Stay Home Stasi

[Santaclauswhosthat]

Had one on my timeline ranting on about the news item re UK citizens stuck abroad and several others about kids in the area not staying at home. I think some people aren't going to be happy until they give us an app where we can report our neighbours if they go out more than once a day.

It's actually quite worrying given the massive new powers the police and state have, how keenly a population fervently tasked with saving our already deified NHS would embrace the opportunity to have a hand in enforcing these powers regardless of circumstance.

There will probably be further rules about duration of exercise and distance from your home

I hang out on a number of runners sites, and we have been treasing the ultramarathoners and telling them not to interpret the ‘once a day‘ rule as an all day 50miler, as that’ll spoil it for everyone else

*There's two points:

a) people need to observe the rules -- that's a given and important that this is enforced. And if people are flagrantly breaking the rules in a way which risks public health they need to be called out.

b) BUT this has brought out a fairly unpleasant side of some people's nature, which is a slightly hysterical judgement of people for any behaviour which could be an infraction. Such as posting pictures of people's kids on bikes on FB with captions saying "whose are these kids" etc. Nothing particularly wrong with the action of calling it out but the manner and the medium of doing it is shrill and judgemental.

There are always some people who thrive on the perception that they have a moral edge over other people and situations like this are bound to bring out the worst in those sorts of people. They are the coronavirus equivalent of curtain twitchers.*

This summed up my own thoughts beautifully.

It's the same in Italy. Someone actually threw a plant pot at a neighbour and told her to stay indoors. She's a nurse and she was going to work! Some people are just idiots.

It makes people like to feel superior to others. Sad but true. On radio 4 on Tuesday they said it was the spirit of the restriction that should be observed.

Agree with you @Santaclauswhosthat
I have to drive 20 miles for Radiotherapy and I can feel eyes on me...
I take my dogs out in the morning and avoid everyone, it's perfectly possible where I live. You can move away even in the woods.
You don't know why people are going out so stop the judging.

The idiots spoil it for the rest of us - it was ever thus remembering my schooldays. So don't try and bend the rules or do stuff that could possibly invite disapproval however misjudged the opinion of that might be. It has made me think twice about anything I do and that's good a 50 million similar decisions will have this virus licked.

My local pharmacy can't deliver medicines to everyone. In fact the majority of customers are still having to collect in person, or send someone else.

I've got thyroid medication waiting for me to pick up. I really don't want to go out and stand in line with lots of other potentially unwell people. But what else can I do?

The last thing I need is some twat judging me.

The Line runner .Our local pharmacy have introduced a one in one out policy, and everyone has to queue outside/round the corner observing the 6 feet apart rule .Pretty sure the same everywhere ATM!

@DurhamDurham the time you spend doing exercise is not restricted. If you want to go for a 2 hour walk or bike ride, go right ahead.

I am so glad I am in London. People are being courteous, helpful and polite to each other. No-one is spending all day curtain-twitching at what OTHER people do, like half the OPs on this board.

When did people get so unembarrassed to be openly jealous of everyone who they perceive has it better/easier/nicer than they do? It is like a second pandemic of low self esteem.

@longearedbat we've all convinced ourselves that we can only be out an hour and race to get back, looks like we're going above and beyond official advice/guidance

When people wonder how totalitarian regimes work, there's your answer. I 100% agree with the rules, but we must allow reasonable interpretation. If you live somewhere isolated, go out as often as you fancy. You can't exactly spread the virus if no one is around. There may be times where for whatever reason you need to go to the shops more than once a month, or whatever some overly zealous people suggest.
Friends of mine live next to each other and one husband and both wives are key workers. They are sharing childcare of their combined 5 kids. This is not according to the rules, but they feel it minimises the risk to the kids of other key workers who are at school. This makes perfect sense to me. These rules are extraordinary and were drawn up quickly. There will be some sensible exceptions to the rules that do not increase the risk to the general population.

I'm being asked to police the rules round here- I'm a local councillor, no power at all. Getting messages about how I should 'do something' about it.

Honestly there's no pragmatism at all, just spite filled stroppy indignation.

Realistically we are trying to minimise risk. We can't eliminate it. For every family, that will look a bit different. There will be families where letting the teen out to see other teens in the open air, with instructions about being careful, is as good as they can get.

If you live in overcrowded house and are trying to work from home and home school your kids, something is going to give!

I agree with you OP.

I've left my village fb group because they were constantly asking where people were going. Never mind one of them was an old lady driving in her car to take medicines to another old lady. It's mainly the younger members of the village and the worst is a nurse who now literally thinks she has the right to comment on what everyone does. She must be sat at her window all day long.

Noone is ever doing anything wrong (except me but she doesn't know that)

Well, goes to show why the real Stasi was sich a terrifyingly efficient operation.