China Coronavirus

[Cunny Funt]

The variant that was in the UK having big a impact now

Our current surge in Covid-19 cases was due to increased social mixing over the Christmas period and is not caused by a new variant from Britain, the World Health Organisation said.

Mike Ryan of WHO

"My own country in Ireland . . . has suffered one of the most acute increases in disease incidence of any country in the world,"

"And not due to the variant let me add, but due to increased social mixing and reduction of physical distancing," he said. "New variant strains . . . have not been the driver of new transmission."

"I was talking to my colleague Tony Holohan the chief medical officer in Ireland earlier and we were almost saying this is like adding a substitution in the second half of a football game," Dr Ryan said.

"It doesn't change the rules of the game, it doesn't change what you do, but it gives the virus some new energy, some new impetus. It adds to the challenge you face because the opposition is bringing some new players to the field," he said.

"It doesn't change what we need to do to win. It just changes the strength of the opponent and in that sense we have to take from that that we have to redouble our efforts."

[JimStynes]

This Angelo fella is a complete scourge.  You are giving him oxygen.
The best way to call bullshit on this individual is not to reply, it is to stop feeding him.

I actually don't know how he could be bothered. Any thread I click into he's rowing with someone.

[armaghniac]

There is a suggestion that there was "pre-pandemic" levels mixing. Was there? I certainly had less mixing and a lot of people I know. There are few people actually in my workplace and as a consequence several gatherings that I wound normally have did not occur this year . Half the pubs were closed. At least some people engaged in irresponsible behaviour, but by no means everyone, I would have thought. I would have thought that the new variant or some other increase in R must have contributed to such a rapid increase.

[sid waddell]

Notwithstanding the social implications of lockdowns etc, the only people that have a right to speak authoritatively on the disease itself are experts who have years of training in relevant areas. The experts are having to prevaricate because there is so much that is unknown - at least they do that.  Lots of people who have no real understanding of medicine or epidemiology seem to be able to speak with more conviction and apparent knowledge than the experts - that's because they are good at talking and don't mind giving opinions about things that they really know nothing about.

It angers me that the likes of David Quinn and Karl Deeter are still regularly being given a platform on national media to talk about Covid - they are right-wing contrarians who know nothing about Covid

Pete Lunn was correct yesterday when he said that we need to stop listening to business lobby groups talking about Covid

Brendan O'Connor responded that we have to listen to them

Listen to them about economic compensation or things they are competent to talk about by all means, but they should have zero voice to talk about the public health situation on national media, and whether their businesses should or should not be open

[imtommygunn]

There is a suggestion that there was "pre-pandemic" levels mixing. Was there? I certainly had less mixing and a lot of people I know. There are few people actually in my workplace and as a consequence several gatherings that I wound normally have did not occur this year . Half the pubs were closed. At least some people engaged in irresponsible behaviour, but by no means everyone, I would have thought. I would have thought that the new variant or some other increase in R must have contributed to such a rapid increase.

Yeah did they not say that 25% of cases in the south were from the London variant?

I don't fully believe that it's just down to being irresponsible either. There must be more at play. Very few I know are doing much, if any, mingling.

Yes there are places with house parties going on but surely not that many?

[sid waddell]

There is a suggestion that there was "pre-pandemic" levels mixing. Was there? I certainly had less mixing and a lot of people I know. There are few people actually in my workplace and as a consequence several gatherings that I wound normally have did not occur this year . Half the pubs were closed. At least some people engaged in irresponsible behaviour, but by no means everyone, I would have thought. I would have thought that the new variant or some other increase in R must have contributed to such a rapid increase.

I think it was somewhat of a factor but how much is questionable, it's definitely a mixture but what the exact mix is we don't know

In the Republic the prevalance of the variant has gone from circa 10% to 25% to 45%, but these are small sample sizes

The 10% figure comes from samples taken between December 23rd and 29th

The UK variant was definitely here from well back into December

My feeling from my limited amount of Christmas shopping was that mixing out and about was probably a good bit above October levels

The worry is that the UK variant still hasn't taken full hold, and thus the scope is still there for a further rise in the very near future

[sid waddell]

There is a suggestion that there was "pre-pandemic" levels mixing. Was there? I certainly had less mixing and a lot of people I know. There are few people actually in my workplace and as a consequence several gatherings that I wound normally have did not occur this year . Half the pubs were closed. At least some people engaged in irresponsible behaviour, but by no means everyone, I would have thought. I would have thought that the new variant or some other increase in R must have contributed to such a rapid increase.

Yeah did they not say that 25% of cases in the south were from the London variant?

I don't fully believe that it's just down to being irresponsible either. There must be more at play. Very few I know are doing much, if any, mingling.

Yes there are places with house parties going on but surely not that many?

The area I live in has a lot of students and renters, the non-student renters are mostly from outside Ireland

It's been very quiet of late, not a peep since before Christmas, earlier in December there were a good few parties, a lot of those students would have gone home to parents for Christmas but still a good few transient renters remained in the area

I imagine students returning home for Christmas was a big spreader in rural communities

[Milltown Row2]

Notwithstanding the social implications of lockdowns etc, the only people that have a right to speak authoritatively on the disease itself are experts who have years of training in relevant areas. The experts are having to prevaricate because there is so much that is unknown - at least they do that.  Lots of people who have no real understanding of medicine or epidemiology seem to be able to speak with more conviction and apparent knowledge than the experts - that's because they are good at talking and don't mind giving opinions about things that they really know nothing about.

It angers me that the likes of David Quinn and Karl Deeter are still regularly being given a platform on national media to talk about Covid - they are right-wing contrarians who know nothing about Covid

Pete Lunn was correct yesterday when he said that we need to stop listening to business lobby groups talking about Covid

Brendan O'Connor responded that we have to listen to them

Listen to them about economic compensation or things they are competent to talk about by all means, but they should have zero voice to talk about the public health situation on national media, and whether their businesses should or should not be open

It's funny that we know nothing of any poster on here,  but everyone will try and put on their own thoughts on the best way through this pandemic. This is a media platform so by that logic, we shouldn't take anyone's point on this.

[imtommygunn]

We don't lol. The amount of "misinformation" as one poster ironically put it out there on this thing is ridiculous. It's just reflective of how people can (mis)use the internet to shape their views.

[Milltown Row2]

We don't lol. The amount of "misinformation" as one poster ironically put it out there on this thing is ridiculous. It's just reflective of how people can (mis)use the internet to shape their views.

[Gmac]

Los Angeles County has Had some of the strictest lockdown measures in the US all last year  they went full lockdown again on 27 November no restaurants no bars and the numbers have exploded since also with a 10-5am curfew .

[Franko]

We don't lol. The amount of "misinformation" as one poster ironically put it out there on this thing is ridiculous. It's just reflective of how people can (mis)use the internet to shape their views.

His tireless work and thousands of well thought out posts have won the respect of everyone and has made a lot of folks review their positions on this.

[Smurfy123]

Pushing people indoors cause the spread
It's winter
It was always going to happen.
Always
Flu season and the spread indoors is massive
Things will be tough on hospitals for the rest of this month
Who is to blame here???

[Smurfy123]

Answer me his

Is
KFC
McDonald's
Costa
Burger King

And so on

Are they essential?

[bennydorano]

BBC News - Covid: Morrisons and Sainsbury's ban maskless shoppers
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-55618408

About time. If I owned a shop nobody without a mask would be getting in. I recall a shop owner in England having a sign outside saying something like, 'no mask no entry, if you're exempt (& therefore vulnerable) should you really be out in a shop?'