As long as there is a Devil, then anything goes.
On social media many excuse unethical behavior when called out on a specific behavior because someone else may have done some similiar thing. This method of defense proves the orginal claim of unethical behavior, it does not disprove the unethical allegations, it only says "Well, there is someone else as bad so..".
As long as their is a devil, then anything goes.
The pastor at your Church is molesting the choir. One of the choir children tell their parents and the parents confront the pastor. The group is understandably upset at the pastor who is dead to rights caught for permenantly harming the children. But the pastor says, "The pastor over at the other Church he rapes the choir boys!" or "Show me the punishment of the pastor over there who rapes choir boys". And the crowd, goes home.
Because there is a devil, anything goes.
When people who are being called out for unethical behavior deflect to some other perceived ethical breach to excuse their action they are simply saying they are guilty, and that there is a Devil, so anything goes.
Look closely, in today's environment, the deflection is usually to allegations, or suspected, which are easily made up and inflated on social media. There is intential unethical behavior being pushed through in our Government right now. In order to make it work, first, accusations of similiar behavior were thrown at people, with cause or not. So that when the purpetrator performs the unethical behavior they can deflect it to the supposed bad behavior of someone else.
You see now that deflection is a statement of guilt. It does not aleviate the accusations. Just because there is a devil, doesn't mean you get to do whatever you want. An argument of look at that devil over there, doesn't get you to walk. It means you lack ethical principles, you do not stand on moral ground. It prooves you are an unethical person.