over a 'better' but broken home.

I'm male, and not a rapist, but having a penis heavily correlates with rape. I suggest you do not pick me, or any male, to watch your children. Sure it's rude to the innocent, but oh well, a little rudeness vs potential harm.

> I'm not even convinced that you should be allowed to make a decision based on stuff like that even if it is somehow equitable.

Then nobody will ever follow the law. If it's illegal for me to reject a potentially bad babysitter for something I know about them that could risk my child's safety I'll happily lie and say I didn't like their haircut.

You'd get further if you tried to identify these people and treat them better - grants to move out of bad neighborhoods, to get educated, to get pardons for unrelated crimes, to get counseling for abuse, etc - than with this "wrong unless it's 100% identical, equity-of-outcome" thing.

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TheCoelacanth 1929 days ago
We're talking about an algorithm being used as part of the court system to determine whether or not someone rots in jail, not about how you choose your babysitter.

It needs to be held to a higher standard and punish people based on their actions, not based on what their parents did.

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Rule35 1929 days ago
No, you're talking about making it illegal to use the things you know about someone or something to make a fully qualified decision. About a babysitter, a potential criminal, an immigrant, whatever.

> It needs to be held to a higher standard and punish people based on their actions, not based on what their parents did.

And that's not what actually happened. A guy got arrested on bad data and then released, we know some kids might be at risk because they're from broken homes, etc. Nobody was jailed for their parent's actions, and nobody even proposed it. Some trends are worrying, but you act like they're the intent of the entire system not just some scammy products that a company is pushing.

Voting machines, for instance, should all be burned. But I understand that most people don't know why and support them for convenience. I think they're anti-democratic but I don't think people are evil for using them. You should try to get a similar perspective.

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TheCoelacanth 1928 days ago
I am not talking about that. You are misinterpreting my statements. "stuff that has no connection to the defendant's choices". Defendants only exist within the court system.

> Nobody was jailed for their parent's actions

Not jailed, but they are being kept in jail because of them. That is the same thing.

I am not claiming that anyone is evil. Just that this is unjust and that they need to stop doing this. You are putting words in my mouth.

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