Is there ever value in meanness?

I have had several situations over the last few days where I have had to question my motives and manners. I have always been a very direct person and that at times has been confused by others as being rude. But if I am going to be totally honest, I think that sometimes I am mistaking rudeness for being direct. It is so easy to think that others are mistaking what we are doing or saying rather than us misspeaking or just flat out being wrong. I consider myself a pretty intelligent guy and I quite often find myself thinking that I know more than the person I am speaking to. That is a really bad character flaw for me. The bible tells us that humility is one of the most important traits we should strive for. True humility is a lot harder than we think. We can all fake humility and most of the time others will believe us, but if in our hearts we remain arrogant we have not pleased God. So the the question I have been forced to ask myself is as follows: "Is there ever value in meanness?" The easy answer is no. But is that the best answer? I like to watch a T.V. show called "House" and the lead character is just an ASS to everyone he comes into contact with. He belittles others and ignores their feelings on a regular basis. But in doing this he always solves the puzzle in front of them. So in turn, he saves their lives! He is very intelligent and usually is much smarter than those he is dealing with. He and his co-workers excuse his behavior because he is so good at what he does and the results are unbelievably good. I only talk about this character so much because I feel like I am a lot like him. I have had a lot of success in my career and that success has allowed me to be a jackass at times. I am not proud of being that! As I mature I have come to realize that the result is not the most important thing. People are the most important thing! If the results are there at the end and you are standing there by yourself, it isn't worth it. So in my opinion, there is not value in meanness, only pain. And the pain is not only to the one on the receiving end, it is to everybody involved!