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Original poster

Chris Whitty in The Times today - don't meet friends and family unnecessarily

525 replies

MrsMiaWallis · 10/01/2021 08:22

"Emergency patients will be turned away from hospitals, causing “avoidable deaths”, unless the public starts obeying the lockdown, England’s chief medical officer warns today.
In a stark intervention designed to shock, Professor Chris Whitty warns that everyone who meets friends and family unnecessarily is a “link in a chain” that threatens the lives of vulnerable people"

Worth noting. I had to pick up a prescription from my local town and was surprised to see so many people - mainly middle aged women, some of whom I know and had always seemed like rational intelligent people - walking around town and chatting on the pavements, unmasked, no social distancing.

Apologies I don't know how to do share tokens.

OP posts:
tsmainsqueeze · 10/01/2021 13:51

@Sunshinegirl82

The reality is that there was always going to be a limit on how long people would comply with these sort of restrictions. We may now be reaching the point where people are disengaging in large enough numbers to be problematic.

If disengagement is the issue then just making rules stricter is not the answer in my view. We need to identify exactly where spread is continuing to occur and take targeted steps in those areas if further steps are necessary.

People have been told that if they don't comply bad things will happen for the best part of a year, people are desensitised to it now which was entirely predictable.

I think this sums it up , the media scared a lot of people at the beginning last year when things perhaps weren't so bad , u turns and confusing advice from government / scientists that are no longer trusted . And now it does seem that the situation is a lot worse , and when we do need everyone to comply the public is cynical with a ' I'll take my own chance' attitude. Frustrating but who can blame them ,it particularly annoys me when the government implies the public is mainly to blame .
HibernatingTill2030 · 10/01/2021 13:53

The information is out there. If people choose to ignore the facts, then that's their problem- and unfortunately they make it everybody else' problem as well.

Onlinedilema · 10/01/2021 13:54

Ok if I'm thick then the vast majority of the population must be.
Perhaps you should tell all the thick people as you so kindly call us to stay indoors and reduce their risk then by definition they won't get covid will they?
Oh no wait some of us are actual real key workers who have no choice but to keep going to work and mixng with presumably other thick people and it's our fault the virus us spreading.
Yes I see.
It's sanctimonious people like you, sitting on your high horse who make people close their ears.
If you think calling someone thick is going to get them to listen to you then you are wrong.
One day I might be old, who knows I might die before then, thousands will. Better tell everyone you know to say inside for the foreseeable future and not venture out side under any circumstances then you will be protected. Also care for your own elderly within your house and you will protect them too Seeing as though you know best.

Scarlett1251 · 10/01/2021 13:55

Yes, my 8 year old is a person but it's acknowledged that single adult households are at risk of isolation which is why we were given support bubbles. Or are you one of the people living with other adults that wants to deny single people that?

I don't need an 'excuse' fur walking around outside and saying hello to a friend when I'm out. I could even meet that friend and walk four miles with them if I wanted. That's allowed in the rules. So, no I'm not using it as an 'excuse'.

People like you, who attack people who are living within the rules with such venom, not knowing the personal situations, are probably the complete selfish idiots going round peoples houses and mixing. Just shut up!

MadameBlobby · 10/01/2021 13:59

Mum, dad, two primary age kids and grandma (walking with a stick) coming out of the supermarket with one small bag of shopping which could easily have been carried by one person;

Oh god this does my head in

In Aldi recently I have seen:

Granny who looked in her 90s being pushed in her wheelchair by her daughter, also accompanied by daughter’s daughter and 3 kids. 6 of them and not a face covering between them (kids need to wear them from age 5 here and they all looked older than that)

Coupled with a feral pre schooler running around and pulling things off shelves, dad carrying their shopping of a loaf and a pack of nappies, mum carrying a toddler. I mean wtf. That is hell at the best of times far less in a pandemic.

Onlinedilema · 10/01/2021 14:08

Oh no Scarlett you and I should stay inside forever, us thick people but the enlightened ones such as MrsFuzzy and theOp can do what the fuck they choose. They are free to wander around shops and stare at estate agents going about their business. They are so intelligent they fail to see the irony in telling everyone electro STAY at home but yet they can meander about as they please.
They should stay inside for a very long time then they won't be upset by Seeing the plebs going about their business and you know, doing things such as working for a living. It's only others who have it wrong not them, their journey is essential you know, ours isnt. Their elderly relatives have to be in covid infected care homes because err........well who knows why. Ours should be with us at all times and don't forget...We are expected to stay inside our house at all times yet they are exempt because unlike you and I they are not thick.

QueenoftheAir · 10/01/2021 14:12

People like you, who attack people who are living within the rules with such venom, not knowing the personal situations, are probably the complete selfish idiots going round peoples houses and mixing. Just shut up!

You are wrong on all counts, and very rude.

Frenchdressing · 10/01/2021 14:14

@MrsMiaWallis

are suffering from PND from having had a baby while in lockdown

Then they do have mental health issues.

Feeling absolutely shite about a shite situation is not a "mental health issue"

Totally. As a society, we pathologise normal human emotions and responses to stress.
Frenchdressing · 10/01/2021 14:19

@TheKeatingFive

Chris Witty ‘knows fuck all’....😆😆😆Yes he’s a qualified and experienced doctor and epidemiologist. Ffs.

He had no background in human psychology or behavioural management and these skills are sorely needed as a corollary to the purely medical POV. Ditto economics, work productivity.

If the only goal anyone had was stamping out Covid, it would be fairly easy. But this isn’t the case. People need to work, eat, function as humans, maintain their sanity, pay bills.

Maybe but he hardly knows it was ‘fuck all’ does he?? It was a ridiculous comment.
HappyWinter · 10/01/2021 14:20

Although why the government & the DofE hasn't looked across at Germany, where in some parts they've been doing a rota - a week in school, a week at home, to try to keep kids engaged, but break infection cycles ...

I wish they would look at something like this as a solution for schools. They were advised in the summer to look at using extra venues to create smaller bubbles in September and using rotas to reduce transmission in schools. It would be better than months of closure and help break the chain of transmission.

MrsFezziwig · 10/01/2021 14:39

@Onlinedilema did you actually read anything I wrote?

They are free to wander around shops and stare at estate agents going about their business.

I said that I was on my way to do food shopping. I had to explain this because I knew some bright spark was bound to ask why I was out. Presumably you don’t expect me to starve?

Seeing the plebs going about their business and you know, doing things such as working for a living. It's only others who have it wrong not them, their journey is essential you know, ours isnt.

I said that it would be better for anyone who could work from home should as obviously there were those who could not, so again you’re accusing me of saying something I didn’t.

You don’t need to be concerned about my elderly relatives because the last one died (of Covid) three months ago. I’m just hoping that even though you are apparently a key worker you aren’t one of the caring professions, otherwise we’re all doomed.

And it’s MrsFezziwig.

Original poster
MrsMiaWallis · 10/01/2021 14:48

Focus on the real rule-breakers!

They are breaking the rules- not social distancing is breaking the rules.

While my kids can't go to school you bet I'll judge people in groups having a chat.

OP posts:
QueenoftheAir · 10/01/2021 14:49

Oh @MrsFezziwig so sorry for your loss. Flowers The current situation must be very difficult for you to see, including some of the comments & views on this thread.

MrsFezziwig · 10/01/2021 15:04

Thank you Queen. My stepmum (his wife) had died a few months before, and frankly I don’t think he was that bothered about being alive any more. Still sad though.

Hatstrategicallydipped · 10/01/2021 16:40

@QueenoftheAir

perhaps like me they are a single parent and it's the only time they've spoken to anyone all week

Presumably your children aren't people then ...

Lots of people are actually single & living alone. We deal with it, not use it as an excuse.

'We' deal with it? Actually, no the police and ambulance service are dealing with me having a bit of nervous breakdown in isolation.
Hatstrategicallydipped · 10/01/2021 16:46

Maybe but he hardly knows it was ‘fuck all’ does he?? It was a ridiculous comment.

Nothing ridiculous about my comment. I've watched him for 10 months now. Apart from wearing ill-fitting suits a la Jeremy Corbyn and saying 'next slide please', he appears to know absolutely nothing more than that which a common or garden idiot like myself can understand from reading figures - without the needs of graphs. He knows the answer to NO questions. I am sure that the man is eminently qualified. However, he knows FUCK ALL.

Hatstrategicallydipped · 10/01/2021 16:50

That little nitwit of a Health Secretary or whatever he is, seems to understand the broader picture better.

XenoBitch · 10/01/2021 16:54

Totally. As a society, we pathologise normal human emotions and responses to stress.

True, but those normal emotions and responses can go South fast. Not every one who commits suicide has underlying MH issues.. some just can not see a way out of their situation.

Hatstrategicallydipped · 10/01/2021 17:01

@XenoBitch

Totally. As a society, we pathologise normal human emotions and responses to stress.

True, but those normal emotions and responses can go South fast. Not every one who commits suicide has underlying MH issues.. some just can not see a way out of their situation.

You can pathologise me hearing voices and wanting to hang myself?
randomer · 10/01/2021 17:22

When does a "real" MH problem become something that society has pathologised?

Frenchdressing · 10/01/2021 17:39

Hearing voices and suicidal thoughts are clearly not normal human emotions.

Feeling a bit sad or stressed is normal. A bit of anxiety is normal. It’s important to distinguish between appropriate responses to stress and severe MH problems. That’s all I was saying.

MoltenLasagne · 10/01/2021 17:44

@Frenchdressing

Hearing voices and suicidal thoughts are clearly not normal human emotions.

Feeling a bit sad or stressed is normal. A bit of anxiety is normal. It’s important to distinguish between appropriate responses to stress and severe MH problems. That’s all I was saying.

Well yes, but currently the amount of people worried about losing their job and their house is massively increased, as are the number of people isolated in a manner we would never have seen previously.

Of course there are going to massive numbers of people suffering with their mental health as a consequence. Isolation, redundancy, massive life changes are all risk factors for suicide at a time when most people are simultaneously cut off from their support network.

If two years ago I'd heard a friend had lost their job, was facing losing the house and hadn't been out to see anyone in months I'd be genuinely worried for them. Just because this is now happening to a huge number of people doesn't mean we can just dismiss mental health with "everyone's struggling, suck it up."

Frenchdressing · 10/01/2021 17:46

@randomer

When does a "real" MH problem become something that society has pathologised?
It’s complex. I just think we can empathise and be supportive to people in distress but feeling a bit sad or worried is normal. It does people with severe and enduring MH problems a disservice to put everything in the same category.
XenoBitch · 10/01/2021 17:50

You can pathologise me hearing voices and wanting to hang myself?

Hearing voices etc is not a normal response. I hope you are getting some help.

Hatstrategicallydipped · 10/01/2021 18:21

@XenoBitch

You can pathologise me hearing voices and wanting to hang myself?

Hearing voices etc is not a normal response. I hope you are getting some help.

Oh I'm getting help. The sum total of NO help. Chris fucking whitty blaming US for the shambles of a health system that is the NHS is not help.