Under 40s to carry on as normal.

[Pixxie7]

Latest on the news today suggesting that everyone under 40 should ignore Covid rules and go back to pre lockdown rules. How do you feel about this?

[latticechaos]

Also given the long term.impacts some suffer, it feels risky to encourage anyone to catch it.

Whose idea was it?

[Pixxie7]

There is a lot that contradict the theory not least the fact that they are also saying that senior school pupils are possibly super spreaders.

[Pipandmum]

Government statistics about employment by age state that over 50s account for a third of the workforce, so I imagine aged over 40 it is 50% or higher, so do not see the reasoning behind your statement.
@KatherineJaneway where are you that social distancing has stopped? It is still in force in the UK, unless you are saying that people do not seem to be adhering to it (but they should be).

[RichardMarxisinnocent]

Tbh we’d be better making the under 40s stay home. IMHO they’re the ones least likely to SD.

I am in my 40s and I very much do SD. When I go to the supermarket I am often one of very few people who are SD. Most people, of all ages, are just walking past people as closely as pre Covid. I would be very annoyed if under 40s were allowed to go back to normal and I had to hide away at home, when I have been following the guidelines so far.

[RoseAndRose]

So we divide into Eloi and Morlock

Nice

[midgebabe]

@Pixxie7

No it’s not an ageist thread, it’s purely a discussion.

Should all BAME stay in lockdown ? That would be seen as racist
Should all disabled people stay in lockdown? That is also discriminatory
Yet you think it's not agist to imprison the over 50's?

What rules me about these discussions is that no one considers the economic implications. Yes , the younger ones could carry on living. But it would need to over 50's to be under home arrest until vaccination . I guess you are hoping that them being forced out of work will help the youth unemployment? But a lot of those jobs would go because if you lose about 1/3 of your buyers you lose around 1/3 of your trade. The nhs would be shafted for a few years as they would lose a lot of workers and it takes a few years to train up nurses and doctors. So perhaps we should just refuse to medically treat anyone over 50 at the same time? Oh and scrap pensions because we would not be able to afford them.

Everyone agreed that lockdown is very tough for most people mentally, yet the mental health of the over 50's would be affected even worse if they can see everyone else allowed to live unfettered?

Everyone is being asked to make some changes , yet that is so aweful that it is better that some people make no changes and others get locked away. Illogical

[EdithWeston]

@Pixxie7

There is a lot that contradict the theory not least the fact that they are also saying that senior school pupils are possibly super spreaders.

I'd be interested in spread at universities

Older teens and young people might not die from it, but they are moving towards adult-pattern disease.

[KatherineJaneway]

@Pipandmum

I'm in London. To be clear social distancing might still be in place but it is not adhered to where I live anymore.

[LadyPenelope68]

@SuitedandBooted
Everyone knows the under 40's are totally immune to infection, never asymptomatic and therefore won't be spreading it around to the whole community.

It’s a bit like that magic door that schools have that the virus can’t get through, or this magical superpower immune system that us teachers have that mean we don’t need PPE or social distancing because we just won’t get the virus.
Oh wait .........

[Pixxie7]

midgebabe@ it wasn’t me who suggested it.

[peonyrose87]

In Scotland it's currently those 20-40 who are driving up the new cases because they've been going out to pubs etc.

[ZiggeryZaggy]

I’m over 40 and like staying at home My DH is younger, so he could go out and about instead.

[ZiggeryZaggy]

I can’t see any news stories about this at all though.

[AmyFl]

I'm over 40 and would be happy to stay at home.

[hopsalong]

I'm over 40 (just) and I think this is an excellent idea for a couple of weeks. The point isn't locking older people up. It's getting young people infected. Herd immunity, don't you remember?

[Waxonwaxoff0]

People saying the under 40s are the ones going out spreading it - I think that's the whole idea. Under 40s less likely to die or require hospital treatment, so we all just get it and develop herd immunity.

[HeronLanyon]

When my lovely old dearly departed turned 70ish she banned all of her children rising to or going above aged 40. I have been stuck at 39 for an impressive number of years.
Is this yet another way around the rules ??? Applying the Cummings approach - if I don’t think I have done wrong that’s enough ?

[Eyewhisker]

I doubt this is government policy but I’d like to know what the actual policy is. This level of social distancing is not sustainable and ‘hiding until a vaccine’ is very risky as a vaccine may be months, but could well be years or never.

The lockdowns etc only prolong the pain - once things open up the virus starts spreading quite quickly.

I would prefer to keep a ban on mass events and face masks on public transport but otherwise allow people to assess their own risk.

This may well mean that older people are more cautious than younger people but it is based on their decision, not imposed. Other elderly people may take the view that they have only a few years of healthy life and would rather risk the virus than not hug their grandkids.

[RockingMyFiftiesNot]

@Waxonwaxoff0

People saying the under 40s are the ones going out spreading it - I think that's the whole idea. Under 40s less likely to die or require hospital treatment, so we all just get it and develop herd immunity.

I can see the logic in that - but then they have locked us down tighter in an area where young people are responsible for the spike - so those two things don't go together?

[blacktop]

It seems a really stupid idea given what's going on in Aberdeen right now

[Camomila]

waiting now for someone to say BAME people should be required to stay indoors

I think if this happened (which it won't) I'd take the DC (BAME) abroad for the winter!

[LadyCatStark]

I’d be happy to go back to normal but DH is 42 so do I have to leave him at home? 😂

[midgebabe]

Herd immunity is not achieved for the whole population if every person under 40 gets infected.

[RedRumTheHorse]

@BarbedBloom

Well considering I was shielding and have two very high risk factors I won't be doing it. I am so sick of people who forget that there are very vulnerable people under 40

You don't exist - haven't you read the memo?

[itsgettingweird]

I'm 40 next Monday.

Better make the most of the next 6 days