Coronavirus

Brigantium said:
case numbers aren't massively high here,
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I take that back. I just checked and there were 144 positive test results in this town today (92 yesterday, 72 day before), plus almost 300 in the three neighbouring towns just a few miles away.
 
Here are a few positive outcomes I hope for out of the current situation:

1) People will start taking personal hygiene seriously again.
2) Employees will be encouraged to take sick leave, instead of working until they drop for fear of being thought to be skiving, and thus infecting all their colleagues,
3) Many employers will have discovered that home working really is a practical proposition - and in some situations can actually work better than having everyone in the office for the sake of it.
4) This will lead to less traffic, less pollution and less stress all round.
5) People will appreciate more the things they really value, and also realise a few things they are relieved to be shot of ...
 
Brigantium said:
Happy New Tier! I was a bit surprised we got Tier 4 because case numbers aren't massively high here, but they are rising fast. I really think they need to consider more options with schools. All the cases I personally know of have started with kids bringing it home, or someone who works in a school bringing it home and spreading it to their family.

They're very very hesitant to keep schools closed and I don't think it's genuinely anything to do with protecting vulnerable children or denting those awesome career prospects of people from seriously disadvantaged backgrounds like they say...more like providing childcare so companies don't lose staff hours and an obsession with whipping everyone from an early age into being behind a desk 9-5. But given that schools have been complaining about overcrowding for years, I don't see how there can be any proper social distancing. Splitting schools so one or two year groups every day are at home might be a better way of doing it, just to reduce bodies crammed into corridors coughing and breathing germs everywhere.

It's still very early days working out if/how much the new variant is driving the rapid rise in cases, but I've read a couple of reports now that suggest covid-compliant workplace rules are no longer effective, even when done properly. A workplace in Cumbria - I think it was an office environment but not seen confirmation of that - recently had 50% of staff go down with Covid, even though they'd had very rigid rules in place. A lot of things can feed into that, like staff giving each other lifts or socialising outside of work, and windows being firmly shut in winter, but it suggests that aerosol transmission might be more of an issue with the new variant, as the viral load appears to be higher.
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This doctor does not seem to think the new variant is to blame, but people flouting the rules and being careless.

www.bbc.com

Covid rule-breakers 'have blood on their hands'

An intensive care doctor tells BBC Radio 5 Live the rise in cases is down to people not social distancing.
www.bbc.com www.bbc.com
 
GhostofCain said:
Of course, but let’s prioritise those more likely to die from Covid-19, right?
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It's incredibly important that we immunize the high risk first. The biggest danger from COVID right now is overwhelming the medical system, as is starting to happen again in California, Texas, Arizona, Alberta, and many areas in Europe. By immunizing those most likely to need emergency care, we can hopefully keep beds open for those who need it.
 
GhostofCain said:
This doctor does not seem to think the new variant is to blame, but people flouting the rules and being careless.

www.bbc.com

Covid rule-breakers 'have blood on their hands'

An intensive care doctor tells BBC Radio 5 Live the rise in cases is down to people not social distancing.
www.bbc.com www.bbc.com
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I live in a block of 7 houses. 2 of the houses are empty most of the time. Both of the people in these houses are not working over the Christmas break and they are not home. This is really frustrating as they are clearly visiting their families over the Christmas break. We are in tier 4 as well. This is the problem. Too many people can't make sacrifices for one bloody year.

I am getting more and more pissed off with peoples' selfish behaviour. I know there are mitigating circumstances where people have to look after ill relatives but we have to try and maintain our distance. It equally pisses me off because my mum is a care home worker. If the hospitals are over-crowded, people are discharged into her home to free up the beds. If one of those brings in the virus it will rip through the home and take many people with it. These are people my mum adores and gave up her Christmas day and boxing day for. I'm sick of the argument that the majority of people dying are suffering already or who have underlying conditions. It sounds like something out of the Nazi Germany T4 handbook. The people my mum cares for are still human and many have a lot of time left.

Anyway, rant over.
 
Certainly lack of social distancing is a big factor. It feels like those of us who are doing it are now a small minority. Far too many people think it doesn't apply to their extended family and their mates, as long as they stay away from strangers.

How do these people think people who could never afford to go out drinking, and people whose grandkids and third cousins live thousands of miles away, cope with life?
 
I received the vaccine two days before new years with no side effects but a little soreness afterwards. Will get the second dose at the end of this month. Happy about it of course but it doesn't change anything with regards to still wearing the mask, social distancing, limiting contact outside of my work etc etc.
 
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I would have voted for King Diamond myself if it wasn't against an Accept album I've got a soft spot for.
 
Lockdown #3 is go. I think it's number 3, anyway, I've lost count.

Not a lot has changed in this area except they're going to close schools and colleges to all except children of key workers and children from certain vulnerable families, ie the families who need intensive monitoring because of serious welfare concerns. Still a lot of shops are classing themselves as essential....gardening, homewares, DIY, discount hardware and cheap crap stores. So people will still be going on leisure shopping trips.
 
I am really concerned about the impact this is going to have on the mental health of kids (my daughter among them), and the education and future opportunities of many kids.

I mean, education has to stop (the Tory government has done fuck all to equip schools for this situation) but "Communal worship can continue, with social distancing"??? Give me a fucking break.
 
The feeling I have for this now, when looking at the hardest stricken parts of the world (USA, Europe, Latin America) is that the vaccine has shown us the end of the pandemic will come. However, it is a long way to go. Like WW2 which had some definitive turning points that all made the Allied victory seem more certain (most notably Stalingrad and D-day) but a lot of bloodshed happened after that. However, unlike in the war, this is unnecessary "bloodshed" - with vaccines already being distributed, the motivation for complying with counter-virus measures should be bigger. Now we're not looking at an infinite cycle of lockdown-open up-new lockdown, with an uncertain end result, we're talking about lives saved during a finite time horizon.
 
GhostofCain said:
"Communal worship can continue, with social distancing"
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I think lockdowns are going to go for good in a few months time. Because the numbers will show the drop and those closed (schools, and large parts of private sector) will make the necessary pressure to start working normally again. It's absurd that churches are working but schools aren't.
 
GhostofCain said:
I am really concerned about the impact this is going to have on the mental health of kids (my daughter among them), and the education and future opportunities of many kids.

I mean, education has to stop (the Tory government has done fuck all to equip schools for this situation) but "Communal worship can continue, with social distancing"??? Give me a fucking break.
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I do think kids are better at adapting to strange situations than adults who have long held fixed expectations. Plus a lot more of their socialising is online.

I wouldnt worry too much about this affecting their future opportunities. If they have attentive parents and grow up in the right environment and area they're going to have that advantage over a lot of other kids (sad but true). All their age group is in the same position, too.
 
Brigantium said:
I wouldnt worry too much about this affecting their future opportunities. If they have attentive parents and grow up in the right environment and area they're going to have that advantage over a lot of other kids (sad but true). All their age group is in the same position, too.
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Please allow me to worry about this. It is not the kids with attentive parents that worry me, but those who can only get access to education at school for many different reasons. There are many of them who have loving parents but lack access to the relevant technology for remote learning. It was shocking to see how much some of the kids I know had fallen behind during the first lockdown.
 
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