Christmas IS going to be cancelled - last minute.

[Elephant4]

Isn't it?

www.theguardian.com/world/2020/dec/18/boris-johnson-calls-crisis-meeting-to-discuss-response-to-new-covid-strain

They're panicking now.

I don’t think they should cancel any religious celebration. We don’t live in a nanny state.

Well yes, but isn't the number of active, practising Christians around 5%?

If you are a Christian you can pray and celebrate in your own way or make use of services online etc.

For most people it has nothing to do with religion and is just an excuse to overeat, drink too much, watch telly all day and argue with relatives they can't stand.

@doyouthinktheysaurus so stay at home unless you are visiting a tier 1 island with one small, underfunded hospital and an aging population?

Nah, YOU stay at home please.

@abitofpeace

They are relying on people having the common sense to know how they will mix over the festive period. The majority of my friends and family are being careful.

That is true BUT we are back to the numbers we had in April because clearly people do not have any common sense.

Mnet is full of posters kicking back against any rules and they have ben for the past 9 months.

I think they had the chance to cancel it and didn’t so they won’t now. But lockdown 3 might start straight after. They’re clearly panicking now london and the SE are badly affected. Whereas they sat on their hands for weeks when the north was badly affected.

I'll be one of those white knights talked about up thread because I believe if it's not ok to cancel Christmas it's not all right to cancel Eid

however with our current joke of a PM its not really surprising that he thinks Eid doesnt matter as much as Christmas. Just surprised how many share his view

@speakout Ridiculously wrong - Christmas became a bank holiday in Scotland in 1871

Why are people are ‘hoping’ that Xmas is cancelled? Have a bit of empathy and heart for people who have plans in place on the back of current rules decided by Boris earlier this month. The people who are hoping for it to be cancelled are more than likely those who don’t have plans anyway. I’m beyond pissed off of the whole thing. No-one in government has a clue what to do for the best. I’m at the point now that I think just put everyone in total lockdown for two months - schools and shops have to be included. Enforce fines for those who don’t follow the rules. We need to take drastic action because the tier thing is obviously not fit for purpose.

Whereas it might yet be a complete disaster I do think people appreciate being given the personal responsibility to make the right choice. And many many people are just staying at home. Bear in mind many of us in the north of England have not been able to meet family indoors for months, and right now our infection rates are lower than they have been for a long time.

I doubt they will cancel Christmas. But i think a full lockdown starting 28th with curfew isn't unlikely.

I don’t think cancelling Christmas will do any good.

If they did then come New Year all the people who put off Christmas will be celebrating NY instead

It is like the lockdown in November. Everyone then rushed out on 2nd December to do all the things they couldn’t do in November so more people in shops and out on the street. No SD and a jump in figures.

Science can only go so far. Human nature has to be taken into account to really understand what to do.

And fed up of people comparing it to Eid. We are not a Muslim country. Eid is not a national celebration of the U.K. Christmas is.

I'll be very surprised if we are not in lockdown in January whatever happens at Christmas. I'm expecting right restrictions in January & February at least.

Tight restrictions

I know the case rate is skyrocketing and is comparable to April. What about the death rate?

Rosehip10 you are ridiculously wrong.

Christmas Day did not become a public holiday until 1958 in Scotland

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_in_Scotland

DS lives in Bondi at present - he said that the Covid testing centre normally has a couple of cars an hour going through, yesterday there were about 200 cars waiting for it to open.

He said that Aussies take the guidance very seriously - people flouting the rules are looked down on in the way that drink drivers are here.

I think the Dominic Cummings situation allowed us all to think how we could interpret the guidance in a way that worked best for our family - which may be fine if you're ultra careful. Unfortunately there are too many idiots who take it as a free pass to act like, well, idiots.

@BonnieDundee The UK is not a majority Muslim country - you think similar (but reversed) would not happen in say the UAE?

Aside from the fact Christmas is a big thing culturally/as a holiday in the UK for people of all faiths and none.

@ajandjjmum

DS lives in Bondi at present - he said that the Covid testing centre normally has a couple of cars an hour going through, yesterday there were about 200 cars waiting for it to open.

He said that Aussies take the guidance very seriously - people flouting the rules are looked down on in the way that drink drivers are here.

I think the Dominic Cummings situation allowed us all to think how we could interpret the guidance in a way that worked best for our family - which may be fine if you're ultra careful. Unfortunately there are too many idiots who take it as a free pass to act like, well, idiots.

It’s not comparable.

Most people see Christmas as the commercial version not the religious version. Technically if it is just the commercial version can’t parts of it ie the big family gathering just be shifted to another time when this new strain of virus and the hospital are more under control.

@MarshaBradyo

Santa so many posts going on about wanting it to be a hard lock down everything shut

Too much.

No one 'wants' a lockdown.

Katgerine your post was one that certainly suggested otherwise.

I don't think they'll change the Christmas rules now, although they may well advise against, I think the panic is about what happens after Christmas.

@Graciebobcat

A country run by a bunch of wankers who never have to make any domestic arrangements. They can fuck the fucking fuck off to the far side of fucketty fuck with their rapid changes and eleventh hour announcements on Twitter about what you can't do the next day.

Amen sister.

@speakout 1871 act

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bank_Holidays_Act_1871

There’s a thread on here started by a MNer who us currently on CPAP in hospital because of Covid and is obviously very scared. Quite sobering really.

I’m not a Covid lockdown zealot but nor am I putting my fingers in my ears and ignoring what’s happening. Happy to have a quiet Xmas tbh. Have g seen my aged parents in months but they get the vaccine soon so can wait. Xmas is one day.