Coronavirus

Quoted from Manchester Mariner

Tier 4 seems very lockdowny to me. He just can't bring himself to say the word can he?

He can still say “alas” though. A record 5 by my count today. The ‘o’ in count is optional, the fockin Eton count

Quoted from Maringer

I don't want to appear cynical (though I very much am), but ever since they started floating the news of a new, worrying strain of the virus a week or so ago, I couldn't help but think that would be a get out of jail card for them. It allows a 180 degree turnaround in policy and the scientists would be happy to go along with it if it corrected the mistakes of allowing widespread mixing over Christmas. The data is under review so I wouldn't be enormously surprised if it turned out that the new strain wasn't necessarily more transmissible than the others which are circulating.

Of course, my cynicism may just be taking over my better judgement and it may be a serious problem with higher transmissability. If so, all bets are off. It's already very easy to catch the virus so if it gets 70% more transmissible, we're all pretty much certain to get it in 2021 unless the vaccines can help.

This new strain ( seemingly more infectious but not more deadly or more likely to be resistant to the vaccine)is very convenient, where I am in London tier 2 has been very lax, the shops crammed with Christmas shoppers and the bars and restaurants full. The local Irish bar had a mini pizza with a pint offer which counted as a substantial meal, no one is surprised rates are rising fast.
The new strain may have given Johnson a reason to save face on another U turn but it could seriously damage the chances of any international travel from the U.K. for quite a while.
On a personal note I lost my grandmother to the virus, she died from lung complications due to the virus in Grimsby hospital last week, I always feared this would happen from March and perhaps the saddest thing is she could have little or no contact with her family since then. I hope lessons will be learned because internationally even with modern medecine and knowledge we have failed miserably with this and are continuing to do so

Quoted from codcheeky

This new strain ( seemingly more infectious but not more deadly or more likely to be resistant to the vaccine)is very convenient, where I am in London tier 2 has been very lax, the shops crammed with Christmas shoppers and the bars and restaurants full. The local Irish bar had a mini pizza with a pint offer which counted as a substantial meal, no one is surprised rates are rising fast.
The new strain may have given Johnson a reason to save face on another U turn but it could seriously damage the chances of any international travel from the U.K. for quite a while.
On a personal note I lost my grandmother to the virus, she died from lung complications due to the virus in Grimsby hospital last week, I always feared this would happen from March and perhaps the saddest thing is she could have little or no contact with her family since then. I hope lessons will be learned because internationally even with modern medecine and knowledge we have failed miserably with this and are continuing to do so

Condolences,an awful set of circumstances.
Interest timing around the new "mutant" strain

https://timeforrecovery.org/mutantstrain/

Can you remember when they used to make changes to the policy with a weeks notice? Facemasks in shops, bubbles etc. I think they said they did it so there was absolute clarity. Well they put London into this new fangled tier four at eight hours notice causing outbound trains to be rammed and operators to warn if you’re not comfortable not being socially distanced not to travel.

Quoted from LH

Can you remember when they used to make changes to the policy with a weeks notice? Facemasks in shops, bubbles etc. I think they said they did it so there was absolute clarity. Well they put London into this new fangled tier four at eight hours notice causing outbound trains to be rammed and operators to warn if you’re not comfortable not being socially distanced not to travel.

The problem wouldn’t have been half so bad if the government hadn’t been weak in the first place and had just said Christmas is cancelled.

But it had to be done. Think if they’d given more notice then that would have given people more time to travel and mix, and therefore spread the virus. And I speak as someone whose Christmas plans have beenfucked over by this.

Will see what the Tory backbenchers think about this. If they rebel I can see Boris caving again.

Quoted from KingstonMariner

The problem wouldn’t have been half so bad if the government hadn’t been weak in the first place and had just said Christmas is cancelled.

But it had to be done. Think if they’d given more notice then that would have given people more time to travel and mix, and therefore spread the virus. And I speak as someone whose Christmas plans have beenfucked over by this.

Will see what the Tory backbenchers think about this. If they rebel I can see Boris caving again.

Your last paragraph is perhaps why this was done on a Saturday after Parliament was closed, Witty and Valance have a lot to answer for they have allowed themselves to be used as political pawns in this epidemic for too often

Full Lockdown after Christmas or in New Year.

Even in rural areas where I live the new strain is everywhere.

We got away so far with very little people having caught the virus but in the last couple of weeks it's everywhere.

My granddaughters husband predicted this would happen he used to work in a lab in Cambridge dealing with virus and the what. Very interesting subject if it wasn't so dam dangerous.

SE Asia was better prepared than others for dealing with Covid and reacting quickly using protocols already in place,  this followed their experiences gained from dealing with SARS etc.

If everything happens for a reason, then is Covid the world’s larger equivalent of Asia learning from SARS?

Could a far more virulent virus appear in say 5-20 years time?  One we will now be much better prepared to tackle.  There are so many different things to learn from Covid.

   The bigger picture.  

Quoted from TownSNAFU5

SE Asia was better prepared than others for dealing with Covid and reacting quickly using protocols already in place,  this followed their experiences gained from dealing with SARS etc.

If everything happens for a reason, then is Covid the world’s larger equivalent of Asia learning from SARS?

Could a far more virulent virus appear in say 5-20 years time?  One we will now be much better prepared to tackle.  There are so many different things to learn from Covid.

   The bigger picture.  

Amazing statistics from Taiwan.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-55269729

Well Saturday’s press conference produced the results expected by everyone except the Government and we have absolute chaos at the borders.
Telling the world we had a dangerous new strain and then being surprised when other countries take action to stop it spreading. Johnson has dug himself and the country into a massive hole, if he didn’t expect something like this to happen he is being extremely badly advised