Chat about Novel Coronavirus - 2019-nCoV - COVID-19

I literally just read an article with that quote and came here to post it. If the airline industry is angry this can only be good news.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/carltonreid/2020/05/11/airline-pilots-furious-that-uk-government-backs-cycling-and-walking-during-lockdown/

https://twitter.com/BALPApilots/status/1­259157622562918403

Fuck them all day long. Still, thankfully they´re being treated to some flak from their own grounded members (sorry, weak pun).

This is something worth having a look at, it's a survey about the 3rd runway. A bit off topic for the covid thread (apologies) but seemed topical for S London and folks near the flight path

https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/T4G18I/?fbclid=IwAR1kazuEptXh8-E3ih7vyvplCSB0kay9VNPiECMOsQGKGklSWby_qUnzTgI

Oh dear. Wait till they find out how much money goes to the nhs instead of propping up airlines. They'll be fuming.

Don't know if this link will work as it's from the Guardian Live feed.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2020/may/12/uk-coronavirus-live-sunak-expected-to-extend-furlough-scheme-as-lockdown-confusion-continues?page=with:block-5eba654d8f08a55ecde58521#block-5eba654d8f08a55ecde58521

Govt advice appears to be that public transport users should face away from each other if social distancing cannot be maintained.

Have they ever tried to use public transport, one wonders.

Have they been terribly wrong?

Was 18k not the possible worst case?

Swedes voluntarily social distanced, somewhere between lockdown and ‘business as usual’ and Stockholm has New York percentages or infected.

In the UK Imperial College predicted 20 - 60k deaths. We are sadly well on track.

I know, rhetorical question, but I doubt it!

I've visited London twice and some of the subways it is mission impossible to "just face away" as the carriages are too narrow and, oh, you sit facing each other. FFS if even the visitors go "em wait, what????"

And it won't fix the problem that there is probably a lot of nicely contaminated recycled air.

Least bad case scenario is a local bus/train with lots of room where you can open a window, if that is packed and some people don't want the windows opened, you are still in a closed room with icky air....

You have to kneel on the seats facing the window.

Wow wow wow fuckity wow

https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1259628794970886144.html

Belgium is fine. They just count all suspected C19 related deaths. The UK is different. We let doctors in private nursing homes (for example) make that decision.

The Cult of Boris is one of blind faith. Nothing he does or says will get people to accept he's crap. Even when its killing people, good old Boris will fix it, hes Boris!

That timeline is a damning summary

Facing a icky window, balancing in a regularly rocking left/right carriage on narrow seats, they really expect people to do that?

They can lead by example them...perhaps JRM would like to demonstrate, he has experience with unusual seating positions on benches :)

they really expect people to do that?

No. They haven't a clue. There is no plan that actually works. We should have had a much stricter lockdown to get the rate of infection much lower and not relaxed it until we have a tack and trace capability. But instead we have "use your common sense" so the next wave of infections becomes not the governments fault.

It is getting into absurd territory (once again, after Brexit) and this time it is even more dangerous for us all. Ignorance now literally kills.

Some mistakes were made, unfortunately, by many governments (not checking care homes much more, lack of PPE, health system still being overwhelmed) and others don't have full track/tracing either (NL/Sweden) and are OK with more "loose" but still controlled lock-downs/reopens.

In that sense there are few "perfect" country responses, some of it also depends on country values (maybe you are ok with a little more risk for more freedom/assess the flatten the curve differently/are more worried about deaths due to lockdown etc..)

This lot though really gives the impression of "we are not even trying" whatevs...

He's a fig leaf on a party who just want power for its own sake. Even no attempt to hide it, especially during the election campaign whilst hiding reporter's mobile phones in his pocket and disappearing into fridges. He jazz riffs stuff like '40 new hospitals' with no plans to deliver it, probably due to wondering what he would have to say in order to actually get pulled up on it. The worry is that the only potential way to beat this style is to be even wilder. Like get a bigger Trump. Starmer's quiet man style might not hold the public's attention when showmanship is currently so valued over competency, trust and transparency.

Brutal. Death toll comparisons to the Iraq war and the blitz particularly hard hitting.

Chancellor has just announced an extension to the furlough scheme until the end of October - maintained at the current level of 80%
Current cost of the scheme to date: between £30bn and £40bn.
With a commitment to a further £30bn.
7,500,000 employees currently taking advantage.

Following on the "Cameron would still have been PM until a week ago if...", I wonder what the reaction would have been if Osborne was still chancellor... "Now is not the time to risk the gains we've made from 10 years of austerity!"

The stick is that it will become contingent on the employers contributing (rather than just taking the govt's 80%). No details on this bit yet though.

For some employers (without the cash/income to do this) that will mean either folding or getting some employees back in.

The furlough scheme announcement was a pleasant surprise. I was expecting the percentage to be cut for July and much less clarity about the future. Will have to see the detail but this should at least allow some planning and keep a fair number of people in work.

Yeah, I've read that since posting.
August onwards, apparently, employers are expected to make a contribution.

Any indication on level of contribution? And any mention of SEISS?

In other news the Belly Mujinga case is pretty fucking heinous.

None that I'm aware of.

So, while it's not completely clear from the article what and how it happened, this looks like manslaughter or perhaps even murder:

A railway ticket office worker has died of coronavirus after being spat at while on duty.

Belly Mujinga, 47, was on the concourse of Victoria station in south-west London in March when a member of the public who said he had Covid-19 spat and coughed at her and a colleague. Within days of the assault, both women fell ill with the virus.

Mujinga, who had underlying respiratory problems, was admitted to Barnet hospital and put on a ventilator but died on 5 April, the TSSA union said.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/may/12/uk-rail-worker-dies-coronavirus-spat-belly-mujinga

Utterly disgusting and tragic.