SARS CoV-2 coronavirus / Covid-19 (No tin foil hat silliness please)
- Thread starter Don't Kill Bill
- Start date
I agree that they are available first and foremost for their general welfare. Also seems to be part of a regimented testing program if faculty, staff, and students who are on campus might have symptoms. So the accessibility is no issue and the data generated by UCSD will be able to assist them in the future. There's a Covid dashboard that they use.
https://returntolearn.ucsd.edu/dashboard/index.html
It certainly means a massive strain on NHS staff and on care workers (paid or unpaid). For the rest of the impact I think this image gives an idea of why the UK and Austria aren't necessarily at the same point, and why country comparisons don't always help:
A very different risk profile really, particularly when it comes to vaccination rates in the over 65s.
Yeah absolutely. Makes you wonder how much of the believe that Omicron is less severe is simply down to the high immunity levels in the UK and probably SA.
When it comes to giving the ‘rona to each other there’s no denying we are absolute legends.
@Massive Spanner
(During school holidays too!)
Any idea why we spread it so much? I wouldn't have thought we socialise much more than the UK, so the only other thing in my head was the population density. Everything being so packed into the cities, then as people travel home etc carry it with them to the more rural areas.
Or is it the simple fact that we love a pint.
What?
I think it’s mainly we love a pint!
I also read a stat recently that we have the highest per capita sales of coffee (i.e. cups of coffee sold in cafés) of anywhere in Europe. We’re basically incredibly social animals.
I know nothing about life outside the pale but my bogger other half tells me that it’s completely normal to have randomers wandering in and out of her parent’s gaff all day, every day, for cups of tea and a natter. Which is apparently a thing that culchies do? I’m sure @Massive Spanner or @moses can shed some light on this.
What?What?
My parents have been incredibly careful down in Sligo so I can’t speak for them but my other half’s parents in Dublin couldn’t give a shit who visits and let anyone in and out of the place with the attitude of “be grand”. Whenever cases get high I refuse to visit them. It doesn’t go down well.
I think simplifying it to the pubs is ridiculous, though. Closing them at 8 has made absolutely no difference and cases are still skyrocketing.
Closing them at 8 evidently didn’t make the difference they were hoping. Probably didn’t help that this is a year when loads of people had annual leave to burn so could take a long holiday. Everyone just got the pints in a bit earlier than usual. I know that’s what I did!
It is interesting that we spread the virus so much more than everywhere else, no matter what we do. I think our restrictions this winter were less strict than a few other countries, mind you.
There’s no way you Irish don’t socialise much more than us Brits.
I’ve lived on both sides of the pond and there wasn’t that much of a difference. This is London and Dublin though. I don’t have any feel for life in rural/small-town Uk.
What little I know about rural Ireland is that socialising is very important to us, whether at pub, church, GAA club or whatever.
Last edited:
What @Pogue Mahone said. My experiences in the UK wouldn't be much different to what Dublin would be like. On a rural level could be fairly different though admittedly.
It's very similar and the UK is far, far more densely populated.
I don't think it's pints, or generally socialising more than other countries (which we do), it's fecking Christmas. We absolutely love Christmas. I work with loads of Americans who are baffled by how mental we go for it. The shopping, the pints, the gatherings, the parties, the house parties, the kids parties, etc. I honestly don't think it matters what they do in December restrictions wise, people love Christmas too much to not try make the most of it.
You had to drag the kids into it! I haven’t heard of a single kid specific Christmas party. It’s not a thing. Birthday parties in December, sure.
Mind you, my sister took her kids off to see Santa as usual. Who wore a weird/shit mask, disguised as a beard. Looked sinister as feck. Could see something like that turning into a super spreader event. Poor bastard really was putting himself in the firing line.
The twelve pints of Christmas is uniquely Irish tradition (I think?) which will cause absolute fecking chaos in a pandemic. A pub crawl is the worst possible thing to do. I didn’t see anyone doing it this year but was only out a couple of times. So might have missed it.
Socialising aside, our messaging on testing and isolation has been very poor. I know plenty of smart people making really dumb decisions because they’re so confused about all the mixed messages from the state about antigen testing.
It's always the kids!
Anyway it's a combination of everything, I wasn't singling out kids (but I know people who have had big birthday parties with their kids which is nuts, I've fecking seen it in my estate). And yeah I agree that the message from the government on isolation and antigens has been ridiculously muddled and confusing.
Also, you blamed the pubs, yet closing the pubs earlier and bringing in loads of extra restrictions made zero difference. I also haven't heard of a single person doing the twelve pubs this year, how even would you?
My only point was that it's clearly a combination of everything. Closing the pubs at 8 is totally pointless, I've seen my local close at 8, everyone just rambles out on the street together at once and ends up back in people's houses which are even more confined.Irish people tend to lick each other's faces after 4 pints, I think that is a contributing factor.
I'm gonna say it's spidermans fault, on top of the rest that was listed
It's always the kids!
Anyway it's a combination of everything, I wasn't singling out kids (but I know people who have had big birthday parties with their kids which is nuts, I've fecking seen it in my estate). And yeah I agree that the message from the government on isolation and antigens has been ridiculously muddled and confusing.
Also, you blamed the pubs, yet closing the pubs earlier and bringing in loads of extra restrictions made zero difference. I also haven't heard of a single person doing the twelve pubs this year, how even would you?
You can’t say those restrictions didn’t make any difference. Because there’s no parallel universe in which we cracked on as usual without any restrictions and ended up with exactly the same case numbers (which seems like a very unlikely scenario).
I’m sure it did make some difference. But evidently not enough of a difference to stop us being the omicron capital of the world. Feckless eejits that we are.
The weird thing is most people I know have generally been far safer and less adventurous than they normally would be. And pretty much anyone I talk to. It makes me wonder how little people in other countries interact. Bloody hermits.
Yeah, same. I don’t know a single person who hasn’t cut down their socialising a hell of a lot. Mind you, I also don’t know anyone who has stuck rigorously to Tony’s request to stop household mixing altogether. In fact, I would say every one of my friends attended (or hosted) at least one biggish (i.e. three households or more) gathering over the holidays, not including the family get together on Xmas day. Many of them more than one.
Maybe people in other countries are more likely to be rigorous about following government advice? We’ve always been a nation that sees rules more as general guidelines that should be worked around whenever possible.
There was a vid floating around here stating just because the vaccines have been developed in record time doesn't mean any corners have been cut and its actually very rigorously tested. Does anyone have the link for that?
Well here in West Sligo and also in Leitrim we have a small but vocal cohort of wellness hippies that are anti vax. There is also a type of male redneck who see the masks and the like as excessive nanny statism and personal hygiene as some sort of gayness.
On the whole people who aren't morons are really good, and we live our lives in our homes mostly anyway. There is a bit of wandering but in very small pre-existing bubbles. Social distancing here just isn't a problem.
On the coffee cups, I think that just points to our consumer vulgarity, there are similar stats for mobile phones, new cars, cabriolets, and microwave ovens; and our gluttony, see us in a pub versus Italians in a pub. We're classless boors
Well on our way to being the most obese country in Europe soon, tooWell here in West Sligo and also in Leitrim we have a small but vocal cohort of wellness hippies that are anti vax. There is also a type of male redneck who see the masks and the like as excessive nanny statism and personal hygiene as some sort of gayness.
On the whole people who aren't morons are really good, and we live our lives in our homes mostly anyway. There is a bit of wandering but in very small pre-existing bubbles. Social distancing here just isn't a problem.
On the coffee cups, I think that just points to our consumer vulgarity, there are similar stats for mobile phones, new cars, cabriolets, and microwave ovens; and our gluttony, see us in a pub versus Italians in a pub. We're classless boors
One rural v urban difference might be the fact that I have two pubs locally operating at varying degrees outside the rules at most points except during full lockdown, and people just turn a blind eye, which has its advantages and disadvantages and in a wider context is necessary as there is no anonymity round here.
Well on our way to being the most obese country in Europe soon, too
Yeah, grim. I'm holding back a rant here so I don't derail the thread.
The thread is currently about why Ireland is covid capital of the world, so a rant about our gluttonous consumerism would probably be quite on topic. Good for the soul too.
It’s something I’ve noticed as well. At its absolute worst during the Celtic tiger. I migrated back home at the peak and was fecking horrified at what’s become of us. Felt like the recession might have taken the edge off but evidently not for long.
Why are we like this though? Because we can? Genetic memories of the famine, so we lose our fecking minds in times of plenty?
I find the dichotomy between what is popular in terms of covid decision making in online circles vs real life experiences.
By that I mean anti-vax content is massive on social media platforms. When I hear people say they are being censored it makes me laugh because these people never shut up. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and the worst is Youtube - all places where anti-vax sentiment and conspiracies thrive.
But the numbers prove those people are just a very small but extremely loud minority. The vast majority of people are vaccinated. Similarly I've never experienced these anti-maskers causing abuse and trouble. But online that kind of stuff seems to be very prevalent.
By that I mean anti-vax content is massive on social media platforms. When I hear people say they are being censored it makes me laugh because these people never shut up. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and the worst is Youtube - all places where anti-vax sentiment and conspiracies thrive.
But the numbers prove those people are just a very small but extremely loud minority. The vast majority of people are vaccinated. Similarly I've never experienced these anti-maskers causing abuse and trouble. But online that kind of stuff seems to be very prevalent.
Yeah, in ways it's to do with our 'inorganic' past. It's akin to our fundamentalism towards owning a home. The lack of culinary past, even lots our oft heralded culture is to a degree a 19th century Anglo Irish construct.
We did jump two-footed into American style 'convenience in the 70's when the French, Spanish, Italians, etc turned their noses us. The British did to a degree so language probably compounded our dysfunctional upbringing as a nation.
But any inclinations we did have were certainly turned to full-blown disorder during the Celtic Tiger, no doubt.
100% agree, and would be happy to let them have their cathartic rants online if they were willing to just suck-it up and get vaxxed/wear masks where needed. But what's so frustrating with this, and all societal-fringe-think groups, is that their doubts and suspicions just act to back one-another up, until a potentially understandable - if incorrect - concern has become a full-on anti-governmental 5G man-on-the-moon conspiracy vomit. And it genuinely convinces people, because there are a lot of people who would sooner believe people who look, sound and think like them than trust those who don't.
The anti-vax movement is ridiculous but I think it's equally as ridiculous to have these massive sporting events with thousands of people during the current surge of cases.
I think it's Christmas to be honest. The cases rocketted just after Christmas last year too, though obviously not to the same amount.
There's a bit of fatigue creeping in definitely and some people are getting lax. I know of two households who all got it when it should have been easily preventable. One was my exes Da who had a visitor in. This fella quite clearly had symptoms at the time. The Da got it first and a few days later they had all it. Another was my antivax cousin was sick and told his parents he'd had a test and got the all clear, so wasn't isolating. The parents got sick and tested positive and then your man goes for 'another test' to be on the safe side and lo and behold he was positive as well. Luckily nobody got seriously ill.
So how long after getting pinged as a close contact on the app should I continue doing LFT’s for? Happened on Monday at the football.
Are close-contact pings still a thing? Had no idea that was still going. No idea how I managed to get through December in London without a notification!
So many examples of straight up idiocy like that in my social circles too. Educated people as well. It’s weird.
Apparently so. I forgot I had the app installed to be honest, but I’m negative at the moment so will just continue to do tests daily I guess.
@Pogue Mahone it's not the schools! bite nom nom nom
https://www.rte.ie/news/education/2022/0106/1272079-schools/
https://www.rte.ie/news/education/2022/0106/1272079-schools/
Not referencing the anti-vax case posted, but I'm not sure if it is all that weird really. If you've followed all the advice so far and been triple vaxxed, it's completely understandable how individuals would prioritise actually enjoying the holidays with the people they love, especially when the virus now poses very little individual threat for the vast majority. Given everything the pandemic has disrupted, it's no surprise people are at the end of their tether - especially those who have been jabbed/already had it.
Yes, there will be people who remain vulnerable (either by their own decisions re jabs or because of pre-existing conditions), but isn't that just always going to be the case now?
Where there should be reason for caution currently is due to the pressures being put on hospitals/key services by the current wave, but this is also due to the amount of time people need to have off with the covid/close contact as a minimum? My brother-in-law and his wife just had a baby, and the maternity staff were unsurprisingly running low on available staff, but the main takeaway they had was why X, Y and Z were having to stay home when they were feeling absolutely fine/testing negative.
Myself, friends and family who all work in the public sector/organizations that are feeling the strain because of Covid and are classified as "key workers" are still going out and enjoying life/seeing people in our spare time, because honestly it's just too miserable to have to chug through without these interactions. Yes numbers are high, but there is no way this is the same situation we were in 12 months ago.
That said, I would be very hesitant to spend time indoors with unvaccinated people/those showing symptoms, and anytime we've had people round, we've done LFTs beforehand. So maybe these cases are incomparable.
Well I for one am shocked. Shocked.
bloody blind man could have told them, but there they are closing the bars etc and the biggest factor outside the family home is the place where the kids pick every virus up going around.
I’ve taken my 2 back today. At home we mix with very few. At school, between the 2 of them 50 people and by definition their families and contacts too
but yeah let’s plough on minister foley because there’s no evidence to suggest that schools are an issue
you've done it now, Pogue will be after you.Well I for one am shocked. Shocked.
bloody blind man could have told them, but there they are closing the bars etc and the biggest factor outside the family home is the place where the kids pick every virus up going around.
I’ve taken my 2 back today. At home we mix with very few. At school, between the 2 of them 50 people and by definition their families and contacts too
but yeah let’s plough on minister foley because there’s no evidence to suggest that schools are an issue