Eat Out To Help Out: Brilliance or Lunacy?

[verdantverdure]

On the day the Covid Inquiry convenes I thought I'd ask your opinion on Eat Out To Help Out.

Covid case numbers and deaths were low, as we'd done a phased return out of the first lockdown.

Then we had Eat Out To Help Out and it all kicked off again within weeks.

What did you think? At the time? Now?

YABU Eat Out To Help Out was brilliant, I loved it.

YANBU Eat out To Help Out was a bloody stupid idea that was obviously going to help the virus spread, leading to another wave, more economic devastation, and tens of thousands of us dead. And it didn't even help the hospitality industry because it screwed up Christmas which is usually their most profitable quarter.

Was fun at the time but obviously a bad idea.

Dominic Cummings had written at the time that "Rishi thinks just let people die and that's ok" so perhaps that's why he didn't ask the scientists before he went ahead with Eat Out To Help Out.

I loved it - ate out loads. Considering Vallance, Whitty et Al helped to plunge us into so many pointless and damaging lockdowns I can't take anything he says seriously, absolute charlatan.

love the idea you would call two highly qualified scientists, who understand evidence and data, 'charlatans'.

EOTHO seemed an unwise scheme, it was discussed as being so at the time.

The comment suggesting Sunak didn't care about deaths is not a surprise to me. Shocking, yes. A surprise, no.

This is very interesting, because it suggests an ideological approach - they didn;t want to help businesses so much as to persuade people to take personal health risks?

Sweden has done pretty well without any lockdown and billions of money paid to people baking bread in their home, closed schools and GP surgeries.

Sweden are probably healthier and more outdoorsy than the UK is. Over here half the population is allergic to using their legs or getting any exercise.

They got it right

Lockdowns were so damaging I think we can safely say they were charlatans bowing to political pressure

Whitty lost my confidence completely after he pressured the JCVI into approving vaccines for kids despite evidence to the contrary. So yes, he is a charlatan.

And I'm talking as a nurse with 20 years ITU experience, so I know a bit about infection control, sepsis etc.

tpxqi · 21/10/2023 15:04

No more crazier than lockdowns themselves”

Thw first was essential. Govt. and advisers had no idea what they were dealing with and had to do the only thing they could to protect the population.

Oh don't be ridiculous. Plenty of cheaper places to eat, and takeaways, were involved in the scheme. Many people on lower incomes use these restaurants regularly, even at full price.
If you are unfortunate to be in real poverty then eating out or takeaways aren't part of life at full price or half price.

The inquiry looks like a long winded yet more expense ham job at reinforcing more lockdowns

Sweden is already done on theirs. Lessons learnt already.

SunnyEgg · Today 10:09
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The inquiry looks like a long winded yet more expense ham job at reinforcing more lockdowns
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Sweden is already done on theirs. Lessons learnt already.”

I disagree. It’s uncovering what a desperately incompetent and irresponsible shower the Government was.

I’m sure you do.

Drawn out rehash for millions

@SunnyEgg no-one will ever be locking me down or telling me who I can have in my house again that's for sure!

Swedes have learnt nothing as most of their inquiry was given in secret, started during the pandemic & they have had a far higher death toll than other Nordic countries.

We on the other can see already that our politicians said one thing and did another, most of them shouldn't be giving evidence to an inquiry but to a judge and jury.

The attitude to old people, children and young adults has been nothing short of murderous, both during and post pandemic.

We used the big guns on Covid

The damage and expense was huge. And people demanded more all through it

Hopefully we’ll get a break for next one

Especially since our ‘learning’ part is taking years 🤔

@Vintagevixen you sound like my neighbour. No one was going to tell him to lock down or nor see people either. He caught covid and died in April 2020.

That’ll teach you @Vintagevixen as you post from beyond

It's pretty silly to post about what you would or wouldn't do in some future pandemic without any knowledge of the nature of the threat you will be facing.

DisquietintheRanks · Today 10:52
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It's pretty silly to post about what you would or wouldn't do in some future pandemic without any knowledge of the nature of the threat you will be facing.”

This ^. If the modern day equivalent of the plague appears, people will choose to lock themselves indoors.

Yeh I've had it three times (that I know of!) and worked throughout in ITU so my fear levels are low but thanks for the attempt at a guilt trip, doesn't work on me.

So your view is the government were applying political pressure to scientists to lockdown? And the scientists gave false advice due to political pressure?

This is pure conspiracy theory, wherever you work.

Why would someone give false advice due to your unspecified 'political pressure'? What is in it for them to do this?

I thought it seemed like a bad idea at the time and still do now

I would like to know whether our Prime Minister then (Boris Johnson) and our Prime Minister now, then the Chancellor of the Exchequer (Rishi Sunak)

a) didn't care how many of us died, or

b) didn't understand the maths or science involved so didn't realise that so many of us would die, or

c) both