to be sick of the gaslighting and rewriting of history over Christmas.

[MercyBooth]

The gaslighting continues.

graziadaily.co.uk/life/in-the-news/covid-a-year-on-frontline/

Janitha Gowribalan, 36, an ICU doctor in London who told us at the start of the pandemic she was worried about how they were going to cope. ‘I didn’t appreciate the fragility of life before. It’s been profound,’ she says. She hasn’t seen her mum since before it all began. ‘I’ve forgotten to be kind to myself and make sure my needs are met
Janitha has patients still in hospital who caught the virus when rules were relaxed before Christmas

The sensationalist press conference on the 19th December put London and Essex into tier 4 banning families getting together #christmasiscancelled was trending on Twitter. The rules wernt relaxed at all. WTF

Gaslighting people just before you expect them to do a SECOND Easter in lockdown. Not a great idea i would have thought.

Makes me wonder how much history was rewritten after the two World Wars. Living in the digital age that is harder. Doesnt seem to stop people having a bloody good go at it though. This is a bloody insult to those who have made sacrifices not seeing their families for many many months. DB hasnt seen our parents for months. He would go tonto if he read this.

People have made so many sacrifices not seeing family , including relatives who were terminally ill. Good luck getting compliance for another winter lockdown if its needed.

@AlexaShutUp

For those of us who were in tier 3 at that stage, the period in early-mid December looked remarkably relaxed in London. I would definitely describe that period as being "before Christmas" so I don't think it's gaslighting to say that the rules were relaxed at that time.

I do think that the government monumentally fucked up over the whole mess at Christmas, but that's a separate issue.

Yes, I agree with this. It would perhaps be fairer to say overall things were too relaxed 'in December' which covers both the lower tier London was in to begin with, and the mixing that was allowed on Christmas day for many areas outside London and the SE.

I remember that short period when London was in tier 2 as feeling almost like a normal December. Santa's grottos were booked up, shops were thronged, indoor group activities were back. Surely has to go down as one of the big mistakes of the pandemic, in retrospect.

@Graciebobcat

The only people that "went mad" were the government, only apparently noticing the steep climb in cases in December which had been happening since September.

Absolutely.

The government have been dreadful.

reluctant yy, I Xmas shopped in a handful of shops at the end of the day when they were quiet. But I didn't go to Primark at all because there was always a queue.

The government will want you to remember the success of the vaccine and do their best to try to make you forget the failures. The late decisions, the things such as eat out to help out (and spread the virus), the failures over last year's exams, world failing test and trace system, things such as allowing 3,000 people to come from the European hotspot of Madrid.

It’s actually kind of a relief to see people acknowledging that it was the lead-up to Christmas, and not Christmas Day itself in tier 4 areas, that saw the big rises in cases later on. On here so many posters were going on about “Christmas rule breaking” and blaming Londoners for meeting up on Christmas Day (which the majority didn’t, compliance was high, and even people who could have met up in bubbles didn’t in many cases)when it was obvious that much of the spread was well within the rules.

After Lockdown 2, London was packed with shoppers, drinkers etc until just before Christmas on the 19th Dec. To me, that is the ‘before Christmas’ that this refers to.

OP I agree with the others that the Dr is referring to the time when London and SE was in Tier 2. But I would highly sympathise with your DH or anyone who is pissed off with the lifting of restrictions over Easter being cancelled.

That period when they didn't have enough covid tests so people couldn't get tested when they needed to. Apparently it was because "people are wasting tests and testing when they don't need to."

"World-beating Test and Trace"

I'm a Londoner & the rules were relaxed a bit. I don't recognise the carnage description but I have no interest in shopping on Oxford street pandemic or not.

Restaurants were open & I went to a few xmas activities & then everything stopped again & no mixing on Christmas day. Although I would say many ignored that change, most of my neighbours aren't Londoners so the same as every year the local streets were pretty dead.

@mars2,

How can you be a Londoner but most of your neighbours are not?! Is your house like an embassy?

@bobbiester

The rules were relaxed in London in early December - i.e. BEFORE Christmas. They were then tightened again when the Government realised the danger.

But a lot of people still caught COVID and died.

You really want argue with an ICU doctor who had to deal with the deaths over the meaning of "before" ???

Ah yes because if you're an ICU doctor you can never be wrong.

Ffs an ICU doctor who didn't appreciate the fragility of life. Wtf were they doing before covid?

@StarCat2020

"You can have Christmas at Easter" Yep and there are so many more

Glad I'm not only one who remember that I think even whitty said Easter is the new Xmas see family then. I don't think we can legally see family at Easter can we? After November lockdown most south west went into tier 3 apart from Bath and Cornwall. My family are Wales which appeared be stricter. Scotland seemed be stricter Most of the North was tier 3 throughout. I was astounded by how busy London seemed. Some influencers and you tubers showed events and how busy it was it annoyed me at the time. Bristol City went into tier 2 for all of 5days before xmas. We dident see family. Then back to tier 3 then lockdown. I remember seeing the news if people escaping at translations before London went into tier 4 .

@TheReluctantPhoenix eh?

In the context that my neighbours weren't born & raised here so at Christmas go back to their families/hometowns. I was so don't need to travel to see family, same for DH. It's bliss to not have to worry about parking for a few days.

I was slightly perplexed by all the threads around Christmas about Londoners invading the north. Surely most people didn't wake up & think there were wildlings with an overwhelming urge to head north but were simply visiting family.

I don't think we can legally see family at Easter can we?
The plan is to allow 6 people or 2 households outdoors from 29th March, and in private gardens is allowed so some people will be able to see family depending on circumstances if that goes ahead.

@mars, regardless of whether they were visiting family or not, they were being massively irresponsible to travel around the country at Christmas when London had been put into tier 4. They should have stayed at home.

There were a few weeks from the end of November lockdown to 19th December before the impact of the Kent variant was understood. I know multiple people who caught covid towards the end of that period while out Christmas shopping. It's fair to be annoyed that there's no recognition in the article that London went quickly back into lockdown, but it's just a journalist not being sensitive.

@AlexaShutUp where did I say otherwise?

Equally those welcoming them into their home were just as irresponsible imo

I went to the theatre in the west end on 15th December. So I think categorically rules were relaxed!

@mars2 Equally those welcoming them into their home were just as irresponsible imo

Absolutely, no disagreement on that!

i went shopping around the 12th was mental then im in essex

I'm not sure eating out to help out did spread the virus as most people were eating outdoors. However, a lot of pubs weren't following the rules, even my local one which made you go inside to the bar to order, and others allowed people to go to the bar to order drinks when it was meant to be table service only.

Remember though that a lot of photos and videos were shot deliberately to make it look like everyone was breaking the roolz. If you weren't there yourself, take them with a pinch of salt.