Even if you were right about that, which you're not, but it's actually funnier if you are, you'd be wrong about the argument at hand.
Wages, per both Merriam-Webster and Cambridge (which, hint is why you're wrong about the objective definition thing. Why would we need multiple disagreeing dictionaries if words had objective definitions?), are paid to employees based on a contractual obligation.
Prisoners are not employees and are not contractually obligated to participate in work. Prisoners are legally (not contractually) required to complete work (regardless of being employed or not), and can (and do) face punishment for not completing compulsory work.
The reason that you are not seeing people being sentenced "to labor" is that there is no need to sentence someone "to labor" because the laboring is already included in their sentence as a part of their terms of commitment as outlined in the policies of the various prisons as allowed by the 13th amendment.
No court has to specify that the convicted can be compelled to slavery because that specification is inherent in the conviction.
This type of comment is not welcome on HN. Please listen to the people you're engaging with, and try to see their perspective without using perjoratives or dismissing them.
Arkansas, Georgia, and Texas did not pay inmates for any work whether inside the prison (such as custodial work and food services) or in state-owned businesses. Additionally, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and South Carolina allowed unpaid labor for at least some jobs.
It’d be inaccurate to say that no one is paid for their labor, but it’s dishonest to claim that all prisoners receive wages, especially when it’s not always the case, it’s an order of magnitude below the federal minimum, and they are forced to pay above-market prices for necessary goods, as others have pointed out.
You can also review Council v. Ivey about parole denial to continue forced labor through one of those fancy terminals.
why do you think this? I've lived seven healthy years with zero meat and am in superb physical shape. how many 30+ year olds do you know that can run a five minute mile? can you?
I guess two can play that game - would you mind sharing if you were born before leaded gasoline was banned?
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