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A comment on The Bank of England unveils design of new £50 banknote featuring Alan Turing. Parent comment

Re:The Bank of England unveils design of new £50 banknote fe... by sneak on Friday March 26, 2021 @04:40AM (#26589952)
There is an argument that they do, as you cannot hold someone guilty for actions that they did not undertake.

At some point all of the criminals who did the thing in the past are dead.

Institutions can't act, because they have no brains or hands: only human beings can. You can't convict an institution of a crime, nor put it in prison.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:The Bank of England unveils design of new £50 banknote fe... by bawolff on Friday March 26, 2021 @05:34AM (#26590211)
Our entire society is based around the notion that institutins are separate legal personalities, distinct from the people that make them up. They can take on liability, sign contracts, be sanctioned by courts, etc.

Besides, we're talking moral responsibility not legal.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:The Bank of England unveils design of new £50 banknote fe... by sneak on Friday March 26, 2021 @05:38AM (#26590229)
Yes, but that's a legal fiction. They can't act, neither can "our society" or "the government".

The only entities that can take actions of any kind are human beings.

[ Parent | on HN ]