No, it’s a tactic to disarm criticism by pretending to pre-address the obvious “don’t do that” response. “I know my behavior is bad but I am openly acknowledgin

No, it’s a tactic to disarm criticism by pretending to pre-address the obvious “don’t do that” response. “I know my behavior is bad but I am openly acknowledging it so you should trust me and look beyond it” is remarkable in its ability to disarm critics. To put it another way, “they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab them by the..”