SARS CoV-2 coronavirus / Covid-19 (No tin foil hat silliness please)

Reposting an article from a couple of weeks back for anyone thinking about Christmas etc and meeting up with family, or trying to explain to relatives why you don't think the family should meet up. What's nice is that it also covers risk reduction if you are meeting up.

https://english.elpais.com/society/...he-coronavirus-is-spread-through-the-air.html

Shorter visits, ventilation, turn the background music down so you don't have to shout, avoid sitting face to face - all may help. As, of course, would a commitment from everyone to avoid other kinds of contact in the week before.

Take the specific numbers it mentions as coming with lots of "more or less" provisos, but the broad sweep is probably accurate.
 
Pogue Mahone said:


Posted because we all know international covid competitiveness is a highly constructive and rewarding use of our time.

Sweden currently mounting an impressive charge up the table.

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Man what on earth has Belgium done to drag their numbers back so drastically?
 
Pogue Mahone said:


Posted because we all know international covid competitiveness is a highly constructive and rewarding use of our time.

Sweden currently mounting an impressive charge up the table.

[josegif]
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You might get to first! Finland is rising a bit. Well Iceland is now lowest actually, don't know why it is cut from that table.
 
You have to laugh at that gormless twat Matt Hancock. Now he’s asking why people in Britain think it’s acceptable to go to work when you’re sick? Maybe it has something to do with the appalling sick pay people get or the fact their own civil service issue out warnings once you pass 8 days absence in 12 months.
 
acnumber9 said:
You have to laugh at that gormless twat Matt Hancock. Now he’s asking why people in Britain think it’s acceptable to go to work when you’re sick? Maybe it has something to do with the appalling sick pay people get or the fact their own civil service issue out warnings once you pass 8 days absence in 12 months.
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He is so out of touch. As if people are "soldiering on" , fecking idiot .
 
They need to extend the Christmas holidays by a week before Christmas and ideally a week after Christmas too.

The last week of term is a massive waste of time anyways
 
853 deaths in Italy

For UK , the north west cases are coming down quite a bit now.
 
Devil_forever said:
I don’t ever post ITK stuff, but this has been relayed to me by someone who has the inside track on this, here goes:

Oxford Vaccine trial volunteers experiencing more side effects than expected apparently. Chris Witty apparently wasn’t very optimistic about how it’s looking so far, is what I’ve been told. I’m sure this will leak eventually and honestly I’ll take a permanent ban if it turns out to be bullshit.

I’d be happy to PM the mods as to who I’ve got this from.
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Get the ban hammer out
 
I think today's case numbers look strangely low, in England alone the new case numbers are half of what they were last week. Something doesn't look right in the data.
 
Hard to believe the FDA could approve one of these within a few weeks and patients and essential workers could be getting shots before Christmas.
 
christy87 said:
Is it true about the 1/2 first dose in the Oxford vaccine being a cock up, just reading through Twitter and it’s being mentioned.
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Not a cockup exactly but I bet they wished they had done 2 full shots with the main cohort in phase 3. It is unclear (to me at least) if this will prevent them from applying for approval for the more effective regime.
 
This "mixing three households for 5 days" in the UK at Christmas seems like lunacy. All these vaccines are on the point of being rolled out, and people can't just wait for a couple of months? I know people want some normality, but surely this is a mistake?
 
Penna said:
This "mixing three households for 5 days" in the UK at Christmas seems like lunacy. All these vaccines are on the point of being rolled out, and people can't just wait for a couple of months? I know people want some normality, but surely this is a mistake?
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Another mistake in a long list since March.
Its almost as if Boris had organised a massive christmas doo at his place in January, doesnt want to back out and cannot be seen going against his own advise, Cummings style.

Regardless of the relaxation on restrictions, i will be being sensible and having a quiet one. I hope many others do the same.
 
Penna said:
This "mixing three households for 5 days" in the UK at Christmas seems like lunacy. All these vaccines are on the point of being rolled out, and people can't just wait for a couple of months? I know people want some normality, but surely this is a mistake?
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Completely agree with you. Why five days and why three families.
Surely it would have been more sensible to just limit the number of people. Because the number of people in a fixed space will directly relate to the likelihood of the virus being transmitted.
Eat, drink and be merry.... and come January, we all know what the outcome will be.
 
Why is it 5 days and not just 3? Just make it 24th, 25th, 26th if you have to. Honestly I don't get why people can't just give up on a big christmas for once for the health of the country, but whatever, some people seem desperate, but generally I see quite a few people are equally as miffed as me.
 
Penna said:
This "mixing three households for 5 days" in the UK at Christmas seems like lunacy. All these vaccines are on the point of being rolled out, and people can't just wait for a couple of months? I know people want some normality, but surely this is a mistake?
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Is it the wisest decision? Probably not. Would people have followed the rules if Christmas was effectively cancelled? Not a chance. Does the UK have the means to control its population into submission? Thankfully, no.

This is probably the closest thing to a compromise we were likely to get, although I think they're setting themselves up for an utter shite show travel wise. Roads will be mad, and I'm sure people will simply move around before and after the official dates - which makes sense really.
 
Judas said:
Why is it 5 days and not just 3? Just make it 24th, 25th, 26th if you have to. Honestly I don't get why people can't just give up on a big christmas for once for the health of the country, but whatever, some people seem desperate, but generally I see quite a few people are equally as miffed as me.
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Presumably to factor in the need many will have to travel long distances? 3 days would have effectively given people 1 day to relax and celebrate.
 
Judas said:
One day should be enough. I just don't get the desperation over christmas, it's one day. Wouldn't people rather have an open January?
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I think a lot of people would be happy to lock down in January if that’s the price to pay to enjoy Christmas with extended family. Grandparents and grandkids reunited after months apart at a special traditional celebration. Surely you can see why they might feel that way? January is a grim, boring month anyway.
 
Pogue Mahone said:
I think a lot of people would be happy to lock down in January if that’s the price to pay to enjoy Christmas with extended family. Grandparents and grandkids reunited after months apart at a special traditional celebration. Surely you can see why they might feel that way? January is a grim, boring month anyway.
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I get it on a certain level, but it just adds to the feeling we take a few steps forward, then back. But maybe with the vaccine on the horizon it doesn't need to be as much of a concern. I know plenty who still will keep it small this christmas, but I just think people will go overboard. This country has proven all year, give an inch, take a mile.
 
Judas said:
I get it on a certain level, but it just adds to the feeling we take a few steps forward, then back. But maybe with the vaccine on the horizon it doesn't need to be as much of a concern. I know plenty who still will keep it small this christmas, but I just think people will go overboard. This country has proven all year, give an inch, take a mile.
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If the vaccine roll-out goes as planned any surge in January/February should have a much lower mortality (elderly and HCW vaccinated). Which will also have been taken into account.
 
Pogue Mahone said:
I think a lot of people would be happy to lock down in January if that’s the price to pay to enjoy Christmas with extended family. Grandparents and grandkids reunited after months apart at a special traditional celebration. Surely you can see why they might feel that way? January is a grim, boring month anyway.
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If the thesis is "giving up January to spend the holidays with (extended) family", then sure I might be willing to do that too. The thesis is "giving up January in order to spend the holidays with (extended) family and potentially infect them with a (for them deadly) virus" though, so I think I'll still pass on that one. Have an outside walk with your grandparents if you're so dead set om seeing them on Christmas.
 
Christmas might work out better than you'd think with most people off work, schools off. Those relatives who mix anyway won't be in a wider circle and others won't take up the opportunity.

Just hope throughout December people are careful and cases can be kept on the low side, the build up is the worry.
 
RobinLFC said:
If the thesis is "giving up January to spend the holidays with (extended) family", then sure I might be willing to do that too. The thesis is "giving up January in order to spend the holidays with (extended) family and potentially infect them with a (for them deadly) virus" though, so I think I'll still pass on that one. Have an outside walk with your grandparents if you're so dead set om seeing them on Christmas.
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True. Although that’s up to the individuals concerned. I want to see my parents, so will be restricting my movements for a couple of weeks beforehand.
 
Personal responsibility will be the theme/phrase over over the next few weeks.

Although they've loosened the rules, it's your choice around what you do, and if someone you love gets seriously ill or dies, then it's your fault, tough shit. We didn't say you MUST meet
 
The Christmas relaxation is win, win for the Government. It gains them good publicity and those who were so keen to meet would most likely have done so anyway. Those who are against this will probably continue to plan not to meet up. If it all goes wrong they can blame the public for not being sensible.
 
Seeing my family is all well and good I guess but the real crime here is still not being able to get a pint of Guinness at Christmas.
 
Judas said:
Why is it 5 days and not just 3? Just make it 24th, 25th, 26th if you have to. Honestly I don't get why people can't just give up on a big christmas for once for the health of the country, but whatever, some people seem desperate, but generally I see quite a few people are equally as miffed as me.
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Isn't anywhere in the country, so people will be traveling about as well? We are spending Christmas on our own, we have taken that decision for our own safety.
 
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