I re-read, here is what you said "but I am comparing causing visible public scrutiny while being an asshole vs no public scrutiny" This is a false choice as is

I re-read, here is what you said "but I am comparing causing visible public scrutiny while being an asshole vs no public scrutiny" This is a false choice as is clear by your statement that zed is high profile. If he were polite there would still be public scrutiny so your binary hypothetical is meaningless.