Coronavirus (COVID-19) Outbreak

[Stan]

 

[Bluebird Hewitt]

1 hour ago, CaaC (John) said:

Yes

https://www.itv.com/news/channel/2020-03-12/live-updates-number-of-coronavirus-cases-in-the-channel-islands/

Fair enough. Haven't really heard anything in regards to the Channel Islands and was just curious. 

52 minutes ago, Stan said:

 

That's good to hear. Hopefully we can start to get going again, though how we come out of lockdown will be key. 

[Stan]

28 minutes ago, Bluebird Hewitt said:

That's good to hear. Hopefully we can start to get going again, though how we come out of lockdown will be key. 

I don't mean this in a bad way but it could/will be one area where the government will come under scrutiny. Get it right (and I'm aware the right/wrong-ness of it all may not be seen for a few months) and they go some way to correcting some of the wrongs in the lead up/start of the pandemic. Get it wrong and it just further adds to the negative press they get.

[Bluebird Hewitt]

2 minutes ago, Stan said:

I don't mean this in a bad way but it could/will be one area where the government will come under scrutiny. Get it right (and I'm aware the right/wrong-ness of it all may not be seen for a few months) and they go some way to correcting some of the wrongs in the lead up/start of the pandemic. Get it wrong and it just further adds to the negative press they get.

The other issue as well is with us as the public. Are we still going to be careful when restrictions are relaxed to try and minimise a possible second wave (or simply out of fear) or are we going to basically give the middle finger and piss away everything done so far? 

[Stan]

Just now, Bluebird Hewitt said:

The other issue as well is with us as the public. Are we still going to be careful when restrictions are relaxed to try and minimise a possible second wave (or simply out of fear) or are we going to basically give the middle finger and piss away everything done so far? 

People will certainly take the piss. Like they have done recently in their 'mass hug' protest bullshit (can't remember where, probably London). 

Having said that, they are minority despite being a news story. As much as I think there have been selfish cunts and a lot of people out there showing a sheer lack of common sense, on the whole the public have been fairly tolerant and adhering to the rules. 

I really hope that when lockdown is relaxed, even in small measures, people dont' mistake it for ultimate freedom. Whilst it may feel like that, the actions have to be restricted still. I can imagine there'll be copious amounts of people going straight to house-parties and parks and social gatherings. It's why I think police rules need to be tougher - increase the penalties for breaking the rules and you're more likely to stop the behaviour. Dishing out fines that probably won't be paid or chased up hastily isn't going to deter people. 

The government message has to be clear though and it's why the exit strategy needs to be transparent. Explain the risks as basically and clearly as possible. Explain why a second wave would be catastrophic (or at least what damage it could do). Explain why going hell for leather at the first moment of relaxation is not the most sensible thing to do. 

[tlr]

I hope I am proved wrong but I just do not see how a gradual, gently, gently approach will work when it comes to ending the lockdown. Fine in theory but sadly we live amongst absolute wankers in this world, and I fear that the first sign of any easement will be met as if the virus has just vanished off the face of the earth. There is so much scope for any easing to undo the progress so far that it's kind of frightening really. 

[Tommy]

1 hour ago, Stan said:

I really hope that when lockdown is relaxed, even in small measures, people dont' mistake it for ultimate freedom.

That's what many people are doing here unfortunately. 

[Honey Honey]

I've heard of a couple of people already who are planning to go straight back to the office as soon as lockdown is over and their businesses want that to.

It's going to be vital the government tells these wfh capable businesses in London they stay at home or the tube is going to be rammed on day 1.

 

Elsewhere it looks like Mike Ashley's Sports direct and house of Fraser have broken the furlough laws. They've had store managers work once a week in secret. 

[Mel81x+]

Today, the government of Karnataka lifted the movement ban and started that people can move between the hours of 7am and 7pm without a pass of any kind but in off-hours you need a pass and need to be part of essential services. But, thats not the best part, the best part is that they have reopened liquor stores so thank you for that but the liquor store right outside my house has a line that puts a lot of concert waiting lines to shame and none of them, not a single one, are practicing social distancing and some aren't even wearing masks. Add to all of this the area we live in is considered a red-zone at the district level so we're going to see some kind of spike for a while.

[Bluebird Hewitt]

23 minutes ago, Harvsky said:

I've heard of a couple of people already who are planning to go straight back to the office as soon as lockdown is over and their businesses want that to.

It's going to be vital the government tells these wfh capable businesses in London they stay at home or the tube is going to be rammed on day 1.

Elsewhere it looks like Mike Ashley's Sports direct and house of Fraser have broken the furlough laws. They've had store managers work once a week in secret. 

The sad thing about that is it doesn't surprise me as Mike Ashley is a cunt of the highest order. 

For me, I will go back to the office if I'm told to. However, it'd be a bit pointless as my desk is almost bare (including no monitors or docking station as someone else in my office has them) and at present, I don't see how it'd work in theory, especially as employers in Wales must make as practically reasonable as possible to put in social distancing measures (I mentioned this a little on the previous page I think). 

[Honey Honey]

2 minutes ago, Bluebird Hewitt said:

The sad thing about that is it doesn't surprise me as Mike Ashley is a cunt of the highest order. 

For me, I will go back to the office if I'm told to. However, it'd be a bit pointless as my desk is almost bare (including no monitors or docking station as someone else in my office has them) and at present, I don't see how it'd work in theory, especially as employers in Wales must make as practically reasonable as possible to put in social distancing measures (I mentioned this a little on the previous page I think). 

Face to face meetings are going to be banned, or at least against government guidelines. That means there is no point for most of us to go to the office. Employers are going to be made responsible for workers mental health so I think the option to go in will probably be there for most. But I worry about London's public transport if as I've heard there are offices who have already told their employees that they're to go back to the office on June 1st. 

[Bluebird Hewitt]

20 minutes ago, Harvsky said:

Face to face meetings are going to be banned, or at least against government guidelines. That means there is no point for most of us to go to the office. Employers are going to be made responsible for workers mental health so I think the option to go in will probably be there for most. But I worry about London's public transport if as I've heard there are offices who have already told their employees that they're to go back to the office on June 1st. 

Yeah, can see London being a nightmare, especially the tubes again as everyone will pile onto that in the first instance. 

[Stan]

10 minutes ago, Bluebird Hewitt said:

Yeah, can see London being a nightmare, especially the tubes again as everyone will pile onto that in the first instance. 

It worries me

I'm not sure what tube is like these days or past few weeks, all the pictures that were going viral at start of lockdown have become non-existent. So either (social) media got bored with it or it genuinely did die down, which is good.

But as soon as lockdown eases, no doubt there'll be plenty of pictures. 

[Bluebird Hewitt]

2 hours ago, Stan said:

It worries me

I'm not sure what tube is like these days or past few weeks, all the pictures that were going viral at start of lockdown have become non-existent. So either (social) media got bored with it or it genuinely did die down, which is good.

But as soon as lockdown eases, no doubt there'll be plenty of pictures. 

Yeah, I'll be very surprised if the tubes aren't rammed again once lockdown is relaxed. Going to be very difficult in London I think. 

Also, I think it was @Machado that mentioned before about celebrities telling people to stay indoors could help and while most appear to stay in during lockdown, there have been ones mentioned (such as Jack Grealish and Kyle Walker I think) which happily say to stay indoors and then break it afterwards, as well as the Sam Smith 'breakdown' 

While this is the Daily Mail so can be taken with a pinch of salt (like most media outlets in the UK these days), this is Madonna being a cunt. 

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8282397/Madonna-attends-Steven-Kleins-party-days-revealing-coronavirus-antibody-test-results.html

EDIT: To add to @Harvsky's mention of Mike Ashley.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8283769/Sports-Direct-House-Fraser-secretly-pressured-furloughed-store-managers-work-week.html

Edited May 4, 2020 by Bluebird Hewitt

[Stan]

5 minutes ago, Bluebird Hewitt said:

Yeah, I'll be very surprised if the tubes aren't rammed again once lockdown is relaxed. Going to be very difficult in London I think. 

Also, I think it was @Machado that mentioned before about celebrities telling people to stay indoors could help and while most appear to stay in during lockdown, there have been ones mentioned (such as Jack Grealish and Kyle Walker I think) which happily say to stay indoors and then break it afterwards, as well as the Sam Smith 'breakdown' 

While this is the Daily Mail so can be taken with a pinch of salt (like most media outlets in the UK these days), this is Madonna being a cunt. 

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8282397/Madonna-attends-Steven-Kleins-party-days-revealing-coronavirus-antibody-test-results.html

EDIT: To add to @Harvsky's mention of Mike Ashley.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8283769/Sports-Direct-House-Fraser-secretly-pressured-furloughed-store-managers-work-week.html

Bet this Madonna stuff won't get as much traction as the footballer stuff though...

Either way, what a bitch. 

[Mpache]

An update on my two countries

Some Canadian provinces like Saskatchewan have reopened. Ontario and Quebec still under a certain level of shutdown, but it's natural given those are the two most affected provinces. I have criticized Trudeau and the Premiers a lot, but they managed to turn things around after a slow response at first. Well done.

Peru on the other hand... yikes. I still massively support the governmental decisions but people still breaking the lockdown. In a very densely populated city like Lima doesn't help things. Cases have been rising lots in the last 2 weeks and I sadly expect them to keep going up for a bit longer if this behavior from the citizens goes on. At least the death toll is still low compared to what it could be. 

[MUFC]

The current wave isn't going to be a patch on the second wave.

[MUFC]

15 hours ago, tlr said:

I hope I am proved wrong but I just do not see how a gradual, gently, gently approach will work when it comes to ending the lockdown. Fine in theory but sadly we live amongst absolute wankers in this world, and I fear that the first sign of any easement will be met as if the virus has just vanished off the face of the earth. There is so much scope for any easing to undo the progress so far that it's kind of frightening really. 

Any pics?

[Harry]

It is an incredibly complex situation. The rights and liberties side of the debate is gaining momentum now which makes containment much harder and increases the risk of a second wave.

 

R is 0.7 but it was 3 without restrictions. It will be lower with enhanced contact tracing and lower outside of major cities but bottom line is people are contagious for days before they're even symptomatic. R=1 is the tipping point to exponential growth so there's isn't much slack to release from current levels. A vaccine is thought to be 10-24 months away. I don't see governments being able to support shuttered businesses for that long so something will have to give.

[Harry]

 

[Stan]

Didn't Trump say he had been treated worse than Lincoln. 

The same Lincoln who got assassinated. 

And said it, in front of Lincoln's memorial. 

[Bluebird Hewitt]

Love Island cancelled this summer due to coronavirus. Won't air until 2021.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-52528149

Edited May 4, 2020 by Bluebird Hewitt

[Stan]

Today's idiots

Quote

 

Two bikers who went on a 200-mile round trip to buy fish and chips have been fined for breaching coronavirus lockdown restrictions.

The pair had travelled from Rochdale, Greater Manchester, to Whitby, North Yorkshire before being stopped, fined and sent home by police.

Whitby Neighbourhood Policing Team said the trip was not "reasonable travel".

North Yorkshire Police have previously said people were breaking lockdown rules to travel to the area.

Posting of Facebook, Whitby police said: "Whilst Whitby would usually welcome visitors to sample our finest fish and chips, due to the current climate this does not constitute reasonable travel.

"Whitby Neighbourhood Policing Team were patrolling the A169 and stopped two motorcyclists who had travelled from Rochdale purely for fish and chips.

"Both were sent home and issued fines."

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-york-north-yorkshire-52532267

[CaaC (John)+]

Coronavirus: 'Missing link' species may never be found

An "intermediate host" animal passed the coronavirus from wild bats to humans, evidence suggests.

But while the World Health Organization says that the research points to the virus's "natural origin", some scientists say it might never be known how the first person was infected.

It remains unclear whether this host animal was sold in the now infamous Wuhan wildlife market in China.

But the wildlife trade is seen as a potential source of this "spillover".

FULL REPORT

 

 

 

Edited May 4, 2020 by CaaC (John)

[Bluebird Hewitt]

57 minutes ago, Stan said:

Today's idiots

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-york-north-yorkshire-52532267

We've had a fair few as well, though surprisingly a few of the more extreme ones like that have been people from England coming into Wales (mainly due to second homes). I'll have to try and find some of them when I can as some had driven a ridiculous amount of miles to get there. The one that sticks in my mind is a car from London going to Snowdonia. Not exactly down the road. 

There was an article on ridiculous excuses given to the police here as well. I may have already posted this but either way, some of them are beyond stupid. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-52386123

Edited May 4, 2020 by Bluebird Hewitt