You're asking the wrong questions.
How could Harris lose?
What did the Democratic Party do wrong?
Why didn’t the Democrats do more/less of XYZ?
What happened to all of the voters from 2020?
Stop it. Just stop it.
You can spend the next few weeks running numbers, researching topics, and interviewing experts to get strong, evidence-backed answers to these questions. And you can pat yourself on the back for all the work you did to tell the Democratic Party and progressives how they got it wrong.
Good job on investigating pointless fucking questions 😄
About 10 years ago, I recognized the power asking the right questions could create. The chasm between asking yourself “Why am I a failure?” versus “How can I improve myself?” are massive! Close and yet, the potential answers are worlds different. Hence, the outcomes of these answers will lead to vastly different worlds!
Another example, imagine you see a parent whose child is throwing a tantrum, tossing toys, and hitting the parent. The knee-jerk reaction is to ask “WTF is wrong with that kid?” Not “Is there anything I can do to help that parent?” or “How might I show grace to that parent who’s struggling right now?”
Simply asking new questions will cause you to see the same problem substantially differently. Don’t take my word for it. Search online for the “the power of questions” and find a resource you like. Maybe what I’m proposing is also “the power of asking the right questions” or even “the power of asking worthy questions.” Let’s lean into this idea of “worthy questions” to apply to America right now.
Worthy questions for America
All the questions of the Democratic party are unworthy to me. Simply because this places the blame for cultural norms solely on the shoulders of Democrats. They are culpable and have a heavy hand in weaving the current reality we exist in. But, the Democrats missteps in reaching the American people is one side of the coin. We often ignore looking at the other side of the coin. Not because it’s ugly and ghastly - but because we might see familiar faces over there. Including our own.
But, I’m going to start pushing these questions and hope others start asking them, too!
Why are 70 million Americans OK voting for someone who led a violent coup attempt in 2021?
What can be ethically done so these 70 million recognize that they actually aren’t safe under his leadership?
Why are we tolerant of media that’s afraid to call this man a fascist?
What have we done wrong as a society to uphold a pathological liar as a role model for our kids to see?
Why are we ok with half of our country abiding hatred?
How might we rebuild our society so that we aren’t so morally bankrupt?
Personally, I think we’re too chicken shit to answer these questions. We want 5-minute answers that are going to give us a dopamine hit until the next shitty thing comes along. These questions aren’t about one election - they’re about deeply-rooted questions that are hard to answer. So, I implore you to be brave and think of answers to these questions. Also, think of your own questions that go beyond this!
We need more questions. And we need more bravery.
Asking worthy questions until we get worthy answers is a brave step in my book.
To my “worthy questions” above, I don’t have the answers for them. And that’s the beautiful thing about it. I might not know answers to them, but I’m willing to keep asking and learning along the way with others.