Coronavirus

[flower girl]

I hope that this message is not going to grate on you or cause you any discomfort, but my sister-in-law was passed clear at her Doctor's appointment yesterday. She returns to her duties on Thursday!

Glad to hear this good news!

[Nearly Sane]

Farcical


https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-52910303?fbclid=IwAR3DGIN-0c4c_GA-8C42gXIHgaanz9ggrX9pDOfcVLAQY9wCmLSBaoceAtg

[Nearly Sane]

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/jun/02/safe-ease-lockdown-matt-hancock-alert-system-britain?fbclid=IwAR3ARB-8AzJAuKm6jnTrVOJBKU9HnuMzFuel375PLCce6OO3erisrHx7zKY#maincontent

[SusanDoris]

Farcical


https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-52910303?fbclid=IwAR3DGIN-0c4c_GA-8C42gXIHgaanz9ggrX9pDOfcVLAQY9wCmLSBaoceAtg

Rees-Mogg is an embarrassment.

[ProfessorDavey]

Rees-Mogg is an embarrassment.

Indeed - and also achingly out of touch with the public on this, who overwhelmingly want their MPs to be able to work and vote remotely:

https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/articles-reports/2020/06/03/only-12-brits-think-mps-should-have-physically-be-

Just 12% support Rees-Mogg's demand that MPs have to vote in person, with 76% opposing. And the picture is pretty well identical for conservative voters - who oppose the Rees-Mogg plans by 77% to 17%.

I wonder what Alok Sharma's test results will show - if he tests positive presumably a number of MPs (including I gather the MP and chancellor may need to self isolate).

[Roses]

I have just seen that Sharma tested negative for the virus. You can almost hear the sighs of relief!

[SusanDoris]

I'm fed up with hearing that Britain has the world's third highest covid 19 death toll. Maybe it is because after some initial muddle, the Gov are now being more honest about deaths mainly from the virus?

[Harrowby Hall]

I'm fed up with hearing that Britain has the world's third highest covid 19 death toll. Maybe it is because after some initial muddle, the Gov are now being more honest about deaths mainly from the virus?

Are you suggesting that other countries are not being honest?  Why are you "fed up" with hearing a particular statistic being stated? To you want the British population kept in the dark about about the British government's incompetence?

[Gordon]

I'm fed up with hearing that Britain has the world's third highest covid 19 death toll. Maybe it is because after some initial muddle, the Gov are now being more honest about deaths mainly from the virus?

I think that this particular government, led by this particular PM, would struggle to give an honest reply even if the question was 'what day is it today?'.

[SusanDoris]

Are you suggesting that other countries are not being honest?  Why are you "fed up" with hearing a particular statistic being stated? To you want the British population kept in the dark about about the British government's incompetence?

No, none of the above. I just find it hard to believe that this country has more deaths than, for instance, China.

[Harrowby Hall]

I think that we would all like to believe that, Susan. However, how many other countries have governments led by someone whose appearences on "Have I Got News For You" were possibly influential in determining his suitability for high office for many people?

[Aruntraveller]

I think that we would all like to believe that, Susan. However, how many other countries have governments led by someone whose appearences on "Have I Got News For You" were possibly influential in determining his suitability for high office for many people?

The USA kind of springs to mind........ oh, I see your point.

[wigginhall]

I'm fed up with hearing that Britain has the world's third highest covid 19 death toll. Maybe it is because after some initial muddle, the Gov are now being more honest about deaths mainly from the virus?

Or, they have been inept?

[Nearly Sane]

Visualisation of deaths through Covid compared to other causes

https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/2562261/?fbclid=IwAR3u-m0WjYKbvzVYcihlVkvhHgRKVDk8DEGfeQDCU_p9-QR2SERA9hmK9xw

[Aruntraveller]

I'm fed up with hearing that Britain has the world's third highest covid 19 death toll. Maybe it is because after some initial muddle, the Gov are now being more honest about deaths mainly from the virus?

Why I wonder did they stop publishing the international comparisons as soon as it became apparent that we were doing much worse than most other countries. Perhaps it was to try to fool some of us into believing that the government was doing a good job. It obviously worked on some people. Still I imagine there must be a fair bit of cognitive dissonance going on for some Tory voters.

[SusanDoris]

Why I wonder did they stop publishing the international comparisons as soon as it became apparent that we were doing much worse than most other countries. Perhaps it was to try to fool some of us into believing that the government was doing a good job. It obviously worked on some people. Still I imagine there must be a fair bit of cognitive dissonance going on for some Tory voters.

Nope - not this one. I'm not a fool, you know!

[Roses]

If members of the Government can't see eye to eye, Tory voters won't either.

[Aruntraveller]

Nope - not this one. I'm not a fool, you know!

So you don't think the government is doing a good job?

[wigginhall]

Some reports that tracing won't be fully working until September.  One issue I think is that they're trying to centralize test/trace, when traditionally it was done locally by public health departments, who know their local areas.  Centralizing it causes many problems.  Plus the general ineptness that pervades the govt.  Plus the insistence on private companies.

[SusanDoris]

So you don't think the government is doing a good job?

They are, as many Governments are, doing the best they can - they are only human beings - and in my opinion it is quite unreasonable to expect everything to go beautifully, with everything running along smoothly, with decisions made which not only seem to be the best at the time, but which later are also seen to be good with hindsight!
I think my local MP has been and stil is a very good one. I disagreed with his Brexit views, but since that is now a fact, there is no point in continuing to say anything about it, and I think his CofE faith belief needs to be up-dated to non-belief, but understand that, even if he thought that - and I've no idea because I wouldn't of course ask him - it is almost certainly politic to be CofE hereabouts. As he is not, again as far as I am aware and know, a hypocrite, that's not a problem.

[Aruntraveller]

They are, as many Governments are, doing the best they can - they are only human beings - and in my opinion it is quite unreasonable to expect everything to go beautifully, with everything running along smoothly, with decisions made which not only seem to be the best at the time, but which later are also seen to be good with hindsight!

You really believe that?

Wow.

No wonder they keep getting elected.

[wigginhall]

If there were 500 000 deaths, there would still be people saying, they're doing their best.

[Roses]

The British Government has not handled this crisis well at all, very badly in fact. We have the second highest death rate in the world, the US has the highest.

[jeremyp]

Are you suggesting that other countries are not being honest?

That's absolutely the case. Why would you think otherwise?

Why are you "fed up" with hearing a particular statistic being stated? To you want the British population kept in the dark about about the British government's incompetence?

The main reason why I'm fed up with it is that it is totally irrelevant. Every country has different problems with respect to the virus. The British government should be judged in respect of what's happening in Britain not in some other country that has about half the population of London in an area 200 times the size with a thousand miles of ocean separating it from its nearest neighbour. There are unique problems for the UK. It has, for example, some very densely populated areas like London and Birmingham.

I'm not saying the government has done a good job - it's clearly fallen short in a number of areas - but to say it's done badly because New Zealand has done well (as an example) isn't helpful.

[jeremyp]

If there were 500 000 deaths, there would still be people saying, they're doing their best.

I doubt if you or I would have done any better.