John Galban wrote:

With the advent of approximately 1 AFSS for each
state (with the exception of Alaska), much of that expertise
disappeared and, more often than not, a briefing turned into a canned
reading of a standard report, from a specialist that could be located
in a windowless room, hundreds of miles away.

This is 100% the fault of the lawyers. The FAA and thus the taxpayers,
cannot afford to have briefers with local knoweledge. Some guy that
knows you should fly over this mountain pass but not that one when the
weather goes to hell is a luxury that the lawyers do not allow the FAA
to have. FSS does not ever suggest anything helpful to you anymore,
they simply read you the weather and you are forced to make your own
interpretation. Because of the lawyers.