Current Affairs Coronavirus Thread - Serious stuff !!!

[Minimeister]

No offence lads/ladies but the U.K. is in the middle of a storm, exponential growth is worrying, testing, contract tracing infrastructure not in place, struggling with PPE etc. Current European epicentre.

Id be hoping for an announcement on an extended lockdown, rather then worrying about when lock down will be lifted. I can understand all the reasons people want lockdown lifted. But I’m surprised people can’t see the U.K. are in the grip of a tough period of this. The Lock down in place comparatively light to other countries.

Seriously would you want to go catch a rammed bus in the morning to head to work, sit in an office with peop,e coughing and spluttering, hit a busy bar, restaurant or shopping centre If lock down was lifted in the morning.

Not a chance.

Can't understand why London hasn't had a complete lockdown what with their rates and the way people are still cramming onto the tube. Surely it can't be much longer.

 

[ForeverBlue92]

What happened to the use of plasma from people who have had the virus?

Read somewhere its been used in China and has started in places like France & US but im sure I saw that the UK may start trials in "the coming weeks".

The term "coming weeks" seems to apply to us alot at present.

 

[ramacca]

Can't understand why London hasn't had a complete lockdown what with their rates and the way people are still cramming onto the tube. Surely it can't be much longer.

Mate, planes are still coming into this country and the passengers are not being tested for coronavirus. It's unbelievably negligent for the welfare of the British people.

 

[Neiler]

Can't understand why London hasn't had a complete lockdown what with their rates and the way people are still cramming onto the tube. Surely it can't be much longer.

Its a good point mate. I’ve been thinking for a while about what measures I’d implement for a second lockdown and lessons learned.

I think many countries have been reluctant to put specific areas into lockdown and keep others open.

With the virus it tends to outbreak and spread quickly in large dense areas that see an awful lot of proxmity and are international transfer hub.

For the next lockdown I think countries need look at specific region lockdown, and dealing with any marginal spread. Federalise the country into health regions, that can be locked down if necessary while others kept open if possible. This could help with the spread of the virus, or maybe slow it. But also enable perhaps parts of the economy to keep working.

It would be one of the options I think on the table to manage a second wave or lock down.

Would need to be really well planned though and really well managed as their would be risks too.

 

[scratchnsurf]

I see teachers want to continue to have a holiday at taxpayers expense.

UK schools will not reopen straight after Easter, officials say

No 10 and national governments insist it will only happen when scientific advice says it is safe

www.theguardian.com

Every holiday teachers have is at the taxpayers expense.

 

[Zezti]

I see teachers want to continue to have a holiday at taxpayers expense.

UK schools will not reopen straight after Easter, officials say

No 10 and national governments insist it will only happen when scientific advice says it is safe

www.theguardian.com

They've been open for the children of essential workers throughout Easter break when they wouldn't normally.

 

[BlueToff]

There will certainly be other examples to look at to see what to do and what not to do. Korea have from the start been a good example but to this point it has not been an example that was followed. And right now the UK isn't in position to follow it even if Korea's next steps do work as intended.

I'm hoping for June 1 as a start of getting to normal again. If it is mid May and everything that needs to be in place is than I'll be ecstatic but I just can't really see it at the moment.

Numerous times I've said we should have done what Korea did. Or Singapore etc - other places which had initial and in some case continued success.

We can still look at those as examples but unfortunately we did not act quickly enough in the early stages (end of Jan, through Feb) so we are where we are now aren't we, and all we can do atm is continue the lockdown while upping the tests.

Just to be clear, I'm not saying mid-May to be 'back to normal' as a definite.

It just seems - right now, given how this virus has swept through already and how other European countries slightly ahead of us have witnessed - it could be a reasonable point to start easing off certain measures. That definitely won't mean 'normality' at all. But there can be certain things which are eased (perhaps things like hairdressers and cafes - only takeout or whatever - are allowed to open).

There was a really interesting article about Denmark's proposal of how to do it which will start, as it stands, from April 14th, with tentative measures to have their economy back up and running by mid May (but no large gatherings until at least July 1 is their rule).

This is what I mean about looking to those countries and getting ideas of how to do it too. We are in the unique position of having some warning. We didn't take advantage of it before but we absolutely have to when the next opportunity comes around to do so.

It's also about pushing off a second wave as long as possible, but hiding away won't achieve much in that case. Even if infection rates go down below .1, which is the aim, over a sustained time (i.e. 10-14 days), then the issue will be when a second wave comes the rate will shoot right up again because we don't have immunity or a vaccine. And lockdown will come and more economic and social damage will be inflicted and ultimately, in the long run, more deaths.

 

[Nymzee]

The only country that looks to be over the peak and can consider relaxing the rules is China and we know they chat a bag of wham.

We have still got a long way to go.

 

[Tommy F]

Bottom line is that if you remove social contact completely for a month, it disappears, there are no hosts to transmit to. We cannot do that because some things have to continue but with enough discipline we could manage it. It's only the idiots who would keep this going. What we do about people coming in from infected countries is another matter.

 

[YoboCopter]

If i stop and think about it still seems so mad, i try not to tbh

Roll on the good times when ever they may be...

 

[BlueToff]

 

[BlueToff]

Bottom line is that if you remove social contact completely for a month, it disappears, there are no hosts to transmit to. We cannot do that because some things have to continue but with enough discipline we could manage it. It's only the idiots who would keep this going. What we do about people coming in from infected countries is another matter.

This isn't proven though.

The main worry about this whole thing is how it spreads and how some people don't show symptoms (was it around 70% according to certain studies).

You can't just put a month on it and say that's the answer, because it isn't.

 

[BlueToff]

@Toffee in Jandals How is it in NZ mate?

Still have a friend near Hamilton. His girlfriend has bad asthma so they're staying in anyway but he says the measures are pretty tight?

Looks like you guys have it under control, though, hopefully!

 

[ilikecheese]

The idiot's on the right here in the states are saying the media overblew the whole thing, while forgetting that potentially millions of lives were saved because the media overblew the whole thing.

Round 2 is around the corner based on right wing media. The Spanish Flu in 1918 was round two if you haven't been interested to avoid repeating history.

 

[Neiler]

The massive worry today in the number of deaths posted in the U.K.

It’s bigger then Italy‘s worst day and 40 behind Spain’s. It’s the exponential growth from here and whether it continues to rise or drop.

Both Italy and Spain managed to flatten the curve from this apex, the U.K. have to hope to this in the coming days. If the U.K. can manage that from here, they are tracking less cumulative deaths then Italy and Spain and can work on a downward trajectory.