An old school friend died of Covid yesterday - which has come as a real shock. 48 years old, no underlying health issues but his wife said the virus cut him down hard. He's second or third generation Pakistani descent and it seems to be hitting that community particularly badly. Lovely kid who turned into a great bloke - one of those who no-one ever had a bad word to say about.
RIP Satty. Will have a couple of beers in your memory tonight.
somebody on another site posted a video that says this new variant is nothing to worry about
I know from personal experience more people I know either online or real life are having to isolate either to having it or somebody they're with having it. March's lockdown I knew nobody with it, this lockdown at least 10. Does seem to be more prevalent.
Professional Mel-the-Bell Simulator................"So realistic, I found myself reaching for the Kleenex King-Size!" - Richard Darling
The likelihood is you will know of more people via online talking about it or talking about self-isolating. The only person I have heard of in my own personal experience so far has been a friend of my sister and he apparently had it quite mild. He's in his 50s. My view is to follow the guidance regarding face masks and avoiding unnecessary group gatherings. I take a multi-vitamin occasionally also. I avoid as much of the media hysteria, and the online paranoid theories as possible.
The likelihood is you will know of more people via online talking about it or talking about self-isolating. The only person I have heard of in my own personal experience so far has been a friend of my sister and he apparently had it quite mild. He's in his 50s. My view is to follow the guidance regarding face masks and avoiding unnecessary group gatherings. I take a multi-vitamin occasionally also. I avoid as much of the media hysteria, and the online paranoid theories as possible.
I know more people WITH it, including with symptoms
Professional Mel-the-Bell Simulator................"So realistic, I found myself reaching for the Kleenex King-Size!" - Richard Darling
Never said you didn't - I said i there was a greater likelihood to hear of people talking online about it, having it or isolating because of it. That is how I have heard about most of the actual instances of it I have heard about. As it doesn't affect individuals in a uniform manner, its quite possible that of two people of the same age one might die and the other not, and in some instances there could be some unknowns involved as to why that is the case. I didn't mean to suggest everyone's experience is the same.
As it doesn't affect individuals in a uniform manner, its quite possible of two people of the same age one might die and the other not, and in some instances there could be some unknowns involved as to why that is the case.
They say that could be down to an "Angry" gene that some people have and some people dont, it attacks part of your body to get rid of the virus hence why some people get really badly affected.
Post edited by mel the bell on
Professional Mel-the-Bell Simulator................"So realistic, I found myself reaching for the Kleenex King-Size!" - Richard Darling
As it doesn't affect individuals in a uniform manner, its quite possible of two people of the same age one might die and the other not, and in some instances there could be some unknowns involved as to why that is the case.
They say that could be down to an "Angry" gene that some people have and some people dont, it attacks part of your body to get rid of the virus hence why some people get really badly affected.
I don't believe in an "angry gene" as such - I think that sort of terminology is only going to cause confusion as to what is being talked about, for instance are "they" (whoever that is?) talking about a cytokine storm, or something else?
I have read that ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome) as a result of lung damage resulting in low oxygen saturation levels is a factor in COVID-19 mortality.
IMHO, it would be a mistake to underestimate the new strains (as these now seem to be popping up from various countries on a weekly basis) because nobody really knows what the mutations could do to people (ethnicity considered), prior or after vaccination has occurred.
I see some scientists behaving in a very un-scientific way assuming many bad-things-for-humans will not happen when it would be just easier and best to assume their lack of knowledge regarding the way the virus works.
IMHO, it would be a mistake to underestimate the new strains (as these now seem to be popping up from various countries on a weekly basis) because nobody really knows what the mutations could do to people (ethnicity considered), prior or after vaccination has occurred.
I see some scientists behaving in a very un-scientific way assuming many bad-things-for-humans will not happen when it would be just easier and best to assume their lack of knowledge regarding the way the virus works.
I agree that its best to not jump to unwarranted conclusions about new strains of this particular coronavirus until we know more.
A friend (who should know better) keeps sending me all these wild conspiracy videos about the virus was manufactured or came from space etc. I have told them to stop sending them to me as they are nonsense and i have no time for the lunatics spreading the garbage.
Since this whole mess started I have to admit I've spent quite some time reading, watching videos and listening to people, ranging from medical doctors/health experts to negationists/conspiracy theorists.
I have no doubt that real science will be the only way to get us out of this trouble.
As for the truth I'm guessing that will take a while longer to be known, but I have faith that when it comes out it will be like the proverbial saying - stranger than fiction.
Science cannot tell one exactly what to do. It can however inform. What is needed is a more holistic strategy instead of using fear tactics to get the public to conform. Getting the methodology right is important, for instance could randomised testing of the healthy population early on tell us how many have had it and recovered? If so would that information provide more context for decisions about lockdowns etc.
! Standby alert !
“There are four lights!”
Step up to red alert. Sir, are you absolutely sure? It does mean changing the bulb!
Looking forward to summer in Somerset later in the year :)
Heard of the first person I actually knew that's died. She was 72 with an underlying heart condition and had traveled back to the UK for Christmas - the whole family gathering came down with it on the same day.
Meanwhile I had to move house over Christmas - now I'm in my "new" gaff I've bumped into someone I haven't seen in a while. They invited me round for their darts and beers nights......obviously I said "yes sounds good - but not at the moment".....people really not helping the cause holding flippin darts nights in their house.
"I should use simulator loosely 'cos I don't think it's quite like this on the beach with helicopters and fires and the jumping beach buggy" - paulisthebest3uk 2020.
Heard of the first person I actually knew that's died. She was 72 with an underlying heart condition and had traveled back to the UK for Christmas - the whole family gathering came down with it on the same day.
Meanwhile I had to move house over Christmas - now I'm in my "new" gaff I've bumped into someone I haven't seen in a while. They invited me round for their darts and beers nights......obviously I said "yes sounds good - but not at the moment".....people really not helping the cause holding flippin darts nights in their house.
today at work, me and the gaffer saw at least 7 cars arrive with 2 people in not wearing masks, its surprising how many "live together" when its that or wearing a mask, the virus is rampant there too
Professional Mel-the-Bell Simulator................"So realistic, I found myself reaching for the Kleenex King-Size!" - Richard Darling
What if, injections were done on a door to door basis, where a trucks would travel the streets and a following team would inoculate whole neighborhoods in one day. Then as everyone receives their first injection they are given a wristband with barcode in. Therefore public spaces and Venus can scan that wristband to see who has and who has not been fully inoculated with a first and second injection as necessary. The barcode could reference your name and photo, and national security number and optionally the driving license number via a web service.
I'm not sure the dystopian possibilities of some sort of mass database, indicating exactly who you are and where you have been is necessarily better than lockdowns.
unfortunately I can see exactly that dystopian future coming about because of this situation.
For example how will you show you've been vaccinated, sure it's on you national health record, but then they'll need to share that with other government agencies for other reasons. Your insurance company will want to know, If you travel overseas, foreign governments will want to know. And before you know it even google will need to know..
The arguments will be made for all the right reasons, but then that data will be available to the highest bidder for all the wrong reasons.
I can also see this becoming the new 'FLU' jab that you have to have every year as it constantly mutates as is mother natures way of life.
Still on the brighter side another 350k people were given the jab today so we should be over 6m by Sunday, well on the way to meeting the most target of getting the most vunerable done by the middle of Feb. Well done to all involved..
Funny enough I'm just watching the US news and an idea is being tossed around about a vaccination passport to enable people to fly, and the possibility of broadening this too workplaces and institutions. It is essentially the same idea.
I'm not sure the dystopian possibilities of some sort of mass database, indicating exactly who you are and where you have been is necessarily better than lockdowns.
Anyone with an Android smartphone signed in to Google's services or Facebook is doing just that anyway. In fact anyone with a sim card will be providing a rough indication of their whereabouts.
Cruise companies are now saying they won't take any passengers that haven't been vaccinated. I can see it as being the first assurance to getting pubs open too. The question is - how? If someone has a wrist band, what's to stop him passing it through a toilet window to his mate outside?
Cruise companies are now saying they won't take any passengers that haven't been vaccinated. I can see it as being the first assurance to getting pubs open too. The question is - how? If someone has a wrist band, what's to stop him passing it through a toilet window to his mate outside?
That's why you need some kind of way to tie it in with your likeness. That is. when you get vaccinated you get your photo taken and associated with the barcode on the wrist band.
Anyone thinking that the shot and an identifier is somehow making them more visible to authority is living in fantasy land. You cannot fly below radar, haven't been able to for years. Thats just a fact that I discovered in 1982 when my college interviewer calmly informed me just how comprehensive their records were.
Anyone thinking that the shot and an identifier is somehow making them more visible to authority is living in fantasy land. You cannot fly below radar, haven't been able to for years. Thats just a fact that I discovered in 1982 when my college interviewer calmly informed me just how comprehensive their records were.
It's not so much being visible, it's that if you collect all that data into one database in the government's buddies (because let's face it, the implementation will be farmed out to the latest incarnation of Cambridge Analytica) hands it will absolutely, definitely be abused and/or leaked.
Anyone thinking that the shot and an identifier is somehow making them more visible to authority is living in fantasy land. You cannot fly below radar, haven't been able to for years. Thats just a fact that I discovered in 1982 when my college interviewer calmly informed me just how comprehensive their records were.
It's not so much being visible, it's that if you collect all that data into one database in the government's buddies (because let's face it, the implementation will be farmed out to the latest incarnation of Cambridge Analytica) hands it will absolutely, definitely be abused and/or leaked.
Andy I think you are being a bit naive, perhaps willfully because we both know your a very clever chap.
I think a lot of our interactions are in the hands of others, if you own a debit card,car insurance, a mobile phone smart or otherwise your interactions are monetized without your consent.
Also, if this is a government non profit system and the terms and conditions are clear what intensive does the government have to share that data over what else they have one you such as earnings, tax info, car ownership.
Personally I think as long as the system was in place only whilst the pandemic was still declared and that after a couple of years was shut down (and by that point people would not have the need to show their wrist band), it would be the greater good.
The prospect of this virus mutating and needing new vaccines every few months (like the Flu) is pretty scary. Even apart from that, from what I've read this week it seems like immunity might only last a few moths anyway - either as a result of a vaccine, or having caught it and fought it off.
If we're stuck with fighting this thing repeatedly through regular cycles, the world will be impacted for years! There will be no return to normality if vaccinating even everyone in the world is not going to rid us of it. Remember, we can't treat this like the Flu and only bother giving the annual jab to the older and more vulnerable in society. It's way more deadly to a wider spectrum of people, so we'll have to be constantly fighting new breakouts as older immunity ceases to count any more.
Well, it may well be that we have to do what New Zealand has done...
Instead of a wishy-washy so called lock down (from what I can see, it’s much busier than last year’s spring lockdown), supposedly to help take the pressure off the NHS, instead we will have to do it properly. By properly, I mean a lockdown to try to eradicate the virus. Not just to try to control the spread to ‘acceptable’ levels.
The first step, is for the government to actually have a clear, simple, consistent and understandable message. And for this to be consistent across all ministers and all government departments. No exceptions. No rule bending.
A proper lockdown also means, a curfew from 18:00 to 07:00 unless you are actually an essential shift worker. Only actual key workers traveling any significant distance during the day. Exceptions for journeys for medical reasons. All of the above will require a photo ID showing their official job details. Other than that, one and only one food shopping trip per week, and you will need to print off a government form otherwise the shop can refuse you entry. And exercise within three to four miles of your home.
If you get caught breaking the rules, then for the first offence, it’s a minimum of an official warning and that warning being recorded against your name. Followed up with a letter to your home address. Yes, you get a criminal record. Second time, it’s a large fine. Third time, you get a free trip to a god forsaken place to help dig water channels for irrigation or embankments to protect against flooding.
No travel into or out of the U.K. without a test before travel. 14 days of isolation within one mile of the arrival point (airport, port, etc). And another test four days before your isolation ends. For truck drivers of essential goods and other similar transportation staff (e.g. train crew, airline crew), you have to undergo a test and show a certificate of vaccination. But you don’t have to isolate unless you test positive.
Oh, and we also need mass random testing. And a properly and fully functioning track and trace system.
All this combined should get the virus under control in about six weeks. Only once the numbers of new infections drops below ten people per week will the lockdown be eased.
Will this be popular, highly unlikely. But it will be better than a perpetual half-hearted lockdown or tiered restrictions that go on for months and months.
! Standby alert !
“There are four lights!”
Step up to red alert. Sir, are you absolutely sure? It does mean changing the bulb!
Looking forward to summer in Somerset later in the year :)
Comments
I know from personal experience more people I know either online or real life are having to isolate either to having it or somebody they're with having it. March's lockdown I knew nobody with it, this lockdown at least 10. Does seem to be more prevalent.
I see some scientists behaving in a very un-scientific way assuming many bad-things-for-humans will not happen when it would be just easier and best to assume their lack of knowledge regarding the way the virus works.
I agree that its best to not jump to unwarranted conclusions about new strains of this particular coronavirus until we know more.
I have no doubt that real science will be the only way to get us out of this trouble.
As for the truth I'm guessing that will take a while longer to be known, but I have faith that when it comes out it will be like the proverbial saying - stranger than fiction.
Things have to be looked at in the round.
So someone has been doing some testing.
Mark
Repair Guides. Spanish Hardware site.
WoS - can't download? Info here...
former Meulie Spectrum Archive but no longer available :-(
Spectranet: the TNFS directory thread
! Standby alert !
“There are four lights!”
Step up to red alert. Sir, are you absolutely sure? It does mean changing the bulb!
Looking forward to summer in Somerset later in the year :)
Meanwhile I had to move house over Christmas - now I'm in my "new" gaff I've bumped into someone I haven't seen in a while. They invited me round for their darts and beers nights......obviously I said "yes sounds good - but not at the moment".....people really not helping the cause holding flippin darts nights in their house.
Thanks Mark, yes there seems to be some testing going on.
For example how will you show you've been vaccinated, sure it's on you national health record, but then they'll need to share that with other government agencies for other reasons. Your insurance company will want to know, If you travel overseas, foreign governments will want to know. And before you know it even google will need to know..
The arguments will be made for all the right reasons, but then that data will be available to the highest bidder for all the wrong reasons.
I can also see this becoming the new 'FLU' jab that you have to have every year as it constantly mutates as is mother natures way of life.
Still on the brighter side another 350k people were given the jab today so we should be over 6m by Sunday, well on the way to meeting the most target of getting the most vunerable done by the middle of Feb. Well done to all involved..
Anyone with an Android smartphone signed in to Google's services or Facebook is doing just that anyway. In fact anyone with a sim card will be providing a rough indication of their whereabouts.
That's why you need some kind of way to tie it in with your likeness. That is. when you get vaccinated you get your photo taken and associated with the barcode on the wrist band.
https://mb.boardhost.com/BikerMike/index.html?1593001131
Andy I think you are being a bit naive, perhaps willfully because we both know your a very clever chap.
I think a lot of our interactions are in the hands of others, if you own a debit card,car insurance, a mobile phone smart or otherwise your interactions are monetized without your consent.
Also, if this is a government non profit system and the terms and conditions are clear what intensive does the government have to share that data over what else they have one you such as earnings, tax info, car ownership.
Personally I think as long as the system was in place only whilst the pandemic was still declared and that after a couple of years was shut down (and by that point people would not have the need to show their wrist band), it would be the greater good.
Unless someone develops an effective treatment, that seems inevitable.
If we're stuck with fighting this thing repeatedly through regular cycles, the world will be impacted for years! There will be no return to normality if vaccinating even everyone in the world is not going to rid us of it. Remember, we can't treat this like the Flu and only bother giving the annual jab to the older and more vulnerable in society. It's way more deadly to a wider spectrum of people, so we'll have to be constantly fighting new breakouts as older immunity ceases to count any more.
I can't see an end any time soon.... :(
Instead of a wishy-washy so called lock down (from what I can see, it’s much busier than last year’s spring lockdown), supposedly to help take the pressure off the NHS, instead we will have to do it properly. By properly, I mean a lockdown to try to eradicate the virus. Not just to try to control the spread to ‘acceptable’ levels.
The first step, is for the government to actually have a clear, simple, consistent and understandable message. And for this to be consistent across all ministers and all government departments. No exceptions. No rule bending.
A proper lockdown also means, a curfew from 18:00 to 07:00 unless you are actually an essential shift worker. Only actual key workers traveling any significant distance during the day. Exceptions for journeys for medical reasons. All of the above will require a photo ID showing their official job details. Other than that, one and only one food shopping trip per week, and you will need to print off a government form otherwise the shop can refuse you entry. And exercise within three to four miles of your home.
If you get caught breaking the rules, then for the first offence, it’s a minimum of an official warning and that warning being recorded against your name. Followed up with a letter to your home address. Yes, you get a criminal record. Second time, it’s a large fine. Third time, you get a free trip to a god forsaken place to help dig water channels for irrigation or embankments to protect against flooding.
No travel into or out of the U.K. without a test before travel. 14 days of isolation within one mile of the arrival point (airport, port, etc). And another test four days before your isolation ends. For truck drivers of essential goods and other similar transportation staff (e.g. train crew, airline crew), you have to undergo a test and show a certificate of vaccination. But you don’t have to isolate unless you test positive.
Oh, and we also need mass random testing. And a properly and fully functioning track and trace system.
All this combined should get the virus under control in about six weeks. Only once the numbers of new infections drops below ten people per week will the lockdown be eased.
Will this be popular, highly unlikely. But it will be better than a perpetual half-hearted lockdown or tiered restrictions that go on for months and months.
Mark
Repair Guides. Spanish Hardware site.
WoS - can't download? Info here...
former Meulie Spectrum Archive but no longer available :-(
Spectranet: the TNFS directory thread
! Standby alert !
“There are four lights!”
Step up to red alert. Sir, are you absolutely sure? It does mean changing the bulb!
Looking forward to summer in Somerset later in the year :)