People have pride. publicly claiming they messed up is a direct challenge , and it will hurt that pride. regardless of whether or not they did. When you hurt th

People have pride. publicly claiming they messed up is a direct challenge , and it will hurt that pride. regardless of whether or not they did. When you hurt that pride, conversations go sour. And, in all fairness, do we expect someone to say “well, gosh, you’re right; I did indeed mess up. Sorry!” You can probably imagine that’s not how people work. It’s a rule because of the effect it has on the conversation that follows, not because it is Just or Unjust. In that sense, HN is not like a court. As much as people, at times, seem to think it is :p