When wearing one's PR hat, and one is guessing /assessing the probable extent of the damaging piercing and explosive effect on the citadel of one's public image of a given social-capital-costly act (such as pulling your pants down and farting at a solemn wedding ceremony :0), one can think of the immediate damaging hole ripped in one's self -image, but it is also advisable to think of how quickly that damage will heal or whether it will have staying power or even the ability to morph into something bigger than it originally was.

By thinking of the long-term staying power (or lack of same) of a socially damaging act, one can gain an advantage in , for example, politics. A very astute politician might realize that waffling on a position might look very bad in the short-term, but assess that the public has a short memory for such waffling.

This reminds me of Chuck Yeager. Chuck was first an ace aviation mechanic. After becoming an an ace mechanic, he became a flying ace. After becoming a flying ace, he became an ace test pilot. This background enabled him to wisely break the rules to gain an advantage. In one case, he bent the exhaust pipe of his plane inward slightly to condense the heat into the engine, which made it run stronger. He knew from his mechanic days that the plane could tolerate the increased heat. He knew that there was a margin of error built in, and he exploited it.

Similarly, I would imaging that an ace political adviser knows when making an assertion that goes against the grain of public opinion or the party line is not going to be as damaging as might widely be thought. Like Yeager, whose deep knowledge enable him to profitable break the rules, a seasoned politico can position himself/herself in the vanguard of social change by knowing when eyebrows can safely be raised for a long-term advantage.