"Don't repeat yourself without a clear reason for doing so" isn't really different at all from what most people mean when they say, "DRY". It's just removed from the ultra-literalistic interpretive context that too many Internet commentators apply to admonitions and guidelines of all sorts.
No developer who says, "DRY" actually means, "Never, ever repeat yourself." No developer who offers advice of any kind expects that it applies under all circumstances. We still phrase it in strict, prescriptive terms because it retains more of its moral force that way.
Anyone who expects pithy development advice to note exceptions is interpreting it in a juvenile way.
I'm afraid our experience is very different. I find the programming world to be full of people who will interpret guidelines like DRY with almost religious dogmatism, particularly if anyone Internet famous can be cited as the source.
Having been a mentor to many younger and less experienced programmers when they started working professionally, I have been the guy who had to clear up their absolute, literal belief in these sayings. Some people will quickly understand and accept that the world isn't as black and white as perhaps their CS course/favourite blogger/previous boss said or that they have taken rules of thumb too literally. Some never really do understand that, and their code reflects their lack of understanding and often looks like it was written to comply with every saying under the sun as its primary goal.
No developer who says, "DRY" actually means, "Never, ever repeat yourself." No developer who offers advice of any kind expects that it applies under all circumstances. We still phrase it in strict, prescriptive terms because it retains more of its moral force that way.
Anyone who expects pithy development advice to note exceptions is interpreting it in a juvenile way.