The next person who tells me we all need to move on...

[Youknowaboutthepaint]

Is likely to get both barrels.

So many people still seem convinced that "the other lot" would be even worse, even though they can't begin to tell me why.

That Christmas, while our esteemed leaders were partying was DH's last. He spent it at home, in pain, without access to the medical care he needed and without seeing anyone except those he lived with.

A few days later he went into to hospital where he stayed for 3 months, without a single visitor. During that time he was told, alone, by telephone because his consultant was shielding, that his cancer was terminal, stil he wasn't allowed any visitors. He never met his oncologist and I had to fight every day to find anyone who would talk to me about his prognosis/ treatment/pain control/return home.

He came home eventually once they'd managed to get his pain under some sort of control, to die, a shadow of the man his DC had last seen, still officially not allowed any visitors. (Although by that point anyone who wanted to visited, I classified as a carer).

Then we had to restrict numbers at his funeral.

All the while those making the decisions that had affected us so badly were having the time of their life. Most are still in power/working in governement, making the laws that affect us all, dishing out or receiving honours, spending our money. And they've lied about it continuously since.

I'm still trying to support severely traumatised children whose lives were badly affected by lockdowns, even if they hadn't had to deal with all the stuff with their dad.

I'm generally a fairly easy going, resilient sort, but I dare anyone to tell me it's time we got over it.

Thats like saying that the woman at 6 Bloggs Close being emotionally abused by her husband should be grateful cos shes not being physically abused like the woman at 10 Bloggs Close

@PortUmber I am completely with you on the ignoring scientific evidence. I am not a prof, however in the Jan of 2020 when I read the initial stats, I was on the phone to friends abroad telling them to get the f%*k home!!

It really annoys me that people in gov and the general public were so utterly smug in their own distorted beliefs that they could dismiss scientific guidance as “ridiculous” waltzing on doing their own thing.

I had one friend on a ventilator for 12 wks because an Amazon driver didn’t isolate. Another who died because people they lived with refused to adhere to rules around seeing people. Another who was off work 6m because of people not following the rules. People in their 20s - 30s who suffered because of others.

Meanwhile, as somebody pointed out in other countries there was penalty of death for disobedience, or being confined to house for weeks and having to ask the army for supplies if stuck.

Clearly too extreme… but it sickens me that people were and are so dismissive in this country. Believing that they know better than scientists who have studied for years to attain knowledge. Now that is ridiculous!!

Everyone who failed to follow guidance both in and out of government has let down every single one of us who’ve lost loved ones and followed the rules.

Someone pointed out at the time how the Italian restrictions were enforced, and in Spain 'you don't mess with the Guardia Civil'. The film maker Pedro Almadovar did not leave his house for over two weeks.

We never had lockdown, we had restrictions, and yet there were those not just in Downing Street not prepared to follow them.

I had one friend on a ventilator for 12 wks because an Amazon driver didn’t isolate.

Do you have any idea how Amazon treat their workers?

We never had lockdown, we had restrictions, and yet there were those not just in Downing Street not prepared to follow them

Yep Its well known that minimizing peoples sacrifices is the surefire way of making sure they will go along with them again should the need arise. 🙄

So the people going through the courts for Covid breaches are like a Dallas dream sequence right? Jesus the fucking gaslighting from the laptop class is off the charts

You. Cant. Stop. A. Virus. ,

Absolutely, my Mum passed away last year.
She was in a care home during the whole Covid time, we couldn't visit and then when we could visit it was with us outside a window.
Mum had dementia and couldn't understand what was happening, she definitely deteriorated during Covid whilst these people partied.
I'll never get over what we went through during that time.
@Youknowaboutthepaint sending gentle hugs your way.

@catzrulz I’m so sorry for your loss. It was so hard to have relatives in care and not be able to see them. Especially hard for you with your Mum’s dementia. Genuinely really empathise.

My Aunt was in a similar position, though coherent. She and 4 others took covid thanks to bank care workers who hadn’t been vaccinated coming in. The normal staff and family members who had been so diligent and careful were all completely distraught. She was so emaciated after fighting it for over a month when she died that I was advised by other family not to see her body.

Honestly to anyone who lost someone over the covid period, I don’t think it is ever something we are going to get over.

@JenniferBooth

This is not about Amazon.

My point is my friend who is vulnerable. Did as she was told. She ordered in shopping etc to stay at home.

The driver was infected and passed the virus on to her because he failed in his obligation to isolate - which was mandatory and protected in law at the time.

I really don’t give a shit about Amazon. I don’t think anyone should have been breaking rules to suit themselves putting others lives in danger.

@JenniferBooth

True.

But you can use your intelligence to assess the characteristics of said virus and extrapolate how it might behave over time. Thus you can work out viable strategies to hinder its spread and potential evolution into a worse variant. Whilst conserving healthcare capacity as much as possible.

People not isolating when there was no proper financial support for doing so was utterly inevitable. It doesn't matter in the slightest whether anyone thinks that was justified or not. We had a policy climate that ensured it. All the shit we wasted money on during the pandemic, yet we never put in place that one absolute fundamental.

@StormShadow Exactly Poorer people being blamed as usual Twas ever thus. And the galling bit were they were the ones bringing the middle classes their shit during the lockdowns.
And i cant help noticing that the concern about some of us being unable to self isolate due to not having room have not yet developed into a campaign about people being allowed to live in bigger homes where they can self isolate more easily. e,g the bedroom tax still stands. Its funny how certain people dont want to follow up their faux concern with more room for SH tenants to self isolate. We could start with a new campaign to end bedroom tax for good. I wonder how many of the middle class who loved lockdown but denigrate SH tenants would put their money where their mouths are for this!!!

@StormShadow One word Ideology. People didnt want to let go of that no matter how serious Covid was/is. To them giving poorer people more money is never justified.

And i got called far right for bringing this up Far right for wanting poorer people to have more money

My beautiful son who was never sick a day in his life at 33 caught covid and as we were on a lockdown I wasn’t allowed to visit him. My last memory of him was when a kind icu nurse FaceTimed me so I could talk to him and his was drifting in and out of being unconscious. In his more lucid moments he was calling out for his mum (that was me).
he sadly died 8 hours later and I’m still haunted by the fact he was scared and wanted me and I couldn’t be there. I have nightmares every night about our last contact and as far as I’m concerned Johnson can rot in hell

I’m so very sorry.

Would this help?

https://www.google.co.uk/aclk?sa=l&ai=DChcSEwj1z-Wzs9r_AhWG3-0KHaxkB1wYABAAGgJkZw&sig=AOD64_0JlO9zHgN7CvIqdWg4u_kPpmLgVw&q&adurl&ved=2ahUKEwic_Nyzs9r_AhVSgVwKHZ5KDcUQ0Qx6BAgGEAE

YANBU so sorry for your loss. We lost DMIL during covid & weren't able to see her. At the same time my DH had sepsis & ended up having major heart op, our kids didn't get to see their dad for nearly 5 months, thankfully for us he came home but I will never forget or forgive politicians for what we & many other families went through while they partied.
Its galling to hear what is coming out already

Re the social commentary

Correct me if I’m wrong, SSP was payable for anyone isolating with covid, 10 days, after this point said person would be unlikely to get covid again for 3-4 months.

People who were put on furlough or put out of work entirely as self employed had to suck it up and deal with it. Why couldn’t essential workers who needed a week and half off on the sick!!

Not financially viable! What a load of balls.

@Robinni Have you had problems with your hearing. Hopefully its better now

Cos you do realise it was CLAP FOR carers not CRAP ON carers right.

@JenniferBooth As for bedroom tax yes this is unjust. Though a single person living in a house with 3-4 bedrooms is nuts.

As for risk factors, you are totally right that people in certain groups were more likely than others to have greater transmission. People living in smaller abodes certainly, but you will also see closer family ties and greater reliance on socialisation with these groups making breaking with same more difficult.

Then you have on top of that a clear link between social deprivation and non compliance which has been established - ie low level of education, no funds for masks/tests/sanitiser, more financial pressure to break rules, antisocial behaviour, distrust of government etc.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/breaking-over-3800-amazon-workers-23510333

Thousands of Amazon workers were incorrectly told they had tested positive for coronavirus due to a test and trace error.

A reported 3,853 UK staff members of the online retail giant received faulty notifications and told to isolate on Saturday, despite having actually tested negative.

@Boydd @Bibbitybobbitty

So sorry for your losses. If anything this thread serves to show that there are so many of us who are still grieving very deeply. And will probably never “move on”from such trauma. Thank you for sharing your stories, so terribly hard to go through.

In terms of you can’t stop a virus. No, but in a situation where it’s out of control, potentially mutating to become more deadly, your hospitals can’t cope with the amount of patients (Covid and non-Covid) then measures are needed? You can’t ‘do nothing’? Had life just continued as normal you’d have a huge, huge numbers of people saying a total lack of intervention was wrong. We were developing a method to control the virus and once the vaccine was rolled out, restrictions were gradually lifted and we developed our immunity : through the vaccine and through catching the virus in a way that our bodies could cope better.
Comparing my analogy to domestic abuse is surely very different. A husband abusing their partner is evil whether it’s emotional or physical. The harm being caused there is not as a result from trying to protect from another potentially deadly harm. It’s deliberate, direct and intended to cause as much hurt and suffering as possible in itself.

Are you saying that deaths from the virus should have just been allowed to happen with no method of control? That no interventions were needed at all? That science should not attempt to protect civilisations from viruses?

SSP is fuck all, not payable for the first days of sickness and didn't cover the lowest paid employees. It was wholly inadequate for the scale of the problem we faced.

Furlough, on the other hand, was 100% of earnings for some recipients as lots of employers topped up. There are people who were better off when furloughed, due to this and the lack of work expenses. And many who weren't of course, but this is why generalisations on the issue are so stupid.

Isolation came at a financial cost, and that financial cost excluded some people from doing it. This is a fact on the ground, unaffected by anyone's feelings. There's a reason Indy Sage constantly argued for proper sick pay.

@StormShadow my DH was furloughed. We lost tens of thousands.

I’m sorry but your appraisal of the situation is inaccurate.

SSP for 10 days here and there would have been preferable.