In two hours time I am going into a meeting to sell a technology company to a large Indian IT company. The CEO and CFO are with me and their lawyer. The deal might happen, it might not, it probably will at this late stage.
Whatever happens, I could theoretically be accused or maligned of manipulating the players and selling the company too cheap or two expensive. I need a paper trail to show I have acted in good faith.
Bishop Fellay was approached by Rome, he considered it prudent to negotiate, he did that, he kept part of the negotiation secret, ( a mistake in my opinion which allowed the resistance to imagine what the reasons might be for that). Rome played silly buggers and no agreement could be reached.
I negotiate such deals frequently and I can't remember the last one which went to plan. There is good will, bad lawyers, bad will good lawyers, sharks, saints, politics at both companies, sabotage, it's a minefield. CEOs can lose their job or career if a deal goes wrong or fails.
Obviously, the SSPX has to be able to adjust its position according to the prudential circuмstances of the moment. So, for example, when the Internet first exploded in the late 1990 they were dead against it. It was evil, unknown, full of porn. Now, they have 10-20 websites and post videos to YouTube and make podcasts. Prudence won over principle.
Looked at with the glasses of the mid 1990s people might think Williamson was on drugs to allow such a proximate occasion of sin to occur and wonder why he did not send the videos out on VHS tape. It is a prudential judgement. Most Catholics can avoid clicking on Rhianna's hot pants, we hope.
Barring a Divine chastisement and the destruction of Rome, at some point Rome will have a Pope who is good willed and ready to accept the SSPX back without compromise, but the time will never be perfect, because Rome has never been perfect. There will always be risk in any rapprochement.
Some people will always imagine bad will on the part of one or both parties.