TheAdventuresoftheWishingChair ·
22/12/2020 08:51
I feel really uneasy. The rate of growth of the virus in my area has been alarmingly rapid in the last 2 weeks. I think (understandably!) there is a lot of attention going on the issues with the French freight. I do know that is serious and of course it needs discussion. I think, too, a lot of people are caught up talking about Christmas plans and their own arrangements. Again, that matters, we're social creatures and people are experiencing disruption and some are left having to rearrange things at short notice or managing significant disappointment and sadness.
I just think that meanwhile, this new strain is spreading and it's going to rapidly push a lot of hospitals to crisis point in January. I have been anti-lockdown for months. Not anti-restrictions, I must say - I always thought they were necessary but thought that some restrictions shouldn't be imposed by the government (e.g gyms could have been safely open in November in many tiers based on the evidence). Anyway, that's a different conversation.
I just worry that we should be going into a hard national lockdown right now and yet there is all this vague talk about it maybe happening in January. Surely it needs to happen within days? I know lockdown is an awful blunt instrument which does catastrophic damage to mental health and to the economy. I'm definitely not thinking it would be anything other than devastating for society, unfortunately. But worst case scenario, things seem like they might potential spiral pretty fast with deaths now and I keep thinking of hcp's in hospitals and how they're going to cope if we are at a point of people dying in fairly large numbers in corridors, say, or they are having to turn away anyone over a certain age for any treatment because there is no capacity in a few short weeks.
No, I don't think lockdowns stop the virus, by the way. We are in need of that vaccine being rolled out and spring turning up for the pressure to ease off properly (which will happen. There's lots of reason to have hope). I think this would be a temporary measure only. But every day of delay in taking very strong action now is going to mean much worse scenes in January and February. I do think we risk things being like those worst Italian scenes from the spring.
Personally, although I'm young(ish!) and in good health, I am cancelling any trips out now that aren't absolutely essential just because every person who can do that will make a difference. I appreciate others won't agree or won't want to do that - I am not writing this to try to persuade people that I'm right because I don't even know I am, I just can't shake off this feeling of we're moving far too slowly and we'll regret it. For now we can all only do what we think is best individually.