"it could but then again it could not "

Exactly, thank you Hoff. " Could " is the modal operator " possibly " in action. If something could be it obviously also could not be.

It's raining outside. It could be raining outside.

The knives in that drawer include one suitable for cutting bread. The knives in that could include one suitable for cutting bread.

The marbles in this bag include a red one. The marbles in this bag could include a red one.

Modern examples of.....includes. Modern examples of......could include.

I'm incredulous that we're even arguing about this.