Dear Yuyutsu

I think you are being a bit unfair. For me, the most important benefits of WA’s covid response were that it probably saved hundreds of lives and minimised the misery of lockdowns and other restrictions.

Graham’s article also talked about the cultural and legal differences between California and Florida. Financial and economic matters are often stressed in discussions of competitive federalism, but they are not the only benefits. Federalism allows communities to choose their preferred laws and policies without having to conform to a “one size fits all” model. It contains the damage of failed policies, and gives room to experiment with new ones. These are all points in Graham's analysis.

Dear Rhian,

I agree regarding COVID, but the way things were going at the time I was also hoping that it will trigger the break up of this cursed commonwealth and independence for the states.

That would have eventuated, if not for one word - OMICRON.
And nobody in their right mind would feel sorry that we no longer have to live with Delta.