‘How Many More Times Shall I Apologize?’

Anna Sorokin (right) and the actress, Julia Garner (left), who played her in Inventing Anna

Anna Sorokin really isn’t that different from many other fraudulent, exploitative people. She, like them, fails to grasp that her communication of regret and responsibility isn’t yet sounding credible — and it annoys her.

The pretend heiress and criminal scammer has had enough though of being questioned about her scandalous behavior and explanations about it.

“How many more times shall I apologize,” Sorokin said with stress and annoyance to News Nation Host Chris Cuomo in a recent interview, an interaction written about in the New York Post by Patrick Reilly.

That question likely feels and sounds extremely reasonable in her head.

Before rhetorically, pointedly asking it of Cuomo and all her critics, Sorokin communicated an explanation.

“I said I regret a lot of decisions I made when I was younger and I think I should be afforded a chance to move on with my life. How many more times shall I apologize?”

First, for those who may not know who she is, Sorokin conned people for years, “pretending she was a wealthy German heiress named Anna Delvey, convicted in 2019 on a number of New York state charges related to her years-long scamming spree,” Reilly writes, adding that she has a “criminal conviction for scamming hundreds of thousands of dollars from banks, businesses and rich pals.”

Back to what she said:

“I regret a lot of decisions I made when I was younger…”

That should resonate admirably yet Sorokin self sabotages her communication objective with what she says immediately afterward.

“I think I should be afforded a chance to move on with my life.”

Maybe that seems innocuous or correct to you yet not everyone will similarly see it. It will instead be judged as Sorokin’s ongoing self interest, attempt to quickly bury a serious crime and financial, emotional abuse.

Of course, Sorokin should be able to learn from her impulses, selfish decision-making and legal correction and go on and live her life.

The problem is she is expecting to forgotten or forgiven despite the outrageous, planned, habitual, felonious behavior and crimes committed that created victims. Sorokin doesn’t want to be continually humble about it, address the narcissism that was involved, commit to helping others learn from her story and prevent people from becoming future victims.

So the focus on self interest, followed by the critics’ expectation on her of being expected to continue apologizing is too much to bear for her emotionally and psychologically.

She wants the stain of her actions — and them being associated with her name — gone, forevermore.

Good news for Sorokin: Many people have forgiven, forgotten and don’t care. Now, the bad news: Some will never forget, forgive, trust, stop judging or stop communicating about her name in a negative light.

That’s the cross she will have to learn to endure for the shockingly selfish behavior. Complaining about the reaction of one’s worst critics or the public in general — as humans come to learn regardless of whether the criticism and anger is right or wrong — doesn’t change for the better what goes on in critics’ minds and how they react to your name and you.

Choosing not to publicly complain and show indignance at the judgement, anger, communication and expectations that are upsetting can however, at times, prevent a new tidal wave of negativity.

Sorokin will learn, maybe, a lot more apologies and clear signs of sincere remorse in words and action, are going to be expected.

That doesn’t mean she has to live up to those standards yet it does mean that over time if she chooses the hard way and does what people want, Sorokin can lessen the frequency and intensity of negativity directed at her and that a dulling of the anger can develop and a happier life can be hers.

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