EAS_Agrippa t1_j0feaf5 wrote on December 16, 2022 at 6:03 AM

It’s a title, not a governmental distinction. We have state government, state stores, state troopers. Pennsylvania is 1 of 50 states in the United States, we are a state. Having said that we are the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania…it’s our name.

You can argue we are a state by every reasonable metric and you would be correct, expect that we call ourselves something different. We have chosen to do that, and when referring to the state, it should be referred to as the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

You might call a man who you think is named Tom, well let say Fred by mistake. There’s nothing wrong with that, but when they say “hey I’m Tom, not Fred,” if you keep calling them Fred, you’re the asshole.

KokoExpress t1_j0fjtii wrote on December 16, 2022 at 7:08 AM

Underrated comment

bengenj t1_j0j8mtw wrote on December 17, 2022 at 1:28 AM

Virginia, Massachusetts, Kentucky are also commonwealths. The Commonwealth of Virginia, The Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

IamSauerKraut t1_j0jka0g wrote on December 17, 2022 at 3:06 AM

Massholechusetts can be a sad state of mind.

GraffitiTavern t1_j0m4ftr wrote on December 17, 2022 at 6:34 PM

When I was in high school, I learned that we were a commonwealth because we had a less centralized government, later of course I learned PA is one of the more decentralized states with the strength of local government and strong regional character, but that has exactly zero to do with being a commonwealth.

Personally, I like the name, I think it sets us apart and the kind of old-timey charm of the name fits with the rich history PA has.