Coronavirus (COVID-19)

[vikingTON]

27 minutes ago, The Stig said:

I put a question mark at the end to start a discussion.  What do you think should be opened up first that won't cause this "ramp up" to happen without any risks?

Nothing in life is risk free and we have to start somewhere and that is where the 2 governments seems to be hanging their hat on to.

I am not trying to sound pissy I genuinely want to know what people believe the sequence of opening up of everything should be?

Non-essential retail and services (barbers, gyms) could be re-opened tomorrow without causing a plateau in cases from here until the summer. Some people might say 'aye but the weans are more important than those sectors", but that's not actually decisive when dealing with a public health problem. 

Restrictions should be removed in order to produce the widest societal benefit while also ensuring that the downward momentum can be sustained, so that all restrictions can be launched into the bin by the soonest possible date. That is the rational rather than politically-driven criteria for decision-making in this scenario.

Edited February 13, 2021 by vikingTON

[DeeTillEhDeh]

Well I’m not a teacher or a peadophile so I don’t tend to spend much time in schools. 
My best mate’s wife is a secondary school teacher so I’ll take what she told me as fact.

I felt in December that it was a real battle with some pupils - constantly having to remind them to pull their masks up - to stay on their own seat - the worst offenders were senior pupils.

[DeeTillEhDeh]

What your mates wife told you the kids in the coop where not wearing masks as there was no in school example given.  
My school (is) was  masks on at all times when moving in the building and S4 - S6 with masks on in class and it was observed impeccably 

Can I teach in your school?

[Steven W]

1 hour ago, Wee Bully said:

You do know that Scotland has some pupils going back to school a fortnight before England?

Literally the only concrete measure, and it seems to be completely ignored.

Nothing concrete about it at all. To be confirmed on Tuesday. And if Leitch's hint yesterday and the front page of one paper today is anything to go by, it may even be withdrawn.

[The Stig]

9 minutes ago, virginton said:

Non-essential retail and services (barbers, gyms) could be re-opened tomorrow without causing a plateau in cases from here until the summer. Some people might say 'aye but the weans are more important than those sectors", but that's not actually decisive when dealing with a public health problem. 

Restrictions should be removed in order to produce the widest societal benefit while also ensuring that the downward momentum can be sustained, so that all restrictions can be launched into the bin by the soonest possible date. That is the rational rather than politically-driven criteria for decision-making in this scenario.

I know your opinion is that schools are some sort of glorified childcare but it does beg the question if you open up those sectors what happens to the kids of the workers?  The answer will be that they will be placed with their grandparents which is not ideal in a public health emergency or do you keep the workers with children on furlough and f**k up the countries economy some more?

Edited February 13, 2021 by The Stig

[Michael W]

The grandparents will however have been vaccinated in most cases. 

School kids will be the last to be vaccinated and that's correct based on risk. But come autumn schools will be the only setting with hundreds of unvaccinated people mixing. 

[Benjamin_Nevis]

4 hours ago, specsaver said:

I'm not convinced by some of the West Coast based panel's but  fortunately haven't had any Dundee based judges as I never enjoyed having to travel out of Fife to Dundee as I always seemed do poorly. Think I had better success with written submission only, maybe they didn't like the look of me! Then again I should remember not to get too dressed up!    

 

Dundee panels are horrific 8 times out of 10, so bad in fact that tactical adjournments are sometimes a necessity when you hear who you've got simply because you know you're not going to win. There are a couple of medical and disability members who are quite frankly disgraceful as well. I've never had much success with paper hearings, unless the medical evidence is totally solid, but we are seeing quite a few lapses - I believe PIP are being a bit more reasonable with the advent of the Scottish disability benefits in the next couple of years. 

[vikingTON]

16 minutes ago, The Stig said:

I know your opinion is that schools are some sort of glorified childcare but it does beg the question if you open up those sectors what happens to the kids of the workers?  The answer will be that they will be placed with their grandparents which is not ideal in a public health emergency or do you keep the workers with children on furlough and f**k up the countries economy some more?

Having some parents remaining on furlough is far less of a cost than closing entire sectors of the economy and furloughing everyone plus business support. And by maintaining the reduction in transmission the economy opens up more quickly as a whole, which is another massive plus in the cost-benefit analysis.

It's also contradictory for you to suddenly express mock concern about children (no longer mixing with 20-odd others all week long) interacting with grandparents because schools are closed, when your previous argument was that, erm, the old and vulnerable are already getting jabbed so it's time to 'get back to normal' and let the infections rip! Make your mind up please.

Edited February 13, 2021 by vikingTON

[Elixir]

 

[Big Fifer]

2 hours ago, Inanimate Carbon Rod said:

Im glad your experience was different, but unfortunately ive written to three and had absolutely no help/response. 

I was astonished by the swiftness of my MSP John Mason's response to an email I sent on Tuesday about my concern regarding restrictions not being lifted fast enough. Detailed response, a lot of which I don't really agree with, but he's offered a zoom call to discuss the issues which I'll gladly take up at some point in the coming week. 

Living in Ruth's constituency for 4 years however, was a different story. 

[ICTChris]

A Zoom call with John fucking Mason.

[The Stig]

21 minutes ago, virginton said:

Having some parents remaining on furlough is far less of a cost than closing an entire sector of the economy and furloughing everyone plus business support. And by maintaining the reduction in transmission the economy opens up more quickly as a whole, which is another massive plus in the cost-benefit analysis.

It's also contradictory for you to suddenly express mock concern about children (no longer mixing with 20-odd others all week long) interacting with grandparents because schools are closed, when your previous argument was that, erm, the old and vulnerable are already getting jabbed so it's time to 'get back to normal' and let the infections rip! Make your mind up please

Where have I advocated letting the virus rip, I have said open the schools slowly (P1 - 3 first) monitor for a few weeks and then open some more.  This could be in conjunction with some non essential services. This will allow the contract trasers to ensure that any outbreaks are monitored and sources can be identified. 

Edited February 13, 2021 by The Stig

[vikingTON]

13 minutes ago, Elixir said:

 

It's mind-boggling to see our Plague Island take good news that can show what is to come and drive up vaccination rates further and bury it under a rolling 24/7 torrent of knicker-wetting drivel about 'new variants!!!!!1111!!!!' 

If the vaccines had 30% effectiveness or didn't work at all yet then I don't think the government's message would be any different to what it is right now, and that is simply not acceptable. 

Edited February 13, 2021 by vikingTON

[Glen Sannox]

15 minutes ago, Big Fifer said:

I was astonished by the swiftness of my MSP John Mason's response to an email I sent on Tuesday about my concern regarding restrictions not being lifted fast enough. Detailed response, a lot of which I don't really agree with, but he's offered a zoom call to discuss the issues which I'll gladly take up at some point in the coming week. 

Living in Ruth's constituency for 4 years however, was a different story. 

A zoom call with John Mason! Just when you thought  all this “end of the world” stuff couldn’t get any worse.

[Elixir]

5 minutes ago, virginton said:

It's mind-boggling to see our Plague Island take good news that can show what is to come and drive up vaccination rates further and bury it under a rolling 24/7 torrent of knicker-wetting drivel about 'new variants!!!!!1111!!!!' 

If the vaccines had 30% effectiveness or didn't work at all yet then I don't think the government's message would be any different to what it is right now, and that is simply not acceptable. 

The vaccines are going to absolutely cigar Covid into nothingness. It was only yesterday the boy who owns Pfizer and created their vaccine said in an interview with Sky News that, due their effectiveness and likely high levels of uptake, it will cause less deaths than the flu.

That's less deaths than season influenza.

Yet there are still some clowns out there talking about masks and social distancing being needed for several years. 

[H Wragg]

A Zoom call with John fucking Mason.

"Have you ever thought of joining the Baptist Church?"

[emoji3061]

[craigkillie]

3 hours ago, The Stig said:

Once again you are only making assumptions.  The schools can't dictate to them outside school no matter what anyone thinks.

For example I am sure that you don't wear a mask outside when walking so I have to assume that you don't wear one in a shop.  

That is a ridiculous statement as the two are not linked in any way so you can't make any correlation between anyone's behaviour in different setttings.  I am aware teenagers are a law to themselves but my experience is that they were following the rules set out at school, but unfortunately like a lot of people (you just have to take a walk in any supermarket) are choosing to not wear a mask when they really should be. 

This isn't remotely the same thing.

I am not required to wear a mask outside, so the fact that I don't wear one doesn't give any additional evidence either way about whether I wear one in the shop.

School children, like the rest of us, are required to carry out social distancing outdoors at all times. The fact that they are not doing so suggests that it would not be a great leap to suggest they were also not following the rules at school. That would hardly be surprising given that they're schoolkids and not known for always following the rules. That's why schools being open has always been a public health risk. A justifiable risk perhaps, but it is insulting to people's intelligence for it to be suggested that it was perfectly safe as they were doing in the autumn.

Edited February 14, 2021 by craigkillie

[Thereisalight..]

4 hours ago, D.A.F.C said:

Future should be everyone vaccinated plus massive increase in testing and track and trace. 
Slow release of everything while this is happening. Anything else will just result in another lockdown. 
No excuses vaccination should not slow down and we need a proper test system and quick local shutdowns if required with mass testing rolling out straight away. Whatever this costs will be nothing compared to another lockdown.

I really dont see why we should continue to spunk thousands of pounds up the wall each day on test and protect when the elderly and vulnerable have been vaccinated. 

[D.A.F.C]

Just now, Thereisalight.. said:

I really dont see why we should continue to spunk thousands of pounds up the wall each day on test and protect when the elderly and vulnerable have been vaccinated. 

Drive it down to nothing if the tests can be made cheaply. There’s still lots of unknowns and would be far cheaper than more lockdowns.

[Thereisalight..]

I'm surprised at how compliant the MSM have been in regards to ongoing restrictions and no end in sight of them. Usually theres a tipping point when the media begin to ask questions like "why/when" etc. I'd have thought almost a year into proceedings theyd have been asking by now rather than continuing with the propaganda and "project fear"