Is anyone actually going to follow the rules from spring?

[Cloudsurfing]

It will have been a year since being allowed to properly see friends and family. Even in summer last year you still had to social distance so seeing family was difficult, and some areas had tighter restrictions throughout. Everyone I know is going to see family and friends from spring, regardless of what restrictions there are. I am too. The government do know that most people won’t stick to it from then, right?

Is anyone on here actually going to not see family at that point? I know Mumsnet seems to be full of people who are happy to isolate for years if need be, but are you actually going to?

@TheKeatingFive

The health vs. economy argument is 100% fiction

Of course it isn’t, don’t be silly. Lockdown is absolutely haemorrhaging money. People clearly don’t have the first clue what this will do to public services (including the beloved nhs) in the medium to long term. It’ll be total carnage. Everyone needs to prepare themselves for basic services being curtailed to an almost unimaginable degree.

And opening up in the summer gave some businesses the shot in the arm to limp on through. Many more would be shut permanently if we hadn’t done so.

And what about the other things I mentioned in my post?

Two further lockdowns has cost more than an extra six weeks on lockdown 1 would have done. That hasn't benefitted businesses as much as not having to shut again would have.

That's basic.

Same for impact on mental health and freedom.

If you enjoy this lockdown-release-lockdown-release cycle, that is your right. I would have preferred to avoid it and still would going forwards.

And don't patronise about not understanding the economic issues. It is called a difference of opinion, don't play the ball not the player. I think it economically suicidal to take such a risk as EOTHO, and it backfired badly.

I note that you did not address my last post about your shifting goal posts red I can only conclude that you accept the goal posts are shifting, and that preventing the over 50s from getting long covid is not a reasonable excuse for locking down the whole of the country and crippling the country financially for decades to come.

@speaksofty I agree, I’m not locking down to stop some people getting long covid and we shouldn’t be expected to. It’s getting ridiculous now. People never worried about this before, post viral syndrome has been around forever. Not a good enough reason to lockdown the country.

Typo, it should say 'do play the ball not the player'

The bottom line is that once the most vulnerable groups are vaccinated (last ones will be this week) so three weeks from this weekend, there will be no reason whatsoever to continue with the lockdown, it is basically as simple as that. No reason at all.

The OP is precisely the reason the virus is still in circulation.
"Yeah yeah yeah, I know the rules which have been dished out, but what about ME?"
Makes me so sad.

Two further lockdowns has cost more than an extra six weeks on lockdown 1 would have done. That hasn't benefitted businesses as much as not having to shut again would have.

So you’re saying that if we’d added an extra six weeks into lockdown 1, we wouldn’t have needed lockdown 2 and 3?

I completely agree op. It is outrageous that anyone is even suggesting that we continue with the lockdown until all nine groups are vaccinated. They clearly have absolutely no idea of what is coming next. No idea at all. Mass unemployment, massive recessions that will last for years and years. The fall out is already eye watering and growing by the day.

They would rather continually bleat on about long covid in a myopic fashion without looking up at the (much) bigger picture.

Two further lockdowns has cost more than an extra six weeks on lockdown 1 would have done.

And how do you know that an extra six weeks on LD 1 would have solved it, or wouldn’t have broken the populace totally?

Numbers were low coming out of LD1. Foreign travel (and lack of quarantine) probably caused more damage than EOTHO. At least businesses got something out of this.

If you havent seen the writing in the wall for the NHS existing in its current form, then you’re very naive. It will need radical overhauling as we just cannot afford it any more.

@dinglethedragon

I will be following them because I'm not a selfish arse.

The only way to get this properly under control, and limit the emergence of new, potentially more deadly, variants, is to keep social distancing in place as long as needed.

The longer it circulates the more mutations will occur. It's what viruses do. What if the next mutation which emerges, because YOU decide you know better than the scientists, is more dangerous to new borns than the elderly?

As pp said, coronavirus is not going anywhere, either we run the risk of new variants or never go back to normal again

The bottom line is that once the most vulnerable groups are vaccinated (last ones will be this week) so three weeks from this weekend, there will be no reason whatsoever to continue with the lockdown, it is basically as simple as that. No reason at all.

Precisely, speaksofty.

@dinglethedragon

I will be following them because I'm not a selfish arse.

The only way to get this properly under control, and limit the emergence of new, potentially more deadly, variants, is to keep social distancing in place as long as needed.

The longer it circulates the more mutations will occur. It's what viruses do. What if the next mutation which emerges, because YOU decide you know better than the scientists, is more dangerous to new borns than the elderly?

Quite right, these threads show what a selfish bunch of entitled idiots there are.

@speaksofty

I note that you did not address my last post about your shifting goal posts red I can only conclude that you accept the goal posts are shifting, and that preventing the over 50s from getting long covid is not a reasonable excuse for locking down the whole of the country and crippling the country financially for decades to come.

I'm not proposing caution for that reason. My concern is higher circulating cases -> higher numbers of mutations -> higher risk of vaccine escape -> higher risk further lockdown required.

We don't have to stay in.lockdown til Sept/Oct, but we should be aiming to enter winter with very low cases so we can avoid another flare up.

We are now expected to sacrifice everything to avoid the over 50's getting long covid now are we? If that is not a shifting the goal posts I don't know what is. Statistically you are right, their chances of dying are very very small if you are over 50
Many viruses can cause many months of symptoms, not just covid and yet you expect to keep the whole of society locked down on the off chance that the over 50s will get long covid?

It's not just about dying from covid though, is it? If we open up too soon before all those most at risk of being very ill are vaccinated and the virus starts to spread widely, people will get ill enough to end up in hospital, which puts more pressure on "ordinary" NHS beds as well as ICU beds - in fact maybe more pressure on ICU beds than now as people who are not elderly are more likely to be ventilated.

Upshot will be - more delays and scarcity in NHS services and more deaths because of this.

If we can vaccinate all the over 50s by May, then we can slowly open up.

@speaksofty

I note that you did not address my last post about your shifting goal posts red I can only conclude that you accept the goal posts are shifting, and that preventing the over 50s from getting long covid is not a reasonable excuse for locking down the whole of the country and crippling the country financially for decades to come.

I don't believe the goalposts have shifted at all!

I think that throughout people have failed to understand what a pandemic is and where that means the goalposts always were.

Just because you had people like the chancellor promoting eat out to help out (to the obvious horror of the scientists) didn't change the parameters of where we need to be to be on top of the situation.

Thats just politicians being misleading.

The goalposts were fixed points in reality not political policies. And thats where understanding has fallen down. People taking to much attention of the wrong group.

Politicians can not change the wall of reality. Its their job to manage how we deal with it honestly and effectively.

They didn't.

People wanted to believe the politicians over the scientists because reality was something they didn't want to face up to. They were seduced by the nice soothing tones rather than looking at information available and going 'na thats bollocks cos the pandemic isnt a tory'.

Yes, I will follow the rules. I hope DD and I will be vaccinated around Easter but DH won’t be vaccinated yet and I’m worried about him. Also there is uncertainty with variants. However my main point is that we need to keep the level of cases generally low, I’m worried about the NHS and its availability for other illnesses. Yes, I know you can get appointment and so on atm but in reality the restrictions are huge.

Genuine question.

If people aren't going to be following the rules won't restrictions get even tighter??

@MrMucker

The OP is precisely the reason the virus is still in circulation. "Yeah yeah yeah, I know the rules which have been dished out, but what about ME?" Makes me so sad.

I’m the reason? Me personally? I’ve stuck to the rules completely. Im on mat leave and DH works from home. I haven’t been into a shop since March. Yet I’m the reason? Sorry if I want my baby to meet her family, if she needs to learn to socialise and play with other babies. It’s not selfish to want that, it’s basic needs. I will put her and my families needs first.

Nope. I'm not planning on disregarding the rules completely. You can't anyway if everywhere is still closed and you can't book a holiday out of here.

But I will see friends outside or in very small groups inside, visit family who aren't vulnerable and take my kids wherever I can get away with.

The lockdown measures are needed to protect the nhs.

Hospital numbers are still higher than they where at the peak last April.

We are so near the end we need to just keep going for that bit longer

Nope. I’ll be seeing my family and friends.

Populism. Its a disease. One that has cost millions of lives.

“Long covid” is such an odd expression. When people get the flu they don’t get “long flu”. It’s just the fucking flu.

@louise4754

Genuine question.

If people aren't going to be following the rules won't restrictions get even tighter??

If numbers and more importantly hospitalisations go up then yes they will have to

yes