People know what they're doing, even when it's irrational and stupid. Often, people look back on their own actions and say, "I can't believe I said/did that." This proves they know that they were doing it. Maybe they didn't know WHY they were doing it, but they still know they did it. Most are too forgiving. They assume that what someone else did was so mistaken or irrational that it's not possible they knew they were doing it. Perhaps they think if they can be this forgiving to others, they can also be that way towards themselves. All this does is cause people to escape responsibility. But if you think about it, there's no way to truly "escape responsibility." That's because responsibility refers to the objective fact that for all actions there are consequences. You can choose to pretend there are no consequences for your actions; that much is a choice. But either way: The consequences exist. Accepting (and assigning) responsibility for one's choices means facing reality. Facing reality is always a good thing. Facing the reality of your mistakes opens the door for corrections. Only fools refuse to accept and face responsibility, and only fools excuse it away in others.