Would you rather be here or in Sweden?

[Forgetaboutme]

There's been a lot of talk about the way Sweden are handling the coronavirus situation. Schools still open, bars n clubs plus shops still open. The vulnerable being shielded and the rest social distancing or working from home where possible.

Would you rather be here on lockdown? Or in Sweden?

Do you feel safer on lockdown or if you lived somewhere like Sweden would you have been happy to live how they are at the moment?

Just bored here and wondering what people thought.

It’s nice to have a Dad that knows his stuff though, I’m sure he has a lot of insight.

Marsha
I can’t predict much of what dad would have said but I can say, he would have quarantined people returning from ski resorts, China etc. There was no real effort to do this.

I should also say, he was much more of a humanitarian than I am, he cared deeply about his patients. He would have been devastated at what’s happening now, but also upset by the deaths that will inevitably occur due to recession etc and the stopping of things like cancer treatment- which is absolutely happening to people I know.

X post Marsha
He’s dead. But I’m sort of glad he didn’t live to see this. He’d have been 80 and trying to volunteer at the NHS, bless him.

The quarantine a day later was a big mistake. Whether we would have avoided today I don’t know.

The problem is now it’s completely uncontained we can’t let it run rampant through population.

So this is all we can do lockdown then second wave. It’s not going to stop after this but we’ll have the capacity,

Marsha, sorry, what do you mean when you say “quarantine a day later”?

X post sorry to hear that. My dad is a retired Dr and waited til the last moment he could to stop so I know what you mean.

I think with the schools they went to school for one day after half term ski trip but maybe my memory is failing me

I didn't have a go at you. You're complaining that your dad isn't allowed to drive to exercise. That was the crux of why you wouldn't want to be here. As if it's a human rights issue. Well, that's easy to say in Iceland.

Here, a very tricky lockdown is being implemented that people like your dad aren't complying with very well. I know it doesn't seem like it's going to make much difference to how this catastrophic event pans out, but I've come to realise that it does. The streets need to be as empty as possible and our beauty spots need to be empty. Because otherwise it's not possible for the police to make sure that (a) only the people who are meant to be on the roads are driving (b) emergency services are free (most accidents happen on short drives near home) and (c) beauty spots don't become clogged up with people who will indeed be transmitting the virus to each other - it won't care that your dad is near his home and there are trees about. If one person can drive there, everyone will flock there because the sun is shining and we're all bored.

That's not why you should be glad you're not in the UK.

Be glad you're not in the UK because we're in deep shit. Don't sit in Iceland complaining that it all seems a bit extreme.

Poster with 9s in username, do you want a tighter and longer lockdown?

Nah, I thought it was ridiculous that someone called the police on him. He is allowed to drive to exercise.

Nah. He's not.

Puffin, the “guidance” says he shouldn’t, depending on your interpretation. That’s one reason we need these “guidelines” clarified.

I think we all understand there's a balance to be made between infection control and personal freedom / keeping society functioning. Maybe China at one extreme and Sweden at the other (though Sweden aren't doing absolutely nothing). UK and Iceland are in the middle, Iceland closer to Sweden and the UK a little closer to China. I prefer the lean towards the balance Sweden has struck and if I had to be teleported there or the UK, I'd pick Sweden, despite preferring Iceland over both.

We won't know what was the correct balance until this is all over, if ever. I'm sure it will be a subject for debate for a long time.

Iceland is not unaffected. There have been deaths and I'm sure there will be more. This is devastating for our small communities. But overall, it's being handled well and this is not by accident.

Can’t help noticing MSM reporting that we’ve hit 10,000 deaths total

Normally they focus on today’s figure. But it’s not sensational enough for them today.

I think we all understand absolutely everyone wants to drive to somewhere nice to walk. I think we all understand it would make all the difference to lockdown. And I think, if you read my post above, you do understand why he can't, as much as it's frustrating and he'd like to. Also, let's not pretend that going to walk your dog in a forest is keeping society functioning because it's not. Believe it or not, this lockdown is an alternative to far greater tracking and restrictions on our freedom that you'll have an even greater problem with, if that is actually your problem.

I'd rather be here and I think you have to ask yourself some ethical questions when Boris's tories are putting the vulnerable ahead of the economy and you aren't.

The Tories aren’t trying to keep the vulnerable protected, they just don’t want us clogging up the nhs. I don’t mind that, but I wish they’d admit it.

People have different opinions on the guidance in the UK, which is fine. My father categorically has not broken the law. It is my belief, knowing the local conditions because I grew up there, that he has also done nothing to increase the risk of disease spread. It's not a 'beauty spot', it's a very ordinary wood. You are perfectly free to disagree and think whatever you like of my father, doesn't bother me, but the police officer was absolutely in the wrong to threaten to fine him. He had no authority to issue such a fine, which in fact he subsequently admitted himself.

It will be interesting to see how the courts deal with cases of people contesting these fines.

My bet is that most will be thrown out - particularly in cases where the actions of the alleged offender were demonstrably not increasing the likelihood of the transmission of the virus.

The official guidance says you are allowed to drive to exercise if the exercise time exceeds the driving time.

The death rate in Sweden is very high compared to countries with similar numbers of cases. I don't think they're doing a great job of sheilding.

I’ve posted here previously so I have no idea why I read Sweden as Swindon.
I’d rather be here (no offence).

I’m also very interested to see what is going to happen in Sweden.

I’m hopping that in another three weeks, people catching it will start to come down.

Swedish PM has said today the country's measures weren't good enough.

born you’d rather be in Swindon or Sweden?