"The original point however had to do with the similarities, culturally and economically speaking, between the California situation, and Scotland. In both cases there isn't much to compare. California is much more significantly "different" from the entire country east of the Mississippi (save significant chunks of Florida) than Scotland is from England. (Quite honestly, N.I. is "more different" than Scotland is). Economically, California is a "legitimate" economy in its own right, and would be a significant loss to the US, and a major player on the world stage (probably qualifying for G20 status). Scotland, not so much".

The original point was the "difference" between California and the rest of America versus the difference between Scotland and England.

California -- actually the Pacific Northwest, overall, is "different" than much of the rest of the country, but then the "heartland" states of Nebraska, Iowa, and the Dakotas are also "different" in their own rights, so it's hard to point to "California" as being
uniquely "different".

More importantly, the Scots, or at least a significant number of them, seem to disagree on this "we're all one" notion,

and I'd say it's their opinion, more than yours or mine at least, which is at issue here.