Current Affairs Coronavirus Thread - Serious stuff !!!

[davek]

Any intervention that reduces mixing and puts in the public consciousness that things are more serious will have an effect on spread.

It remains to be seen how much (I think more should've been done because of where we told ourselves) but it buys some time. I think the real worry is Christmas, for the likely spread and the god awful press it would bring. So the measures seem to hope to reduce steadily towards Xmas in the hope that hospitality stays afloat and deaths/hospitalisation isn't too widespread.

That yesterday was a glass hammer.

Nothing changed when we needed a complete reset.

The 'very high' level of restrictions are pathetic. Pubs that can turn into restaurants and beat the shutdown; restaurants left wide open. They were the two places that needed to be shut right down if any impact on infection emanating from hospitality were to be made; instead we had betting offices and gyms thrown under the bus in their place.

This government (and the local civic leaders) just condemned the Liverpool City Region to a runaway plague. Yesterday will go down as a calamity.

 

[ToffeeTim]

Instead of a 2 week circuit break we have a patchwork quilt of gossamer light 'restrictions' which will do almost nothing...and it'll lead to a long term complete shutdown in a month or so.

Christmas has just been cancelled.

Does a 2 week "circuit break" make any tangible difference though?

I've heard some who work in health say it wouldn't and we need a far longer period of intense lockdown. That's why I am not able to support further lockdown. If a 2 week period would make a big difference then of course I could accept it, but I'm very sceptical.

 

[Deleted member 48881]

Johnson & Johnson pauses Covid vaccine trial over participant's 'unexplained illness'

Company is unclear about whether patient was receiving vaccine or placebo in 60,000-patient study

www.theguardian.com

 

[Deleted member 48881]

Obv in the minority but I don't think vaccine will be available even next March, we should get back to normal asap

 

[davek]

Does a 2 week "circuit break" make any tangible difference though?

I've heard some who work in health say it wouldn't and we need a far longer period of intense lockdown. That's why I am not able to support further lockdown. If a 2 week period would make a big difference then of course I could accept it, but I'm very sceptical.

It would stop the exponential growth and allow the hospitals to get some breating space a few weeks down the line. But yes, a 2 week break wouldn't have been my solution. A far longer period up to Christmas is needed.

 

[davek]

Obv in the minority but I don't think vaccine will be available even next March, we should get back to normal asap

I'm pretty sure they can roll out a vaccine of some potency right now. The delivery of a vaccine will be the issue. Logistic rather than science will be the key problem to solve.

 

[Nymzee]

Obv in the minority but I don't think vaccine will be available even next March, we should get back to normal asap

Getting "back to normal" will kill thousands of people.

 

[tsubaki]

Getting "back to normal" will kill thousands of people.

tens of thousands of people

 

[Foot Long Hot Dog]

I don't really trust anyone involved and credibility is extremely low right now. I just believe another lockdown is enormously counterproductive. If that's the only solution our government or advisors can come up with, then we have big problems.

It's been 8 months now and we need long term solutions. Lockdowns were short term measures and the right measure back in March but they are only about buying time for the health service.

Did you actually read it?

They proposed a 2 week lock down to halt the exponential growth.

The long term solution was either vaccine or a truly effective trace, track and test system. They failed to used the time they bought with the lockdown effectively, it’s not even a debate. We are where are now as a direct result of that failure.

 

[tsubaki]

Have to agree to disagree on this. I think unfortunately there are decisions to make and none of them are nice decisions.

no, but like climate change will be these decisions are having to be made because idiotic politicians didn’t use the time given to them to make sensible preparations

 

[Nymzee]

A full lockdown again won't "work" but not because of the actual lockdown part, just the coming out of it.

 

[the sniderman]

buddies some of u voted tory so instead of deflecting you really need to take responsibility. you were warned too friends but i forgive u.

 

[zzr45]

Yeah, I mean who to trust on this, a committee of medical experts or Johnson & Sunak. Toughie

Yes, because it's an entirely binary choice.
We have ’experts’ handpicked for roles by this government that are rapidly showing they are unable to advise on this pandemic. Valance, Witty et Al we're supposed to be in charge of pandemic planning prior to this. We had Neil Ferguson pulling numbers out his arse. The government are the pits but giving the three stooges a pass because they aren't Boris is some stretch.

They aren’t - dealing with pandemics is not completely unknown science, we have genuinely world class experts in this country who are giving the correct advice, and have been since the start of this.

The problem is that this advice is being at worst ignored, or compared against political concerns that do not exist.

They completely failed to prepare for a pandemic, which was part of their role. The response has been slow, and they seem unable to influence decision making. As a leadership against a crisis they are just as at blame as Johnson, Hancock and the rest.

 

[BlueToff]

A full lockdown again won't "work" but not because of the actual lockdown part, just the coming out of it.

So there needs to be some other solution until a vaccine comes along because as it stands, worldwide in general, lockdown is the only way they know how to combat it

Unfortunately given it's winter in Europe it'd be extremely dangerous to try and open things back up fully again, I know.

 

[NilSatisOptimum]

Obv in the minority but I don't think vaccine will be available even next March, we should get back to normal asap

Listen to Johnson in Parliament yesterday when Steve Baker asked him how long for a vaccine, Johnson would not even commit to this decade...

Trouble with the UK, it is so far behind in having the ICU beds and staff that many other countries have, people will simply die in the UK who would not have done so in Germany Spain France etc...