Neoconservatives, to come full circle, could renovate their thinking just as much as any other school of thought, by sketching out a principled plan for consolidation and withdrawal to strong, defensible lines.
The Mirrlees review has some useful ideas on how to square the circle: indeed, perhaps its biggest message is that thinking holistically about the tax system helps resolve some of these conflicts.
When you see that happen in your circle of friends or publicly (thanks to the Internet), usually your response includes thinking that the guy has stopped being a man, is overcompensating for something else, and probably should stop crying and get over it.