Except for truly huge and obvious differences, I wonder if there is much value in trying to use political or cultural differences to explain the progress of a virus in a population. Crediting authoritarian versus more liberal regimes with more disease-fighting prowess. Or congratulating Minnesotans on their greater degree of docility in compliance with directives to account for relatively small differences in infection rates.

There are so many other factors. Demographic. Geographic. Transportation infrastructure. Sheer random chance. I don’t see this disease as ammunition for credible political or cultural claims.