Main Coronavirus / Covid-19 Discussion Thread

[yxee]

Yes, I take the same line as yourself. One thing does bother me, however; BJ is sensibly taking advice from medical experts, and has chosen this path. Fair enough, as this makes sense. But The Irish and scots are presumably having the same advice, yet have gone to more drastic measures. WHY?

The Irish are a different country. And Scotland seems to have agreed? Except for Nicola Sturgeon who seems to have front run the government with a totally inconsistent policy. I'm wondering if they didn't just make that up to react to public concern (ie it was not the scientific advice)

 

[BLOCK F]

Just doing as they’re told by their employers.

Get a grip, Driver.
You are either a moron or a fu...ng moron.

 

[Hugo Rune]

If only you were PM, everything would be OK wouldn't it.:

Idiotic response.

I don’t want to be PM, I missed Johnson’s speech so I’m eager to find out about the plans the poster is referring to. They have stated that Johnson would do things differently, I’m keen to see what the alternative plan would have been?

 

[studio150]

I’m astonished by the lack of action from our Gov’t, and equally astonished that we seem to be using Italy as our model. They also did too little too late. I’d much rather we followed Taiwan’s example.

Yes let's cap the costs of masks and hand them out, even though the evidence is that they don't work.
We also have the NHS which like the Taiwan system doesn't charge for testing (unlike America)

So the only real thing that is different was the more robust screening of visitors from overseas, we are however beyond that stage.

I'm therefore not exactly sure what you want the Government to do,

 

[studio150]

Loads of kids with a dry cough at my place of work tonight. Why aren't they self isolating FFS.

Because it's not a new and persistent cough.

 

[Hugo Rune]

Coronavirus / Covid-19

Closing schools and cancelling sporting fixtures is something to be done for the appearance of doing something.

The Hong Kong model suggests that it can be very effective indeed although I concede that we are way beyond that now. Apparently, they learnt from the SARS epidemic.


https://www.washingtonpost.com/wor...united-states-learn-hong-kong/?outputType=amp

 

[dazzer6666]

Prefaced by the fact I don't know what Johnson is thinking, it should be clear that an optimal response to the pandemic is not something being made up on the hoof but will have been strategised and war-gamed for decades by experts. If all of that planning is to mean anything then we should follow it - which is what I assume Johnson is doing.

Closing schools and cancelling sporting fixtures is something to be done for the appearance of doing something. I strongly suspect many politicians do this so they look decisive and in control - but if the decades of simulating pandemics and refining the response strategy say that it is counter productive or pointless, then it is most likely to be exactly that and it is actually the strongest leader who keeps the plan going in the face of cries to close schools (to be clear - I can't stand Johnson politically)

I'm in London now and there are people everywhere, going to work, in pubs and shops and restaurants, on trains and buses and pavements. What good will cancelling a football match or closing a school do if all the rest of that carries on? Very very little, if any - but it will drop morale and keep a lot of parents busy when they could perhaps be doing a better job as doctors or nurses, police, scientists, reporters, farmers, firemen, shop keepers, pharmacists, lorry drivers and so on. Millions of people have a part to play in getting us through this, and having their kids tucked away somewhere safe during the day will allow them to do so. Moreover, I think teachers will have a big part to play in keeping kids properly educated about what's happening, calm and not panicking in what may very well end up to be a very confusing, frightening and stressful time for them, with family members sick or dying.

I was in Kowloon in early Feb and it was the same there. Bars and restaurants were busy, shopping centres were busy, the MTR was busy.

 

[yxee]

The Hong Kong model suggests that it can be very effective indeed although I concede that we are way beyond that now.

Hong Kong is totally different to the UK, also I'm sceptical about country comparisons as these stats depend totally on how the country chooses to test /how many tests it has access to.

Japan looks like it's doing great but in reality it just isn't choosing to test many people

 

[Driver8]

Get a grip, Driver.
You are either a moron or a fu...ng moron.

Why the need for personal abuse?

 

[BLOCK F]

Idiotic response.

I don’t want to be PM, I missed Johnson’s speech so I’m eager to find out about the plans the poster is referring to. They have stated that Johnson would do things differently, I’m keen to see what the alternative plan would have been?

I apologise. In my hurry, I misread your post.
I have to say, I did listen to the PM's speech online and assuming I heard the full version, I cannot recall him suggesting a 'would do things differently' part.
If you find it out ,let me know.

 

[Hugo Rune]

I apologise. In my hurry, I misread your post.
I have to say, I did listen to the PM's speech online and assuming I heard the full version, I cannot recall him suggesting a 'would do things differently' part.
If you find it out ,let me know.

That’s nice of you to apologise, thanks. Not an idiotic post given the context.

 

[carlzeiss]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNMdg4morQs&feature=emb_logo

 

[daveinplzen]

The Czech response seems bizarre to me. Restarants/bars to close at 8 in the evening for 30 days
is going to decimate bars, nightclubs and restaurants in the country

 

[jessiejames]

I’ve missed information on what he thinks is best? Can you point me in the direction of his preferred strategy?

Sorry I may have written it wrong, what I mean is that he is taking the experts advise rather than going against them.
I will admit that at the beginning of this outbreak I was one of the "it's only flu" brigade, reading what is out there and listening to the experts, the last week and half has changed .y mind. This is serious.
I had a holiday to Sorrento booked going 2 weeks Friday, I was even saying to mates that the Flu will not stop me, that is how blase and maybe naive I was, thinking it was only in the North of Italy and would not infect the rest of Italy.
I will try to carry on as near to normal as possible, going about my daily routine, but I am mindful of my actions, and treat this virus with some respect so I don't pass it on to anyone.

 

[Bold Seagull]

I’m astonished by the lack of action from our Gov’t, and equally astonished that we seem to be using Italy as our model. They also did too little too late. I’d much rather we followed Taiwan’s example.

Trouble is we are still learning about the virus. Some statistics suggest that ALL the countries with a high growth rate of the virus had temperatures below 20 deg C, and all the countries with a slow spread of the infection were above 20 deg C. It isn't a definitive conclusion as other factors like the amount of sunlight you're getting, your latitude, humidity may all be factors. Some countries may well be slowing the spread because of their climate as much as their actions.

Taiwan is a small country with previous experience of dealing with SARS and MERS, however there are many similarities with how the UK has traced and slowed the spread down through the identification of contacts around identified cases.

The government aren't using Italy's response as our model, their using the spread data as a model, which is sensible given Italy has shown a potential worse case scenario.

 

[BLOCK F]

Why the need for personal abuse?

Unforgivable from me and I have fallen from my usual standards of posting.
However, to hold a view such as the one you expressed truly shocked me, and in my astonishment that someone could hold such a view in the time of a serious crisis led me to believe that the poster could not possibly be in full command of his usual faculties.

 

[Driver8]

Yes let's cap the costs of masks and hand them out, even though the evidence is that they don't work.
We also have the NHS which like the Taiwan system doesn't charge for testing (unlike America)

So the only real thing that is different was the more robust screening of visitors from overseas, we are however beyond that stage.

I'm therefore not exactly sure what you want the Government to do,

You are right we should have been tougher on visitors. I’ve had clients arriving from overseas saying we were the only country not to temperature check arrivals. Up until a couple of days ago we were letting in people from all over Italy with no checks. There were 3,000 Spaniards in Liverpool city centre last night with no checks.

We should now be discouraging people from travelling unnecessarily (e.g. to football) and insisting on working from home where possible. Instead we (the gov’t) seem to be resigned to the fact that we are all going to get it and just delaying the inevitable.

 

[Weststander]

Just e-mail the chief medic and chief scientific officer and tell them of your astonishment.........that'll put them right!
Daft ignoramuses, both of them!

They carefully explained their adaptive strategy, adopted by the government, in the long press conference this evening. Explained in plain English so that anyone would understand, if they bothered to listen.

Are some are refusing to listen, off on a childish party political tangent?

Sadiq Khan was brilliant this morning, in a long radio interview about the virus and Londoners. Despite shit-stirring leading questions, he refused to criticise Boris, he said repeatedly “I’d be the first to call out Boris, but I’m not going to. I agree whole heartedly with the strategy set out by the scientists. Now’s not the time for petty party politics”.

 

[The Clamp]

Not disagreeing but you say low level of infection according to the experts the real figure is between 5,000/10,000


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Considering what we know about the virus and how it spreads, this is a relatively low number.

 

[Bold Seagull]

They carefully explained their adaptive strategy, adopted by the government, in the long press conference this evening. Explained in plain English so that anyone would understand, if they bothered to listen.

It was impressive because there was no scientific rhetoric, or greying of the subject area, and having thought about it, you're right that their presentation with honesty and plain English did engender a sense of trust that what they were saying is what they truly believed was the right thing to be doing. To be honest, at present that is good enough for me.

What I would say I thought about the Taiwan response is they have a press conference like that everyday, sometimes twice a day. Feel we could be wheeling these two out a bit more to reassure the public and keep hammering home the message.

I didn't really listen to the buffoon stood in the middle.