That's a good out for every crook, scam artist, murderous psychopath on the planet. "I was just stupid, I screwed up, I didn't know any better".
The right thing, the rational thing is attribute to malice if the evidence indicates it was malice, if the evidence indicates stupidity, than that is the explanation, unless the preponderance of evidence points in another direction.
"Never attribute to malice what can be explained by stupidity"?
That's a good out for every crook, scam artist, murderous psychopath on the planet. "I was just stupid, I screwed up, I didn't know any better".
The right thing, the rational thing is attribute to malice if the evidence indicates it was malice, if the evidence indicates stupidity, than that is the explanation, unless the preponderance of evidence points in another direction.
The version I heard was "can be explained by incompetence".
Not as charitable but not inconsistent either ЁЯСН