"I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings" strikes me as one of the biggest cop-outs I can imagine. It's not quite as bad as the weasel-worded "I'm sorry if people were offended" (which is often the equivalent of "Oooh, I just punched you in the nose! I'm sorry if your nose hurts!") but it's roughly the equivalent.
"I'm sorry I hurt your feelings" at least avoids the gaslighting aspect, even if the implication intended is "your feelings are too fragile".
no subject
"I'm sorry I hurt your feelings" at least avoids the gaslighting aspect, even if the implication intended is "your feelings are too fragile".