Merlino is done with The Life so he can do whatever the fuck he wants. He's no longer one of them. For all we know he might just be doing this to push back against the rats since no one else will do it and everyone seems to be rat lovers out there. People's criticism of Merlino reminds me of when people would question Joe Bonanno’s omerta and criticize him for writing a book and doing interviews AFTER being kicked out of the Mafia. Just like Merlino, Bonanno was no longer a Mafioso so he could do whatever the fuck he wanted.