COVID19

[Stom]

This time of year is illness season normally. About a month after back to school.

But this year, it’s worse than ever, it feels. No cases among students, teachers or parents yet, only 1 positive for a cleaner at the school. But more than half my son’s nursery class are off sick at the moment with colds and flu, just standard things.

That’s crazy high.

[Puja]

This time of year is illness season normally. About a month after back to school.

But this year, it’s worse than ever, it feels. No cases among students, teachers or parents yet, only 1 positive for a cleaner at the school. But more than half my son’s nursery class are off sick at the moment with colds and flu, just standard things.

That’s crazy high.

What are the restrictions on isolating if you have a confirmed case of COVID there? If you were in the UK, I'd say that a cynic would note that the symptoms of flu/cold and COVID have a lot of overlap, but flu doesn't prevent you from sending your children into school and having to find childcare for them for 10 days.

Puja

[Stom]

This time of year is illness season normally. About a month after back to school.

But this year, it’s worse than ever, it feels. No cases among students, teachers or parents yet, only 1 positive for a cleaner at the school. But more than half my son’s nursery class are off sick at the moment with colds and flu, just standard things.

That’s crazy high.

What are the restrictions on isolating if you have a confirmed case of COVID there? If you were in the UK, I'd say that a cynic would note that the symptoms of flu/cold and COVID have a lot of overlap, but flu doesn't prevent you from sending your children into school and having to find childcare for them for 10 days.

Puja

Well officially… just don’t get tested.

But realistically, the school tests, and the nursery doesn’t let kids back unless they’ve been given the all clear by the doctor. Teachers need to be tested.

Officially, the school didn’t have to do anything about the positive. However, luckily, they had no contact with anyone except other cleaners, so the school has simply changed cleaners for 10 days.

The situation here is hide under the carpet. But, tbf, I don’t personally know anyone who has returned a positive test here in months.

[Which Tyler]

New Delta variant starting up in the UK - who'd'a thought it?

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/ ... ta-variant

Offshoot of Covid Delta variant on the rise in England

UK Health Security Agency monitoring AY.4.2 as daily cases at highest level since late July


A newly detected coronavirus variant is on the rise in England, with the virus believed to be an offshoot of Delta.

According to a briefing from the UK Health Security Agency, released on Friday, “a Delta sublineage newly designated as AY.4.2 is noted to be expanding in England”, with the body adding that the variant is being monitored and assessed.


The report states that in the week beginning 27 September – the last week for which complete sequencing data was available – AY.4.2 accounted for about 6% of sequenced coronavirus cases and is “on an increasing trajectory”.

AY.4.2 contains two mutations in its spike protein, called A222V and Y145H. The spike protein sits on the outside of the coronavirus and helps the virus to enter cells.


ARTICLE CONTINUES...

[morepork]

This is exactly why unfettered elective travel has been such a fuck up from the start. We wouldn't be dealing with new variants every 3 months if governments around the world had just shut travel down. Tough shit. Stay home. The amount of movement around and between countries before a vaccine had been implemented has been just ludicrous. This could have been prevented, easily.

[Puja]

Meanwhile our government is saying they are sticking with "Plan A" rather than consider "Plan B" because we don't want to "jeopardise the "hard-won gains" of reopening the economy." Presumably we're reserving the use of Plan B for after we don't use any protection and get proper fucked.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58976577

As a reminder, the Plan B that we couldn't possibly bring in contains such economy-tanking measures as "Making wearing a mask compulsory in some situations again", "Encouraging working from home", and "Communicating the need for caution."

Puja

[Which Tyler]

I'm sure I've posted this before; but there's a definite feeling of Deja Vu - even with vaccines reducing the severity of recommended actions (we're talking about mild restrictions, not lockdowns at the moment).

You are here.jpg

[Son of Mathonwy]

I'm sure I've posted this before; but there's a definite feeling of Deja Vu - even with vaccines reducing the severity of recommended actions (we're talking about mild restrictions, not lockdowns at the moment).

You are here.jpg

Agreed, and it's because the government lacks the desire or competence to construct a functioning contact tracing system. We've had over 18 months to build it (and learn from the South Koreans and Taiwanese if necessary). But no.

[Son of Mathonwy]

Meanwhile our government is saying they are sticking with "Plan A" rather than consider "Plan B" because we don't want to "jeopardise the "hard-won gains" of reopening the economy." Presumably we're reserving the use of Plan B for after we don't use any protection and get proper fucked.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58976577

As a reminder, the Plan B that we couldn't possibly bring in contains such economy-tanking measures as "Making wearing a mask compulsory in some situations again", "Encouraging working from home", and "Communicating the need for caution."

Puja

The government is happy with 1000 deaths per week. I wonder what increase in this number would be unacceptable to them? I mean, have unacceptable political consequences for them, of course, they're clearly not concerned with the morality of it.

[Puja]

Meanwhile our government is saying they are sticking with "Plan A" rather than consider "Plan B" because we don't want to "jeopardise the "hard-won gains" of reopening the economy." Presumably we're reserving the use of Plan B for after we don't use any protection and get proper fucked.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58976577

As a reminder, the Plan B that we couldn't possibly bring in contains such economy-tanking measures as "Making wearing a mask compulsory in some situations again", "Encouraging working from home", and "Communicating the need for caution."

Puja

The government is happy with 1000 deaths per week. I wonder what increase in this number would be unacceptable to them? I mean, have unacceptable political consequences for them, of course, they're clearly not concerned with the morality of it.

This is the problem with our electoral and political system, compounded by utterly ineffective opposition, which has led to an amoral government realising that they can do anything they like and still be confident of winning the next election. We're going to end up cancelling Christmas again, killing thousands, and Boris will still be 5 points up in the polls - there is literally no accountability for him at all.

Puja

[Son of Mathonwy]

Meanwhile our government is saying they are sticking with "Plan A" rather than consider "Plan B" because we don't want to "jeopardise the "hard-won gains" of reopening the economy." Presumably we're reserving the use of Plan B for after we don't use any protection and get proper fucked.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58976577

As a reminder, the Plan B that we couldn't possibly bring in contains such economy-tanking measures as "Making wearing a mask compulsory in some situations again", "Encouraging working from home", and "Communicating the need for caution."

Puja

The government is happy with 1000 deaths per week. I wonder what increase in this number would be unacceptable to them? I mean, have unacceptable political consequences for them, of course, they're clearly not concerned with the morality of it.

This is the problem with our electoral and political system, compounded by utterly ineffective opposition, which has led to an amoral government realising that they can do anything they like and still be confident of winning the next election. We're going to end up cancelling Christmas again, killing thousands, and Boris will still be 5 points up in the polls - there is literally no accountability for him at all.

Puja

I read that and my first thought was that he couldn't survive cancelling Christmas again, could he?

But then, I thought the same last Christmas.

There must be a breaking point where the nation will tire of him (or despise him, or whatever), but I've no idea what level of carnage, human or economic, that would require. Given the levels of both we've already seen. Based on recent experience it will probably be something trivial like Barnard Castle rather than anything important.

[Which Tyler]

There must be a breaking point where the nation will tire of him (or despise him, or whatever), but I've no idea what level of carnage, human or economic, that would require. Given the levels of both we've already seen. Based on recent experience it will probably be something trivial like Barnard Castle rather than anything important.

My money's on an extra-marital affair.

[Puja]

There must be a breaking point where the nation will tire of him (or despise him, or whatever), but I've no idea what level of carnage, human or economic, that would require. Given the levels of both we've already seen. Based on recent experience it will probably be something trivial like Barnard Castle rather than anything important.

My money's on an extra-marital affair.

Actually, that's exactly the kind of thing that would happen. Run the country into the ground? Fine! Kill thousands with inept handling of a pandemic? Sure! Actively take food out of the mouths of undernourished children? No problem! Cheat on Carrie Simmonds? Finished.

Puja

[Which Tyler]

Actually, that's exactly the kind of thing that would happen. Run the country into the ground? Fine! Kill thousands with inept handling of a pandemic? Sure! Actively take food out of the mouths of undernourished children? No problem! Cheat on Carrie Simmonds? Finished.

That's my thinking. Incompetence, massed deaths, lies and broken promises, even raising taxes, don't even leave him with a single scratch.
So it'll be something pathetic that makes no difference to his actual (nonexistent) ability to govern.
Added to which, of course, there's not a hope in hell that he "remains" faithful.

[Puja]

Meanwhile, in government turpitude: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-58973697

Apparently in addition to not donating the vaccines we pledged we are also actually taking vaccines from the Covax programme, even though other wealthy countries have agreed not to, and even though they are badly needed elsewhere.

"Oxfam's Global Health Adviser, Rohit Malpani, acknowledged that Canada and the UK were technically entitled to get vaccines via this route having paid into the Covax mechanism, but he said it was still "morally indefensible" given that they had both obtained millions of doses through their own bilateral agreements"

Puja

[Son of Mathonwy]

Actually, that's exactly the kind of thing that would happen. Run the country into the ground? Fine! Kill thousands with inept handling of a pandemic? Sure! Actively take food out of the mouths of undernourished children? No problem! Cheat on Carrie Simmonds? Finished.

That's my thinking. Incompetence, massed deaths, lies and broken promises, even raising taxes, don't even leave him with a single scratch.
So it'll be something pathetic that makes no difference to his actual (nonexistent) ability to govern.
Added to which, of course, there's not a hope in hell that he "remains" faithful.

I dunno, I think he'd survive an affair. Everyone already knows what Johnson is like.

Tax rises wouldn't leave him unscathed - Labour was ahead for about 24 hours after the promised NI increase to pay towards the NHS. Just a blip of course, Tory voters expressing temporary anger to the pollsters, forgotten in a day, but noticed at least.

Whatever shit takes him down would almost certainly need a push from the Tory press. Like when the Mail got pissed off about Barnard Castle. So something that reeks of hypocrisy might work. Like evidence of Boris directly profiting from Covid contracts or something of that nature.

[Which Tyler]

When has the right ever worried about hypocrisy? They love it. They enjoy their own as it annoys the left, who can do nothing about it; and enjoy the left's as they then eat their own.

[Son of Mathonwy]

When has the right ever worried about hypocrisy? They love it. They enjoy their own as it annoys the left, who can do nothing about it; and enjoy the left's as they then eat their own.

It has to be the right sort of hypocrisy, like the Barnard Castle, you follow the rules but we don't need to kind of thing. But yeah, I agree, they they're certainly not bothered about hypocrisy in general.

[morepork]

At least you don't have peak fuckwit as a career option during a public health crisis:

A conservative US commentator has suggested America should “invade” to liberate Australians from “tyrannical” Covid-19 restrictions, likening the country to the early stages of a dictatorship under Hitler or Stalin.

“For the last 20 years, the United States has spent trillions of dollars overseas in Afghanistan fighting a war — which we lost, by the way. But we were told that the war was necessary anyway, it was necessary, the slaughtering of American sons and daughters on foreign soil because we were fighting a noble cause — to spread democracy in a tyrannical land, to free an oppressed people,” she said.
So I’m going to ask those same lecturing politicians and media members a question now: when do we deploy troops to Australia? When do we invade Australia and free an oppressed people who are suffering under a totalitarian regime? When do we spend trillions of dollars to spread democracy in Australia?”

https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/t ... d2aa7284cc

BTW, this complete salad has also got hot and frothy calling unvaccinated people the most marganilised group in the USA, and has suggested that reparations be paid to the unvaccinated "even 100 years from now"

I shit you not.

I so sick of this shit, and it's just getting worse.

[J Dory]

My wife has a side business running events in Toronto that has been on hold since covid hit, she is about to launch her first event in close to 2 years. She is asking those that buy a ticket to be sure to bring their proof of vaccination, which is required for indoor dining in Toronto, though given the venue has a patio, and it's a private event, there is some room for interpretation. Wifey is erring on the side of caution.

Queue the outrage, most likely by folks that weren't going to attend anyway, but are just so angry at being discriminated against. All moot, as everyone is so keen to get out socializing, the event sold out in a day. Fck right off you cnts.

[morepork]

You know, when you is a scientist and some angry contrarian in public tells you to "follow the science" over and over again in a discussion you neither invited nor show any interest in engaging, you just want to do a shit in their mouth.

[Which Tyler]

[Galfon]

I hope the stable door operation is well drilled and activated efficiently this time..
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-59418127

The newbie will just have to wait, the West has not finished with Delta yet (or maybe the other way round.)

[cashead]

Just 40-odd % vaccinated. Good grief, no wonder there's a new mutant variant.

[Which Tyler]

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/ ... al-adviser