Coronavirus

[pauld]

No point even acknowledging the twats, unless it actually goes ahead on a significant scale, which I doubt very much.

This on the other hand...

That article, by a right-wing journalist, in the most slavishly pro-Johnson paper there is, is worth reading in full, especially for those who doubt that the death rates in this country represent anything other than a catastrophic failure of policy

"The UK is moving uncomfortably close to special status, with excess deaths above the seasonal average topping 42,000 up to April 24. It has undoubtedly surpassed 50,000 since then. We will breach 1,000 deaths per million before long, yet without reaching the safe uplands of herd immunity. These deaths could have been held to at 1,000 or thereabouts, ideally by Korean methods, or failing that at least by sheer Greek determination. All the other deaths are in essence a policy failure."

or that the elderly in care homes were essentially sacrificed to make it look like the NHS was coping OK.

"“Our policy was to let the virus rip and then ‘cocoon the elderly’,” he wrote. “You don’t know whether to laugh or cry when you contrast that with what we actually did. We discharged known, suspected, and unknown cases into care homes which were unprepared, with no formal warning that the patients were infected, no testing available, and no PPE to prevent transmission. We actively seeded this into the very population that was most vulnerable.
“We let these people die without palliation. The official policy was not to visit care homes – and they didn’t (and still don’t). So, after infecting them with a disease that causes an unpleasant ending, we denied our elders access to a doctor – denied GP visits – and denied admission to hospital. Simple things like fluids, withheld. Effective palliation like syringe drivers, withheld.” "

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2020/05/12/governments-handling-covid-19-british-disaster/
https://archive.fo/tmak1 (non-paywall)

[Ardiles]

That article, by a right-wing journalist, in the most slavishly pro-Johnson paper there is, is worth reading in full, especially for those who doubt that the death rates in this country represent anything other than a catastrophic failure of policy

"The UK is moving uncomfortably close to special status, with excess deaths above the seasonal average topping 42,000 up to April 24. It has undoubtedly surpassed 50,000 since then. We will breach 1,000 deaths per million before long, yet without reaching the safe uplands of herd immunity. These deaths could have been held to at 1,000 or thereabouts, ideally by Korean methods, or failing that at least by sheer Greek determination. All the other deaths are in essence a policy failure."

or that the elderly in care homes were essentially sacrificed to make it look like the NHS was coping OK.

"“Our policy was to let the virus rip and then ‘cocoon the elderly’,” he wrote. “You don’t know whether to laugh or cry when you contrast that with what we actually did. We discharged known, suspected, and unknown cases into care homes which were unprepared, with no formal warning that the patients were infected, no testing available, and no PPE to prevent transmission. We actively seeded this into the very population that was most vulnerable.
“We let these people die without palliation. The official policy was not to visit care homes – and they didn’t (and still don’t). So, after infecting them with a disease that causes an unpleasant ending, we denied our elders access to a doctor – denied GP visits – and denied admission to hospital. Simple things like fluids, withheld. Effective palliation like syringe drivers, withheld.” "

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2020/05/12/governments-handling-covid-19-british-disaster/
https://archive.fo/tmak1 (non-paywall)

What you have described is a national scandal that dwarfs even Windrush, and Grenfell.  Open trials and, if proven, jail terms should follow for those responsible.

[pauld]

What you have described is a national scandal that dwarfs even Windrush, and Grenfell.  Open trials and, if proven, jail terms should follow for those responsible.

Indeed. Although I didn't describe it, the words are those of a leading Tory commentator and a "Boris-friendly" cardiologist "at a top London hospital"

[The Artist Formerly Known as Audrey]

Yowser!

[StfcRusty]

Whoever runs Doncaster Council's twitter feed should immediately take over the government's communications and media departments, this is brilliant:

https://twitter.com/MyDoncaster/status/1260510008565006336

Now that's how to communicate a message clearly and simply with humour too!

[pauld]

Yowser!

Quite. There is a reason why I have been describing "herd immunity" without a vaccine as insane. Hundreds of thousands of avoidable deaths.

[singingiiiffy]

Pauldeath

[Flashheart]

I know he's only doing it for his own benefit but when Piers Morgan is looked upon as the one standing up for people, the rest of the industry need to have a long, hard look at themselves in the mirror.

[Bob's Orange]

Interesting documentary on channel 4 about South Korea’s approach to Covid19. Their premise was basically about shitloads of testing and contact tracing. There were elements of self-imposed lockdown in one of the cities but on the whole life didn’t drastically change.

As contact tracing relies deeply on the invasion of privacy I don’t think that would have gone down well at all in the UK, however the Korean outlook is that their health is more important and so were happy to go down that route.

[Jimmy HaveHave]

Interesting documentary on channel 4 about South Korea’s approach to Covid19. Their premise was basically about shitloads of testing and contact tracing. There were elements of self-imposed lockdown in one of the cities but on the whole life didn’t drastically change.

As contact tracing relies deeply on the invasion of privacy I don’t think that would have gone down well at all in the UK, however the Korean outlook is that their health is more important and so were happy to go down that route.

I wonder how their neighbors are fairing

[Bob's Orange]

I wonder how their neighbors are fairing

Unlikely we’ll never know!!

[pauld]

Where is that quoted?

And after a little more digging, if you have a look at the FB group page or the website for "UK Freedom Movement" who are the fuckwits calling for the demo, you'll see after a few standard disclaimers about being politically neutral, non-partisan etc it's full of rants about Corbyn, the "Islamification" of the UK, seeing off the "Marxist takeover of our schools" etc etc. Standard right-wing clickbait in other words. They seem to have come out of the extreme end of the Brexit street protests, possibly with the Yellow Vest lot. So as theakston said (but perhaps not what he meant) "the ususal suspects". But certainly not anarchists

[BambooToTheFuture]

I know he's only doing it for his own benefit but when Piers Morgan is looked upon as the one standing up for people, the rest of the industry need to have a long, hard look at themselves in the mirror.

The Daily Mirror?

[BambooToTheFuture]

Saw this on AssBook earlier.. I bloody despair.

Let's use a pic of around 20 years old and put a heartwarming story of support for our beloved Bojo. Bless the poppet, it's so hard trying to become a national treasure. Go easy on him. Come on....

Fucking does my head in. These are the type of people who voted the prick in.

[mystical_goat]

I know he's only doing it for his own benefit but when Piers Morgan is looked upon as the one standing up for people, the rest of the industry need to have a long, hard look at themselves in the mirror.

Saw a great tweet about him a few weeks ago:

A weathercock doesn't predict the weather, or point to the way the wind should be blowing, or understand why it's windy at all, it just points the way the wind is blowing at any given moment. Think of this when you think of Piers Morgan. At the end of the day, it's just a cock.

by https://twitter.com/Nick_Pettigrew