In theory, I'm with you; in practicality, I have always found that literally just a one-sentence lead-in -- even if it's not perfect -- goes a long way towards

In theory, I'm with you; in practicality, I have always found that literally just a one-sentence lead-in -- even if it's not perfect -- goes a long way towards a better conversation. I kind agree with you on your reading of the subtexts, here, but in a conversation, I just don't think these sentiments come off that way. Rather, we tend to interpret them as noise that lets the other person know that a difficult topic is coming, instead of just dunking them in head first. "Hey, I wanted to let you know about some bad news. one-breath pause <bad news here>" has always worked better for me, as both the deliverer and the recipient, than "Hey, <bad news>." Basically what I'm saying is that you could definitely read into these suggested phrases, as you have; but they play out way differently in a real-life conversation.