Game theory and I continuing dancing

Ach. More game theory!

Now with more extramarital infidelity?

I have to call attention to and agree with 3) in particular. Hypocrisy is worse than failing to live up to an agreement, either implicit or contractually obligated. It's easy to punish a failure when it happens and is acknowledged by the guilty party. It's much harder to punish someone who only looks for the failings of others and never attends to their own. The signaling effects are much worse than those in the cases of people who can otherwise live up to their obligations or are more honest about their lack of ability or uncertainty to do so. In other words, projecting an aura of impeccable honesty or moral upstanding character when you are in fact a shameful caricature of what it is you denigrate in your enemies makes it really difficult for other people to certain of what they are getting when they sign on to agreements with you, of any kind.

I refer back to my post on Teddy Kennedy. We knew he was sort of slimy morally in his private engagements. Same with Clinton (eventually). But this can be tolerated and accepted when everyone knows about it and there's at least a nudge toward contrition and acceptance of those moral failings. On the other hand when people build themselves up on the presumption that these moral failings are so odious as to allow for a lack of trust in all arenas (a presumption I find rather specious, people are not universally flawed in my experience but rather specifically so), and then proceed to go out and make the very same mistakes, well then you deserve to be vilified. It's just a lot harder to make sense of what it is that you actually mean if you talk out of both sides of the mouth. Be consistent. If you're a philanderer, let us know that and we know what to expect (and if we so desire, can avoid it). Don't go around shining a bright spotlight on other philanderers as though you'd never do that yourself. That's a minefield waiting to happen.