On balance, there may be worse things in life than sending someone pictures of yourself in your underpants.
However, there may be fewer more ill-advised things, especially if you've never met the recipient and you happen to be a politician held in some regard.
For his intimately twittered transgression, Anthony Weiner paid a certain price and that price was what, in some media, is defined by the word "disgrace." It seems odd that this word might be damning, as it is one so often used to describe politicians.
Some might have imagined that Weiner would seek a quieter, more contemplative life after events which saw the Democratic Representative for New York resign in 2011 for his socially networked unseemliness.
A decent amount of time has passed, however, and Weiner seems to be girding his loins for a run at the mayor's office. With this perhaps in mind, he has returned again to the place of alleged disgrace, Twitter.
He made a very brief return to his old Twitter account in order to call for assistance for those affected by Hurricane Sandy.
Today, he has created @AnthonyWeiner, a place where you can hear his latest views and buy a new patented brand of deliberately unflattering flesh-colored undergarments called Tone It Down. Actually, that last part isn't true.
Instead Weiner has chosen Monday to offer two tweets, one presenting his 64 proposals for ensuring the middle class prospers in New York and the other pointing out proposal number 54, which seeks to ensure environmentally friendly cabs in New York. Those who will always associate humor with Weiner will offer their relief that he has 64 proposals and not 69.
But in a recent interview with the New York Times, he admitted that, in the past, his ego had become inflated to gargantuan proportions. Interestingly, though, he blamed the ease of his previous indiscretions at Twitter's screen door.
"It's not like I would have gone out cruising bars or something like that. It was just something that technology made possible and it became possible for me to do stupid things," he said.
It's always possible to do stupid things. This particular thing, though, may have made his chance of becoming mayor rather slim. Indeed, the one-man advance electoral commission known as Nate Silver has already decreed Weiner's shot as long.
One assumes that Weiner will continue to employ Twitter in an entirely serious vein. At the time of writing, he already has more than 5,400 followers.
In explaining the need for a new Twitter handle, he told Politico: "It seemed like a fresh start was in order especially in light of all the new ideas around which I am hoping to drive conversation and debate."
His supporters and admirers will be hoping that his social steering wheel is a little more centered this time around.