As there’s been no second wave in any other country why are people so insistent it’s going to happen here?

[whenthejoyreturns]

Italy, Spain etc seem to be getting back to normal. Schools, work places, shops and transport systems are reopening yet there seems to be no sign of a second wave. What makes us so different in the uk that a load of people are convinced it’s inevitable here to the extent that some have even started ‘preparing’ for it?

I haven't seen any recent reporting on Iran. Only early on, which suggested the published numbers were on the low side of reality.

I have no idea if they are having a second wave. The graph does look a bit peaky though.

What are they attributing it to, Porky?

They are attributing it to a rise in the infection rate. Lots of officials calling for people to obey the rules and socially distance. Quote a few commentators saying that these calls are being ignored.

Where did you read that? I’d like to read it. I look at the grass all the time, been following Iran with interest, infection rate was down today.

Graphs, not grass!

@Countess I poke around on Twitter and then follow links back to articles.

Can you link to your source?

No one really knows what is going on in Iran. It's possible they were unable to get the situation under control in the first place, so it's not really a 'second wave'.

We seem to have moved incredibly quickly which obviously has nothing to do with needing to move on from Cummings and have gone from loads of restrictions to practically none in the space of 2 weeks, while death rates are still quite high.

Pre Cummings, despite being the conpete opposite of a Conservative, I actually thought the UK was managing things quite well, now we seem to have lost it altogether.

I'm not even sure what happens next would count as a second spike, deaths never got low enough to say the first one was over imo.

have gone from loads of restrictions to practically none in the space of 2 weeks, while death rates are still quite high

Practically none?! Am I living on another planet?

We can’t go to restaurants, cafes, bars, theatres, many work places are still closed, schools are still closed to the majority of children, playgrounds are closed, farms/zoos are closed, swimming pools and gyms are closed, we can only go in shops in limited numbers and staying 2m from anytime else, I can’t do my hobby, my DC can’t do their hobbies, it’s illegal for our friends and family to enter our houses...

We can meet up to 6 people outdoors, staying 2m apart. We can go in some non essential shops as long as we stay 2m from everyone. Some people can go back into their work places, with social distancing.

Where are you living that there are ‘practically no’ restrictions?

I was never a hobby shopper and a restaurant meal is a rare treat for me .

It's the "common sense" thingbthats made the biggest difference. Yes there are still restrictions but the attitude of government and people here, actually post Cummings is almost to encourage people to break them and assess their own risk.

I wasn’t a ‘hobby shopper’ either, but I still have children out of school, DH and I can’t go into our offices, and we can’t do 90% of the things we normally do.
And it is illegal for my mum to enter my house.
There are far more restrictions still in place than have been lifted, and it baffles me when people say things have basically gone back to normal.

Yes I know all that, of course, but this sudden move from "rules" which must not be broken, ever, to "common sense", which will often mean people justifying that which they want to do, has seen major shift in behaviour imo.

@CountessFrog as I have explained there wasnt one single source. Iran isnt the sort of country where the international media gets to go in and write an exclusive. You have to join the dots.

LaceCurtains

Just because you're not affected by all the restrictions on things like dentists, cafes, shops, schools, theatres, gyms, going into people's houses, myriad of stuff, hardly means we're back to normal . You perhaps need to take a slightly wider view...

Ok, my simple point was that in two weeks , restriction have been lifted and attitudes have changed at an astonishing rate.

It doesn’t matter how much my attitude has or hasn’t changed, I still can’t do 90% of the things I usually do due to the restrictions that are still in place.

Iran is not the best comparison for us, for lots of reasons. It was one of the first hit hard by Covid though, so can be seen (with lots of caveats) as an indicator of what may happen.

Will be watching the graphs of Italy, Spain and France to see what happens there.

I’ve got a dentist appointment on Tuesday. Routine check up. And a podiatrist on Wednesday. Buses all coming along at once now.

Our dentist still isn’t doing routine appointments. Maybe September, they said.

No one really knows what is going on in Iran.

Eid? Possibly?

Yes I wondered about Eid - but isn’t that more recent?

BBC said earlier this week that Iran was saying that their increase was due to
"Experts believe several reasons are behind the increase in cases. Most important is the fact that many Iranians are not taking social distancing seriously.
Ignoring official advice, thousands of people travelled to northern Iran - then considered a high-risk "red" zone - two weeks ago for the Eid al-Fitr holidays. Undergrounds, banks and offices have also been packed with people."

BBC report

One to watch

mobile.reuters.com/article/amp/idUSKBN23F0J4?__twitter_impression=true
Poland plans no new restrictions despite hike in coronavirus infections

Has there been the fabled second spike after VE day? If there's no second spike three weeks after the protests (although no doubt the clowns in suits will twist the figures to make it look as if there is one), then I think it's time to scrap most of the restrictions. We have NOT "practically gone back to normal" - we are still very much not normal. As far as I'm concerned, it's not normal until that wretched social distancing is scrapped, and we're back swimming, attending church, in the theatre, playing recreational sport.

We certainly went from "roolz" to "common sense" very quickly: no doubt because of one Dominic Cummings. Also, calling them "guidelines" is rubbish: the word implies that they are optional.

The government is being highly tactical with what they actually have the power to enforce. They can't really enforce banning houseguests, and social distancing: they know that, we know that, they cut their own resources to do so. Early on, they tried to fool us that they could, by having the police make token appearances. They're concentrating on what they can enforce, such as forcibly keeping non-essential businesses closed, so people can't go into huddled situations. I think the government is waiting for us to break social distancing ourselves, so they can test if it really matters, rather than telling us we no longer need to keep it, because they don't want to be accountable for saying "you don't need to do it any more"; they're probably quite glad about the protests, they just had to be heard to say "don't go".

From the underhand and gaslighting tactics the government has been using, I think that if we're too obedient and docile, they'll keep restrictions in place for longer. I'm sure also a major reason for the forthcoming "enforced mask wearing" is a cynical test of public obedience. Why bring it in so late on, especially after all the dithering and mixed messages about masks?

This whole thing is the biggest government gaslighting exercise ever, and a textbook for future governments on running a nanny state (I'm surprised we haven't heard that phrase much) by deception.