Is it fair for someone in Oklahoma to pay higher insurance premiums to help cover the cost of insuring much more expensive homes in New York, Florida or California? That's either via insurance premiums and/or taxation to fund government aid in the event of a disaster? Is it fair that much higher earners in larger urban areas pay much more for their homes and insurance and their higher wages don't buy much more than those living in lower cost/lower income areas?

Is it fair to be moan the tax rates paid by some of the ultra-rich when the dollar amounts they pay (even at lower rates due to tax breaks), are notably more than those earning much less while still receiving about the same benefits from the government? Should a worker at an Amazon or Walmart warehouse be paid less than that which allows them to afford housing, food, education, healthcare, and some savings for retirement (the rest of us have to subsidize this)? Should we complain about the unaffordability of eggs while affording to spend lots on gambling or other vices?  Should a government employee pay zero taxes on overtime, but real estate agents or lawyers who work 65 hours per week pay full taxes on their hours in excess of 40 hours per week? Should a homeowner who builds a new house pay double the real estate taxes of their next-door neighbor (just because they are new to town) so their neighbor can pay less?

Does a private exclusive real estate listing restrict access to information to consumers or is this information quite easily searchable, but just not everywhere? Who decides? Should price gouging laws in a crisis apply to rents but not to food or paper towels?

We have officially entered an era of asking tough questions. And the reason this has exploded is because the volume of media entities has multiplied and expanded dramatically via podcasts, social media and other new media outlets, including individual's hand-held media empires, thereby multiplying the questions we ask. Asking tough questions is always invaluable when aimed at helping formulate real, practical solutions. Tough questions help identify flaws and strengths. Doing so helps address imbalances and bad policies. It can help distinguish between fact and fiction. It can identify big mistakes and future problems. The alternative is simply the desperate (and often profitable) silly, conspiracy-style questioning by those who need to garner attention via scandal and drama. Worse, avoiding tough questions is akin to avoiding the inevitable. We should embrace this era of tough questions as we evolve and navigate a smarter path forward