Here’s hoping for a comeback of ‘teachable moments’

Thanks to Congressman-Elect Dan Crenshaw’s example, we have a choice.

Leading by example like the best of them. Credit: Crenshaw for Congress

The space for fake teachable moments seems crowded these days. In a politically polarized environment where each side’s mission is to prevent the other from winning, it’s easy to see why. What’s the point of actually learning how to do better in the wake of a controversy when “lock her up!” or “punch a fascist!” nearly guarantees a cortisol hit, to say nothing of being easy to type and tweet out. Sadly, teachable moments have been reduced to battle bludgeons in a culture war whose objective is mutually assured moral preening.

But Congressman-Elect Dan Crenshaw’s appearance last weekend on Saturday Night Live may signal a teachable moment comeback exactly because his aim wasn’t to deliver a teachable moment. It worked because it was as simple and pure as a child’s honesty. And it comes at a time when people seem convinced that zero-sum game politics is here to stay.

In hindsight, what happened was a perfect storm of man, message and moment. Each on their own almost certainly…