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Topic Originator: sammer
Date: Sat 21 Mar 00:24
Let’s go down the pub.
That’s if it’s open. There’s 117 people reported died in the UK from Coronovirus. It’s very alarming but should it be? In an average UK month over 200 people will have died in road accidents and nearly 500 by suicide. These figures are not widely known. In fact most people would rather not know them. So far, Coronvirus is running behind those as reasons for death.
Of course I know next to nothing and it could be that the cases will increase alarmingly and dwarf the numbers I have offered by comparison. In which case extreme measures about locking down society would be a necessary evil. And every bit as evil- forcing isolation on the population- as it is necessary, to stop the spread of the virus. No matter, the quicker the better.
But before events expose me as a misguided idiot in the wilderness I still have to ask how many MORE people are dying from Coronavirus than would normally be expected. We know that elderly people- and I probably come in that category now even though the UK state cheated me out of my pension- are most vulnerable. But how many of these elderly people or those with serious underlying health issues (I can’t make this sound any less callous) were going to die anyway? Coronavirus has killed them for sure, but in another sense it has hastened their death. Do we have a proportionate grasp of the numbers involved?
In a way the UK is in an enviable position since as an island we have presumably a water barrier with anything outside our borders. In fact the whole Brexit farrago was largely run on controlling our borders. So why are we shutting down schools, pubs, football grounds and the like? Am I underestimating the amount of deaths which will escalate if we do not do this? Or are we being stampeded into a disproportionate panic?
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Topic Originator: OzPar
Date: Sun 22 Mar 00:53
Oh sammer, why don't you just stick to football? Your opinions on other matters can be seriously questionable. Now you seem to be promoting eugenics, for heaven's sake.
Living in Russia, where you are being fed a constant diet of bulldust from your government-run media, is starting to fry your brain. Take a look at what's actually happening today in Italy...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INmEciVm-6Q
This is coming everyone's way in one, two, maybe three weeks. It is becoming clear that it is not just the susceptible pensioners who are falling ill; people in their 30s and 40s are succumbing to the virus too.
People are genuinely worrying if all their family and circle of friends will survive this pandemic.
It's no time for flippant "Let's go down the pub because it's no different to the flu" nonsense.
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Topic Originator: sammer
Date: Sun 22 Mar 01:38
I’m just back from the pub in Moscow although it was half empty tonight and the Metro was quieter than usual for a Saturday. There’s been no supermarket looting here yet although the Soviet culture was attuned to rationing so that could be introduced if the situation deteriorates. We are hearing nothing from Hungary, Poland or even Israel about this pandemic.
I am questioning the response to a serious virus. No one, and certainly not the sepulchral Sky News item, is providing figures about the proportionate numbers of deaths. Italy I worked in for two years and it is a very different culture from the UK, probably more than Russia. I can see that this virus might overwhelm our meagre NHS provision which in terms of beds is lower than most EU countries, but I am still awaiting evidence that the number of deaths will be anything in the order of figures like 500,000. Maybe I’ll have to die first.
You are right that I know next to nothing, but I am not the Prime Minister. He said a week ago that he wanted to allow ‘herd immunity’ to kick in. Now he has closed bars, cafes and football grounds. Even a child can see that this is a complete reversal of the policy he was advocating, yet the UK media are swallowing it whole. That is partly why I am raising the issue.
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Topic Originator: ipswichpar
Date: Sun 22 Mar 07:06
I don't think anyone is swallowing that this isnt a complete reversal.
But having a discussion about that isn't really the priority just now.
They have been managing this by trying to get the science right. It is madness to do that on the hoof. They should have been running this from a risk management perspective and massively mitigating the downside.
There have been cases and reported deaths in those countries you mention <https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/#countries>
I suspect they are significantly underreported, just like they clearly are being in the Bear.
The comparison you make is clearly flawed, although I recognise the point you try to make. Would you argue that Ebola isnt dangerous because more people die falling on cutlery in their dishwasher, or choking on cheese sandwiches?
Even if the pubs were open, I'd be nowhere near them. It is irresponsible to suggest otherwise. Stay in and stay safe.
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