Rule of threes

In a long and interesting post on sociopathic behaviour, John at Counago & Spaves lists 13 rules 'for dealing with sociopaths in everyday life'. Some of them are more widely applicable:

Make the Rule of Threes your personal policy. One lie, one broken promise, or a single neglected responsibility may be a misunderstanding. Two may involve a serious mistake. But three lies says you're dealing with a liar, and deceit is the linchpin of conscienceless behaviour.
.....
Do not try to redeem the unredeemable. Second, third, fourth and fifth chances are for people who possess conscience.

Read the rest.