International News Covid-19 .....

[carefreeoufc]

It’s going to be interesting to see how long/how the government attempt to enforce any restrictions.

Unfortunately the mishandling of the crisis in the early weeks and months, cummingsgate and so on leads me to think there is now a shift even with those (like me) who followed the rules diligently.

With no end in sight (in the U.K.) and the relatively tight measures still enforced on us whilst seeing some countries now returning to relative normality (NZ) I think people want to see some actual results.

If I could see a decent working track/trace app alongside mass testing and targeted/specific lockdowns etc. I’d follow diligently as I did at the start of the year.

Rationing of tests, a late (and potentially not fully functional app) and a hit and miss contact tracing system at a national level all at the same time makes it very hard. It’s like we either don’t know what to do or don’t have the competent people to actually get a handle on this and we’re desperately pinning our hopes on a vaccine in the next 12 months.

 

[Sarge]

It’s going to be interesting to see how long/how the government attempt to enforce any restrictions.

Unfortunately the mishandling of the crisis in the early weeks and months, cummingsgate and so on leads me to think there is now a shift even with those (like me) who followed the rules diligently.

With no end in sight (in the U.K.) and the relatively tight measures still enforced on us whilst seeing some countries now returning to relative normality (NZ) I think people want to see some actual results.

If I could see a decent working track/trace app alongside mass testing and targeted/specific lockdowns etc. I’d follow diligently as I did at the start of the year.

Rationing of tests, a late (and potentially not fully functional app) and a hit and miss contact tracing system at a national level all at the same time makes it very hard. It’s like we either don’t know what to do or don’t have the competent people to actually get a handle on this and we’re desperately pinning our hopes on a vaccine in the next 12 months.

.... and such as Guernsey (part of the UK- as a Crown dependency, or something like that) ... where,apart from a strict 14 day quarantine for arrivals, or islanders who've travelled elsewhere (such as mainland UK)and are returning , its all but back to 'normal' on Guernsey, they even had a live music festival the other weekend, albeit the line up was entirely 'local' (island) based bands, acts and artists

 

[m]

It is just an absolute mess.

I don’t know what to think anymore. Lost faith in every decision making process whether it be political or just following the science.

Maybe Sweden got it right after all?

One thing is for sure, I am now totally hacked off with the whole situation.

I can't see much to suggest that Sweden got it wrong.

It doesn't seem to have made much difference either way, to date at least.

This is not a criticism of the government's earlier decision to lockdown.

 

[Whingit]

Swedes tend not to cohabit so comparisons are moot.

 

[m]

Swedes tend not to cohabit so comparisons are moot.

That's an interesting statement, care to expand on it?

 

[holdsteady]

The thing that I struggle to get my head around (and I am a layman with no idea about any of this) is that even with lockdowns where is the virus supposed to go? It will still be about as soon as we come out of lockdown and spread, so any lockdown is just a delay not a cure. A vaccine seems years away, if ever, despite the government saying differently.

I get that none of us want people to die, but the average age of people dying now is 82, that’s above the average uk lifespan and that is nearly always people with underlying conditions. The death rate at the moment is about 20 a day, that’s less than bowel and breast cancer. Given the economic meltdown that another lockdown (if the government go that route) will cause, with the deaths and devastation that will cause I find it hard to see that the sacrifices people will have to make (and these lockdowns and social distancing are not a minor inconvenience, it’s a shitty way to live) when the government seem to have no idea or plan beyond the next few weeks.

 

[Whingit]

That's an interesting statement, care to expand on it?

Have a read of this, imo it's pretty significant.

Why so many young Swedes live alone

In Sweden, people typically stop living with their parents earlier than anywhere else in Europe. But can leaving home at a young age have a dark side?

www.bbc.com

 

[Northstandboy]

10pm curfew for pubs and restaurants from tomorrow. Plus table service only by law. I thought no me could order/stand at a bar anyway?!

 

[Whingit]

Have a read of this, imo it's pretty significant.

Why so many young Swedes live alone

In Sweden, people typically stop living with their parents earlier than anywhere else in Europe. But can leaving home at a young age have a dark side?

www.bbc.com

"In the US, more young people are living with their parents than at any time since 1940, according to a recent Pew Research Center analysis of census data. A 2019 study by British think tank Civitas found that the proportion of 23-year-olds living with their parents in the UK had risen from 37% in 1998 to 49% a decade later.

In Sweden it’s a different story. The most common age to leave home is between 18 and 19, compared to the EU average of 26, according to Eurostat figures. And a significant proportion of these young Swedes aren’t moving into cramped house shares or student dorms. They are living alone."

 

[holdsteady]

10pm curfew for pubs and restaurants from tomorrow. Plus table service only by law. I thought no me could order/stand at a bar anyway?!

You could order at the bar, you just couldn’t stand at it after you had bought your drink. I doubt people buying a drink at a bar has contributed much to the rise in cases, just like losing one hour off of opening times (just go out an hour earlier) will make much difference. These are just moves to be seen to be doing something.

 

[Marked Ox]

That's an interesting statement, care to expand on it?

There have been numerous articles on Swedes naturally social distancing etc without the need for a formal lockdown. In the articles apparently the Swedes are more private/standoffish (for want of a better word) in comparison.

 

[SteMerritt]

You could order at the bar, you just couldn’t stand at it after you had bought your drink. I doubt people buying a drink at a bar has contributed much to the rise in cases, just like losing one hour off of opening times (just go out an hour earlier) will make much difference. These are just moves to be seen to be doing something.

Losing an hour? Pub closing time hasn't been set at 11 for decades. I think the thought pattern is to stop groups going out until 1am and getting totally tanked.

 

[Sheik djibouti]

Losing an hour? Pub closing time hasn't been set at 11 for decades. I think the thought pattern is to stop groups going out until 1am and getting totally tanked.

Agreed....expect more illegal house parties/raves as a result - especially as the cold/wet autumn weather advances ....hence why the government have been so keen to push the shop your neighbour message.

And on that note - if the neighbours were being antisocial arseholes till all hours, then I expect most would shop them anyway....

 

[Essexyellows]

I can remember closing time at 11pm and having "got old" 10pm is late these days!!
The whole night time economy thing is just another form of consumerism dressed up as a positive for "the economy".
If a person can only consume X amount of food/drink in 6 hours then that is it.
Now whether those 6 hours is from 4.00pm to 10.00pm or from 7.00pm to 1.00am is a moot point.

I had cause to pop into a pub for a pint last week.
Chap on the door took details, walked to bar, ordered drink, sat at table and consumed then left.
Zero interaction with anyone for any period of time.
Infection risk was zero.

I guess the purpose is to reduce the younger generation getting "social" after a few drinks and forgetting the rules?

 

[Sarge]

I can remember closing time at 11pm and having "got old" 10pm is late these days!!
The whole night time economy thing is just another form of consumerism dressed up as a positive for "the economy".
If a person can only consume X amount of food/drink in 6 hours then that is it.
Now whether those 6 hours is from 4.00pm to 10.00pm or from 7.00pm to 1.00am is a moot point.

I had cause to pop into a pub for a pint last week.
Chap on the door took details, walked to bar, ordered drink, sat at table and consumed then left.
Zero interaction with anyone for any period of time.
Infection risk was zero.

I guess the purpose is to reduce the younger generation getting "social" after a few drinks and forgetting the rules?

I think the curfew is the government, aka bojo n domcum, being 'seen' to target those currently at the top of its hate blame list... while party donors can go hunting (stags) and shooting (grouse) in large mobs of way over six, with or without a rule !.... whatever happened to the 'world beating' track and trace? , a turkey methinks, and not of the oven ready variety either ?

 

[Sarge]

or perhaps dom has been watching too many American movies and decided ....

 

[Oxymoron]

I'm old enough to remember when pubs shut at 10 o'clock on a weekday (10:30 Fridays and Saturdays!) - we went out at 8:00pm.
We then got 11 o'clock closing 7 days a week - we went out at 9:00pm.
Then with the much lauded "24 hour drinking", midnight closures were the norm - we went out at 10:00pm.

It's the same as the price of a pint, if I've got £20 to spend on beer @£4.00 a pint - I drink 5 pints - when it's £5 a pint, I drink 4.

Now, if we're going to have 1970's pub hours back, what about 1970's pub prices - I still remember "light & bitter" going up from 20p to 22p, because the budget put a penny on all alcohol sales.........

 

[chuckbert]

Maybe Sweden got it right after all

Sweden got it right for Sweden. They have a population which knows how to maintain distance. Britain on the other hand has a population a large chunk of which says “I won’t tolerate lockdown again so it shouldn’t happen. It’s my human rights to go out and socialise.”

 

[TL@69]

Although the uk death rate in numbers is very high, in% terms it’s very small. The virus must be allowed to spread but at the same time protect the ones at risk until such time we reach herd immunity either by the numbers that have been infected or & a vaccine.

 

[Tomox]

Sweden got it right for Sweden. They have a population which knows how to maintain distance. Britain on the other hand has a population a large chunk of which says “I won’t tolerate lockdown again so it shouldn’t happen. It’s my human rights to go out and socialise.”

The country was effectively shut down for 3 months. I can't believe that we were socialising more than the Swedes throughout this period. People largely took the restrictions seriously in the UK in my opinion. The government have been clever to make the general public a scapegoat though.