an argument seen surprisingly often

It’s remarkable how often I’ve been seeing versions of the following in various places:

“Yes, what I just said may sound incredibly jerkish, selfish, and in human terms utterly obtuse. But I can’t help it. I care too much about the truth.”

Sorry, but that doesn’t work. And in such cases you can almost always be sure that “the truth” is not what has preceded the self-congratulatory statement. The truth can generally be stated in terms that don’t insult one or more of the addressees. And even more importantly, people who are truly committed to it don’t need to tell you so.