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I almost can’t stand it. What the hell will they be announcing now?

Have we, by creating a vaccine , by fighting this virus inadvertently created one thats even worse

The virus developed a mutation several weeks ago to a vaccine only released on small scale a few days ago?

Must be a clairvoyant virus.

The problem isn’t that we can’t meet it’s that he’s just announced it now. They’ve known all this for at least 1week. Why ever suggest it? The science never supported it. By announcing it today rather than last week, lots of people will have made firm arrangements including buying train/plane tickets and ordering large amounts of shopping.

These people seem to forget their enormously privileged position and waste their precious access to ask questions, pushing a political agenda rather than a public health agenda

No 10 decides which journalists are allowed in and only allows limited number and range of questions. Quite a number of mainistream organisations had access to No 10 press conferences removed because the government didn't like their questions.

You are blaming the wrong people if you think the questions are insufficiently challenging.

By announcing it today rather than last week, lots of people will have made firm arrangements including buying train/plane tickets and ordering large amounts of shopping

Newsthump called this a few days ago, as did some of the journalists no longer allowed into press conferences.

newsthump.com/2020/12/15/government-insists-there-will-be-no-u-turn-on-houses-mixing-over-christmas-until-everyone-has-bought-a-massive-turkey/

Its impossible to distinguish the current government from parody.

@C8H10N4O2

Have we, by creating a vaccine , by fighting this virus inadvertently created one thats even worse

The virus developed a mutation several weeks ago to a vaccine only released on small scale a few days ago?

Must be a clairvoyant virus.

Well it can tell the time so anything is possible

@Truelymadlydeeplysomeonesmum yep must leave my mums at 11:59 pm xmas day

@C8H10N4O2 actually you saying that i looked at a few ons surveys and several asked about how many presents you have bought etc etc
Think will be lots of food waste bins full this xmas ,

If you’re not in tier 4 you can actually mix- yes just one day but you can. You can share the extra food amongst those you see on Xmas day and should be grateful you are getting the choice to see your family unlike those in tier 4. Those in tier 4, the shops are still open so you can buy food if you weren’t expecting to be at home and if you have too much food because you were expecting extra people then freeze it or donate it

[quote timeforanewstart]@C8H10N4O2 actually you saying that i looked at a few ons surveys and several asked about how many presents you have bought etc etc
Think will be lots of food waste bins full this xmas , [/quote]
The You Gov daily question has asked how many presents have been bought everyday for about a week. Sceptical, moi? Never!

If you’re not in tier 4 you can actually mix- yes just one day but you can

Not if you live hundreds of miles away or need to use public transport/plane to get there.

Not everyone lives within a couple of hours of their family

I am too far from my family to unfortunately do it in one day.

*I guarantee him and his scummy chums will still be doing what they want this Christmas’

They will won’t they.

Think will be lots of food waste bins full this xmas

Are people really this thick? Yes there will be people who already have or will soon have food and no-one to serve it to, but seeing as gatherings were limited, no-one should have been hosting that many extra people anyway, so if they have 'tonnes' of food with no-one to feed it to, there's endless things that can be done with it before it actually goes to waste.

Freeze some.

Eat your Christmas food instead of buying other food.

If the people you were hosting are local, give some of it to them.

Offer it to other people you know who are in the position where they haven't bought a turkey etc because they were expecting to go elsewhere.

Offer it out on Olio etc.

Only after all the above have been exhausted, is food waste due to the unexpected lockdown excusable.

@BarbaraofSeville absolutely agree. Plus surely perishables won't be in people's homes yet- so don't buy them or cancel your order.

For those of us who have lost loved ones and been prevented from saying goodbye, cancelled weddings, lost businesses etc. it seems a bit ridiculous for people to be complaining about this .

Everyone if they can afford to should have had a plan B in case they themselves tested positive or plans had to be cancelled at the last minute. Unless they have been extraordinarily lucky this year people must surely know to plan for this.

I did a large food shop yesterday morning, was to be me, DH , MIL (we are her support bubble) and DS was coming home for 3 days, and he can eat for England so I really stocked up for treating him. He had arranged to have a test the day before coming home as they are provided where he works.

After the announcement we phoned him, luckily he has decided to stay put and spend Christmas with his GF (they bubble together as he lives alone) so we loaded the car with his presents and half the food from the fridge and delivered it to them. Got home after midnight but got it done before we were not allowed to go for such a long unnecessary drive.

So grateful we can at least FaceTime and Zoom with family this Christmas, My parents were originally going to join us but had already decided to stay home as DS coming from London, and my DD and her family live 4 hours away so can’t see my GS in person but we will chat lots.

Well it can tell the time so anything is possible

I didn't mean literally. More in the same way that over use of antibiotics lead to superbugs. By consistently fighting everything thrown at us , did it lead to the evolutions of something we can't fight as well. Are we meant to have survived that way ..

Besides it's just a personal thought I never said this was absolute whats happening.

I think that since we threw no virus-prevention measures at bats, who were the ones who incubated SARS-CoV-2, it's not likely that our being over-inclined to protect ourselves from diseases had anything much to do with this particular virus developing.

The superbugs (which are bacteria and fungi, not viruses) developed resistance to the antibiotics which we waste on every damn thing under the sun including cattle which have nothing wrong with them, but they were only able to do it after several decades of actual exposure to antibiotics.

Vaccines are a completely different mechanism.

I don't think we need to worry that vaccines will create vaccine-resistant viruses, any more than improved hip-replacement surgery makes people more likely to fall over and break their hips.

We unfortunately can’t cancel our food as it’s to order and Friday was our Waitrose cut off.
Also we were just 2 households meeting so not an excessive amount of people
I’m not frustrated at the decision but at the fact it wasn’t taken earlier. He stood up in Parliament and sneered at Keir Starmer for suggesting a rethink. He’s a bloody buffoon!

@QueenPaws @missymoomoomoomoomoo

Thank you. Thank you all so much.

I sent your messages and photos on. Thank you

This thread is a goldmine of misinformation and stupid smug posters.

@NellyJames

We unfortunately can’t cancel our food as it’s to order and Friday was our Waitrose cut off. Also we were just 2 households meeting so not an excessive amount of people I’m not frustrated at the decision but at the fact it wasn’t taken earlier. He stood up in Parliament and sneered at Keir Starmer for suggesting a rethink. He’s a bloody buffoon!

I had a huge Waitrose order in November (an Entertaining one) which was for a wedding reception - almost £350 I think. I phoned up, explained the situation and they cancelled the entire order for me. And I was several days past my slot and not charged a penny. I'd give it a try.

Folks I have update the daily cases in councils in England on www.covidmessenger.com with today's data release from the govt.

I have also added a county column and the ability to sort by county (and the other columns) so you can easily sort by county and see what is happening in all the councils in your county - seemed pertinent as tiers seem to be more or less decided at county level now.

Anyway you are most welcome to use it and share it etc. I update it every day about an hour after the government's daily data release.

@Whatwouldscullydo

Well it can tell the time so anything is possible

I didn't mean literally. More in the same way that over use of antibiotics lead to superbugs. By consistently fighting everything thrown at us , did it lead to the evolutions of something we can't fight as well. Are we meant to have survived that way ..

Besides it's just a personal thought I never said this was absolute whats happening.

Your alright I crack jokes at times of stress and going into tier 4 has sent me on over drive.

Not the restrictions as such. I will just plod on and make it work for us. It is the upset and worry of people in real life and on here.

I get what you mean about antibiotics etc.

Remember in the first lockdown when so many people were look how we live, look what we have done to the planet, look how we are messing up our bodies etc. When all this is over we will make things better.
Well that talk didn't last long did it. People got fed up and tired this new normal.

Anyway I understand where you are coming from and you aren't a total crack pot

Hey I've been called far worse than a crack pot... it is totally our fault I mean if we weren't dirty and greedy and destructive as a species this may never have happened the way it did. Maybe we will take heed of the reminder if who's realky boss...

Still, its a good excuse to say fuck it and drink all my calories between now and Xmas instead .