• I think there's some kind of drift going on there with "be honest", where "to be" loses some of its stative quality.

    Why don't you be honest and admit you were wrong?
    Why doesn't he just be quiet when I tell him to?
    * Why doesn't she be at home?

  • Yes, in the question asked in the second person, the 'why don't you be' construction implies an imperative, which doesn't work in the other persons.

About