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AIBU?

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Original poster

The way the Tory government are acting now makes it feel like all the lockdowns were a waste of time

366 replies

Poetrypatty · 21/02/2022 17:24

Just lifting all the restrictions as if it was all a waste of time. It makes me feel like a mug for everything we went through, especially as they were having their parties and not even following the rules. I think it's bad for peoples mental health as well.

OP posts:
KeepingAnOpenMind · 21/02/2022 18:24

Lockdowns damaged the poorest in society. Many working class children will never catch up.
Not everybody can WFH.

newname12345 · 21/02/2022 18:28

@birdladyfromhomealone

Been super careful.for 2 years and somehow dodged the virus. Don't ever go shopping as have deliveries. Wear a mask etc. Now restrictions are being lifted and I seem to be the only person wearing a mask. I've terribly painful conjunctivitis for 4 days now that isn't getting any better. This morning I had a cough . I'm.positive . But I'm suppose to carry on as if nothing is wrong with me. I guess that's how I caught it from someone who didn't self isolate.
Not been super careful and live with a hospital worker (on covid wards) and a school age child and all somehow managed to dodge the virus.

You are not meant to carry on as if there is nothing wrong with you You are though suppose to act like if you had any other illness ie you don't automatically stay at home unless you want to or don't feel well enough to go out.

museumum · 21/02/2022 18:35

I do not think we should limit access to tests.

But - omicron in a vaccinated population is almost incomparable to alpha or delta in an unvaccinated population.

Whatever the rights or wrongs of the steps the U.K. gov are taking now, it says nothing about what needed done in 2020 and parts of 2021.

Topseyt · 21/02/2022 18:38

I dislike Boris and the Tories, but I also dislike restrictions so am still very glad they are ending. Not a moment too soon, although I long ago stopped paying them too much attention.

Time to go back to normal and just use good old-fashioned common sense. Covid isn't going anywhere. It is endemic now and we can't keep restrictions going forever. They are not good for people's livelihoods.

Thewindwhispers · 21/02/2022 18:43

Boris is desperate to distract everyone from his lockdown parties eh. He’s just trying to appeal to his target voter demographic: dumb people.

AnyFucker · 21/02/2022 18:46

This is to save Boris Johnson's job

Oh, give over. Restrictions are being ended because the original need for them is no longer valid. It’s fuck all to do with the PM’s job.

TulipsGarden · 21/02/2022 18:49

It's silly to say lockdowns were a waste of time. We needed them to reduce the load on the NHS and prevent more deaths - imagine if we hadn't had them, how many more people would have died before vaccines.

Cornettoninja · 21/02/2022 18:49

Lockdowns weren’t a waste of time, they were one of the only tools we had when we didn’t have vaccinations to factor in or a milder variant to contend with.

That said I don’t agree with the timing of their abandonment of testing and requirements to isolate if positive, I think it’s premature. We haven’t had a significant amount of time at a plateau with covid, specifically this variant and don’t really know what it’s going to do next if anything at all.

I’m concerned about living essentially blind precisely because I don’t enjoy living under restrictions or lockdowns. It feels like they’ve jumped ahead a few sensible steps in ensuring that this is sustainable.

user1487194234 · 21/02/2022 18:49

YABU in my opinion
High time we got rid of the restrictions

Alexandra2001 · 21/02/2022 18:51

what restrictions is he ending? haven't had to do anything out the ordinary for ages now.
No one i know tests anymore because they are either self employed or their employers wont pay sick for self isolating.

i see passenger locator forms are still remaining.

I feel sorry for carers and other low paid who care for the vulnerable, they ve no money to buy tests and trusts will have to take out of their own budgets tests for critical staff.

The last 2 years seems a farce tbh.

Blossomtoes · 21/02/2022 18:52

Normally I’m the last person on the planet to agree with anything Johnson does but this is the right call. We need to stop the endless testing and isolating for what has now become a pretty mild virus. I’m absolutely over it. If people were still dropping like flies it would be different.

RonaLisa · 21/02/2022 18:54

Lockdowns were a waste of time. I was opposed to it right from the start, and have not stopped saying it. I don't care about parties or what the government did (can't stand any of them anyway) - but I do care that they somehow managed to convince people that lockdowns were necessary. This is the most worrying thing about it.

Alexandra2001 · 21/02/2022 18:54

@AnyFucker

This is to save Boris Johnson's job

Oh, give over. Restrictions are being ended because the original need for them is no longer valid. It’s fuck all to do with the PM’s job.

err thats not what the NHS or the BMA are saying, they would like what little we have got to remain for a few more weeks.

You have to be pretty thick skinned to not see that any news that appeases his back bench MPs is good for Boris.

HopelesslydevotedtoGu · 21/02/2022 18:54

The lockdowns were to buy time to prepare and develop vaccines and treatments, and to spread cases out. They weren't a waste of time. I'd much rather have covid now than this time last year, or March 2020.

There was never any outcome where the vast majority of us wouldn't eventually be exposed to covid, and probably get it several times in their lifetime. That was always going to be the eventual outcome of all of this.

We need to prioritize other issues that arw for more wprrying than covid right now.
Climate change especially. And there will be other pandemics in the future, see Bill Gates statement recently thst another pandemic will be along soon, and they may be much more dangerous than covid has ever been. If we keep focusing attention, time, money on covid, we will neglect much more worrying things.

itsnotswimming · 21/02/2022 18:56

Anybody who thinks tests have been free is seriously deluded! We are going to pay the £37bn spent on testing for many many years!
Lockdowns have achieved what they were meant to (protect the NHS) We now have enough immunity to live with the virus.
Time to move on!

VikingOnTheFridge · 21/02/2022 18:58

@CorrBlimeyGG

Compulsory isolation might be gone but that doesn't make any difference when you are too unwell to go to work anyway.

Unfortunately it will mean those in the lowest income groups feeling they have to go to work however ill they are, as they need the money. Consequently they become more ill, and the consequences that go with it.

That's already happening. It's a problem of insufficient sick pay and employee protections, isolation laws don't prevent it. The current system where people are criminalised for testing positive and being unable to live on SSP is an awful thing, the worst of all worlds.
Flyonawalk · 21/02/2022 18:58

I have also been saying since March 2020 that lockdowns were unnecessary, harmful and an abuse of power.

I am relieved that society is moving in the direction to normality, but hope our leaders are investigated and held to account.

I hate to think that such pointless and cruel policies will be a feature our children’s future.

Bollindger · 21/02/2022 18:58

I was just listening to a person talking about Lockdown, 17,000 people actually died of Covid, not WITH covid, and the average age was 80, also flu deaths were down by oh about 17,000.
Sweden did no lockdown and their figures, get this the same as ours.
So was it worth it?

AnyFucker · 21/02/2022 19:00

I work in the NHS. I have worked in the hell that was covid ICU during the 1st lockdown.

I want all restrictions over, so don’t speak for me. The harm done by lockdowns and relentless social distancing is immense. Enough now.

DearlyBeloathed · 21/02/2022 19:01

Shall we just live like this forever then?

user1471505494 · 21/02/2022 19:04

@Hbh17

Well, all the lockdowns were a waste of time, and we now know that they should never have happened. But at least the Government have finally seen sense, so we do finally have some good news.
Really How could the NHS have continued with so many extremely ill in hospital and death rates through the roof. Lockdowns slowed the infection rates and the numbers in hospital and the death rates came down. They also gave time to develop and implement the vaccination program.

The variant we now is not as strong and people are not as ill.

Christienne · 21/02/2022 19:05

Genuine question to those who have stated lockdowns were a waste of time…

Why?

Echo005 · 21/02/2022 19:06

Cognitive dissonance in here is rife. Unbelievable.

AnyFucker · 21/02/2022 19:07

Why?

Short memory+ rewriting history.

labyrinthlaziness · 21/02/2022 19:07

The removal of testing and the complete removal of all isolation are happening too early.

Johnson is doing this because of his own political situation.

We all know he does not give a shit about anyone but himself. Not even his own kids, so hardly surprisinghe doesn't care about our health.

The thing that is making me Angry is he is wanging on about anti-virals, but to access anti-virals you need an early test. Which he is scrapping. The lying toad.

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