Good News Part 5. For science, positivity, puffins and daffodils. For anyone who isn't coping with gloom and doom.All aboard Boaty McBoatface!

[FuzzyPuffling]

New thread for the positive crew. Oldies, lurkers and newbies all welcome. Keep the science and positivity coming.

The only one o engaged on recently was about the numbers of children in hospital - it was so awful seeing posters get upset about something that was a lie and them proven to be lies. There were several posters determined to believe it though (and implied I was lying despite several itu consultants public statements stating it wasn’t true.

Yikes avoiding the long covid thread.

@Pomegranatespompom

The only one o engaged on recently was about the numbers of children in hospital - it was so awful seeing posters get upset about something that was a lie and them proven to be lies. There were several posters determined to believe it though (and implied I was lying despite several itu consultants public statements stating it wasn’t true.

You did well and dug in on that one I remember.

One of those posters is definitely some kind of troll. Whatever you say they manipulate and twist to their agenda. It is clever but not as clever as they think.

The other poster I can't decide if a bit simple so kept repeating misinformation or that was them deliberately repeating it to freak out people.

Anyway the pair were disgusting

You know the long covid BS is going to stalk us all for the rest of the year though? Because apparently all illness and disability is a totally new thing and a revelation and oh my god!! Let me run around screaming because that'll help!

@tatutata

You know the long covid BS is going to stalk us all for the rest of the year though? Because apparently all illness and disability is a totally new thing and a revelation and oh my god!! Let me run around screaming because that'll help!

Yes!

Trouble is they know there is no data on long covid. So unlike most the doom threads it is difficult to argue about logically. Normally they get shut up with the facts. That makes it easier to reassure other readers.

@Truelymadlydeeplysomeonesmum yep exactly, it's a bit of a tricky one. I know a guy with a very unfortunate bent to believing bollocks, but he did amuse me when he said "Right, so because some people might get a bit tired, I'm going to lose my house. Have a fucking cup of coffee..."
The way the media covers topics where there is a high degree of uncertainty does piss me off. I still can't get over the BBC giving air time to that nurse, when she's been rent-a-quote all year as a union activist. It's done lasting damage.

[quote Inastatus]@DobbyTheHouseElk - yes, I was on that thread too. I keep promising myself not to get drawn in but can’t help clicking! I called the ‘it’s never going to be back to normal’ poster a doom muppet - credit to whoever it was on here who coined the phrase 😅[/quote]
Yep, I wandered over to AIBU tonight and ended up reading that thread. The absolute state of some of the comments there... I was randomly musing that returning to this thread is like running to get under some shelter when you get caught in a thunderstorm. Weirdly, it's comforting to know that several of us ended up in the same thunderstorm and have all found shelter here again!

Although I already knew a Good News'er was there when I saw the doom muppet comment

This is a bit odd - but I think they are trying to see the Pfizer vaccine does cut transmission. www.ynetnews.com/article/H17x5wjCv

Something I’ve not seen mentioned, which seems like good news to me, is that testing has gone up massively since before Christmas.
On 18 December, just as schools broke up and the whole new variant/tier 4 madness started to kick off, there were 390k tests carried out.
That was up to £500k by 23 December, it dipped over Christmas of course, then went back up, and has reached as high as £680k on 8 Jan.
This is a huge increase, especially good as it has been accompanied by a levelling off of cases. Unless I’m missing something really obvious, I’d say this is good news.
Why the media can’t shout about this sort of increase, instead of only increase in cases when they happen, is beyond me.

[quote alreadytaken]This is a bit odd - but I think they are trying to see the Pfizer vaccine does cut transmission. www.ynetnews.com/article/H17x5wjCv[/quote]

Did anyone else get a "empty your bowels trick" advert with that link?

I'm always getting ads like that, bad breath and ear wax too!

Good morning all. Just caught up on this thread ( and no other) and am so grateful for your sense and sensibility.
Hurrah for all the cheesemongers. ( Love it)

toner I'm always getting the ear wax adverts. No idea why, I don't have an ear wax issue and it's revolting!

tobee I'm sorry autocorrect wanted you to be toner.

Promising drug for the morning wake up

Covid: Large trial of new treatment begins in UK www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-55639096

I was listening to Radio 4 just now.

Caught the end of an article where they were saying that eminent someone or other who advises the government is saying that the media / others aren't publicising enough compliance stories, and if people hear compliance stories they are more likely to comply too.

So they had a lovely insert of someone who before xmas went to a motorway services to exchange presents, and all around her were others doing just that, in a socially distanced way.

I agree, more compliance stories would help (also on MN). Perhaps someone should start a 'what sacrifices have you made to comply' thread...

Teen I heard that. Thought it great and she spoke very well.

I had known about the compliance thing I always say on here I follow the rules, I do. But I never get how people don’t understand that if they boast about non compliance they are making it worse for everyone including themselves.

Exactly. It's like drinking. Heavy drinkers like to hear on here how much others drink too as it gives them permission to continue. But if others go on and say 'well actually, it takes us a fortnight to drink a bottle of wine' it 'un-normalises' it for them (and they get cross very quickly).

@TeaInTheGarden - Whilst this is, in part true, it’s also important to look at the rate of positivity. This is running at about 8 - 10% at the moment which is too high.
Things are gradually improving and I’m no pessimist about all this, and the number of tests we are capable of processing will definitely stand us in good stead in the future, but at the moment rates are too high.
We’ll get there.

[quote AlexandraEiffel]Promising drug for the morning wake up

Covid: Large trial of new treatment begins in UK www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-55639096[/quote]
About time ha! I am sure that drug was the very first post on these threads ages ago. It seemed very promising

Yes I’d also wondered what had happened to the Synairgen trial. The initial results were from months ago. I know they have to run these trials properly but saying they expect results by the summer seems an eternity to wait, especially when cases are so high.

[quote alreadytaken]This is a bit odd - but I think they are trying to see the Pfizer vaccine does cut transmission. www.ynetnews.com/article/H17x5wjCv[/quote]
Hopefully some other news media will pick up on the study so I can read rather than listen to it! Could be hugely important. The information was always going to come out of Israel first since they are doing so well with their vaccine programme.

Just got back from the vaccination centre - mum and dad are "done". All went smoothly - a few minutes wait outside, under cover, then they were through the doors and out again in 40 minutes. Lots of marvellous people stewarding etc. Very grateful to everyone concerned!

Off to put my boots on now and have a walk in the drizzle!

Another promising article from Israel
www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-data-shows-50-reduction-in-infections-14-days-after-first-vaccine-shot/