To think "it's alright for you" for those who want lockdown for now until eternity?

[GlummyMcGlummerson]

I've seen, on both MN and social media, outrage after the PM announcement last night that strict lockdown won't be in place any more. Lots of sensationalist "great so now people can come to the Dales and kill us all" type posts. Furious that builders can go back to work and school children can go back to school in June to "kills us all". People are saying we should have lockdown until there's a vaccine, or until September. All these people on social media either:

• work from home anyway
• run their business from home
• didn't work anyway

AIBU in thinking "yeah it's alright for you!". Some of us need to return to work to keep a living and roof over our heads. I am furloughed until the end of the month but if my workplace can't re-open by around July then my job is basically fucked. I'm a single parent to 2, my ex runs a business that also relies on lockdown being eased, so if he loses his business then I lose maintenance payments.

I think it also shows a woeful misunderstanding of what lockdown is for. It wasn't implemented so that we could stay at home while the virus fairy magicked corona virus away. It was never the expectation that lockdown would solve the virus problem. There will be a second peak - NHS barely survives flu season as it is, it's important that the next peak doesn't coincide with the inevitable flu peak

Forgot to add it could be years, or never, before a vaccine is developed. Are people really planning on staying at home until then?!

I think people are driven by fear rather than an ‘It’s alright for you’

Yes I agree it's fear.

Also our death rate is pretty high still but now the focus is on the rate of transmission. But surely even if the rate is is low, with lots of people infected that still means lots more will die.

I get that lockdown - such as it was; we didn't lock down anyway really, just some people didn't go to work - isn't about stopping transmission entirely. Although New Zealand has achieved that. But we've got hundreds of people dying every day still.

I would have liked a proper, serious lockdown for the last 2 months, for people flying into the UK to have been quarantined. Businesses would have survived that. Instead we had a half arsed effort and now a reopening while our daily death toll and infections are still too high.

I totally agree. I'm a single mother of 2, I am fortunate enough to have a very flexible employer in a niche area of hospitality (though I am currently furloughed) who should survive this. But, to be able to go to work I need both my DC in school. Luckily, we are all perfectly healthy with no underlying conditions so at lowest risk, which I realise we are fortunate for.
If you can work from home, if you have a SAHP in the family, bully for you. I can't. Not all jobs are office jobs, which a lot of people seem to forget.

On a personal note, my relationship with my DC is suffering as they miss school and I am a crap teacher. They need to go back for their own mental health, the same way I want and need to go back to work for mine. I also would like some adult company and conversation.

You realise not everyone is the same ?,I have a child with complex disabilities and I'm terrified how this might affect his health ,my dh had underlying health issues ,so it's not just a case of I'm alright Jack.

People are scared.

I live in a very small place yet Easter weekend you couldn't move here because of various scenic spots that were crammed full of people driving to visit.

I'm a SAHP who has a working long hours DH meaning I'm stuck at home with 3 teens, my 3 younger kids and SIL's 3 kids (she's working in ICU so they've been here since schools shut) and my MIL. I would love my house back to myself in the day. In fact I'd love 10 minutes to myself. However, there's no point in the torture of the last few weeks if we get everyone back out there too quickly and over-run the NHS anyway. The only reason this is just about bearable is because there's a point to it. I cannot do this again in a few weeks time. I need them to get it right this time.

I think people are complaining more about lack of clarity, e.g Boris told yesterday that about going back to work and that it should be safe and then so you should avoid using public transport. But it’s not enough, I think people need more than that, they need clear guidance. Also there are lots of workplaces where PPE is needed so the question is where to get one.
Also it’s not clear what all these people will do with their children, would they be entitled to a school place. I suppose you will need this as well.
I personally think we should prioritize non-urgent NHS services, mental health services and dentists for opening as they are important for our health but there was no clarity on this.

I agree with the OP. Some people just want this to continue working from home/not working on someone else's shilling. Long may it continue for some....

There are even people who say they didnt understand the message and if they are being forced back to work then they will blooming well see their elderly parents! They really dont see how stupid this is!

I will not be seeing either parent yet - they live 100 miles away and DDad is in a care home. If they lived around the corner and I could do social distancing in their front garden for instance (no using the toilet etc) then I would. If I had young children though no way would I be mixing them with elderly people.

Agree.

Yep, agree. My job is at risk. I want to get back to work and get DS back to school.

I agree about people being driven by fear.
They government had to convince people that everyone is at risk to make people stay at home. People wouldn’t stay in lockdown to protect the vulnerable because many are inherently individualistic.
Now, the government will have a hell of a job trying to convince people that actually, it’s relatively safe to start to ease lockdown (not for the vulnerable of course)

Looking forward to seeing them attempt this 180 whilst retaining any shred of credibility.

Several points:

1 - we have never had strict lockdown. Look at China, Italy, France, Spain where people were confined to their house or had to carry permits to leave.
2 - the only change announced last night was that people could go out for exercise more than once a day and can hang around in the park with their own household for a bit if they like
3 - people seem to think that there was a change around work. There wasn't, the PM just reiterated that those who are allowed to work outside the home, and have been allowed to work outside the home since lockdown was announced, should do so. The law closing non-essential retail, leisure, hospitality etc still stands
4- the plan set out is a rough (very rough and lacking in sorely needed detail) guide to what will happen next, with some idea of the earliest date those things might happen.

It's really important that everyone read the Government guidelines published on .gov rather than rely on the news to inform them. A significant amount of what is being published in the news is utter shit.

Saturday and Sunday morning all the papers were assuredly starting that in the briefing the PM would reopen garden centres from today. Did anyone hear that in the briefing?

www.gov.uk/government/publications/further-businesses-and-premises-to-close/further-businesses-and-premises-to-close-guidance#businesses-and-venues-that-must-remain-closed-to-members-of-the-public

www.gov.uk/guidance/social-distancing-in-the-workplace-during-coronavirus-covid-19-sector-guidance#tradespeople-and-working-in-peoples-homes

www.gov.uk/coronavirus

www.gov.uk/government/speeches/pm-address-to-the-nation-on-coronavirus-10-may-2020

we could stay at home while the virus fairy magicked corona virus away.

That was exactly why other countries implemented lockdown.

By preventing access to host bodies the virus can't keep going. Im not sure why this country has found that such a hard concept to grasp.

It's why we have one of the highest death toll in the country. We'd rather people were dead than poor

Fear. Herd mentality. Lack of critical thinking. And the fact that we are kind of between a rock and a hard place. But I agree op I think mums net is not a reflection of economic reality.

The longer we stay in lockdown the longer people resist going to doctors. The more early diagnosis opportunities for other illnesses are missed, the longer treatments for other diseases are paused, the worse out mental health crisis gets. We may prevent deaths from covid but a continued long term Lockdown will kill thousands in other ways.

I don't think there's an easy answer. I don't think the government have got everything right. I don't think we'll know who HAS got things right until many years have past and we can see what impact the tighter lockdowns in other countries has on their population in the long term.

Thinking of this as black and white is dangerous.

Completely agree OP

People are not being forced to go out. The virus isn't going to disappear. We need adapt to live with it

Maybe if the UK had a competent government people would feel more reassured.

I think it also shows a woeful misunderstanding of what lockdown is for. It wasn't implemented so that we could stay at home while the virus fairy magicked corona virus away.

Yep, it was purely so the NHS would have capacity to treat you if you need it. The NHS is coping and we need to start getting on with things.

DP and I both realise that we're very forunate to be able to WFH, and that we have no kids, so we're able to work without distractions. I know that most people who can't WFH want to get back to work, and that for many, this needs schools to reopen.

But I'd rather schools were closed and workers furloughed for longer, until the rate of new infections has fallen consistently for several weeks, and R is 0.5 or lower. R0.5 overall would still mean that some areas have a local R factor that is considerably higher. If R is 0.8, it would only take an increase of a little more than 25% for it to get above 1 and the number of cases to start increasing exponentially again.

I also think it will be almost impossible for many to return to work without using public transport, and can't see any way that commuters can maintain social distancing while travelling into city centres by train, bus or tube.

I accept that the costs of furloughing staff will be considerable, that jobs would be lost and businesses would fail, but I would gladly pay a lot more tax, that could be spent on rebuilding the economy, than see people die unnecessarily.

I think a lot of people are scared of this very unknown virus. All countries are shutting things down and that increases the fear. I know a few people in their 30s who’ve had it and although they’ve not been to hospital but they have been knocked massively by it. My friend’s husband is 30, very very fit and he said he thought he was going to die. For some the illness will be mild. But no one really knows. No one wants to be locked in their houses but I know two parents who I love and I am a carer for two young children with disabilities. I worry that there’s a slim chance I may die. But then I worry about it in general as my kids really need me.

I'm sure for many of the hysterics that you mention it is a case of keeping 'outsiders' away for as long as possible. It is simple common sense, if you are over 70 or vulnerable then stay indoors, which was the advice from the start.

Very few people are sceptical of the latest announcement for England because they want to stay in lockdown forever/until september/until a vaccine in found. But many, many people are scared that restrictions are being lifted when the crucial R-number is 'maybe, kind of, perhaps just a smidgen below one', especially when the supposed lockdown has been a puddle of piss in the first place. Surely it's common sense to understand that if/when people start mixing again, this number is going to increase.

I very much doubt children in England will be starting to head back to school in 3 weeks - you are going to see a massive increase of cases from a mixture of this and those ridiculous excuses to get pissed VE Day celebrations.

Maybe if there was a proper lock down we might feel safe enough for borris to ease things now. Considering half the nation haven’t listened and done as they please, people flying in from other countries everyday, etc, etc no it doesn’t feel safe to go back out yet. And no it’s not “alright for us” who are refusing to go out/ still want lockdown some of us have disabled children and are very worried.

It is fear but there's no understanding or acceptance that the fear of not keeping a roof over your family's head or the consequences of a deep recession for the health/life expectancy of the nation are pretty terrifying too.