Surely opening up now is the least worst option?

[Warhertisuff]

What's the point of continuing to suppress Covid at the moment. All it does it kick the can on the road..

Either we never, ever open up, or we have to accept that, when we do, cases will rise until we've acquired enough immunity through a combination of infection and vaccination.

At the moment, vaccines work pretty well against the current variants.... The more we suppress Covid now, the less immune as a society we'll be when a vaccine evasive variant (and it probably will whatever we do here), and if we can't relax restrictions now, we surely won't be able to over the autumn and winter.

Where we are is admittedly pretty shit, but continuing to suppress Covid now would just be counterproductive. "Letting it rip" sounds callous, but the alternatives seem worse or unworkable.

Yet many people seem determined to persist with the reflex to suppress Covid and continue with restrictions and measures to curtail spread. What's the point?

I agree that there’s a nasty narrative creeping in that vaccines are not just a waste of time but our vaccination programme is actually bad and other countries who have vaccinated fewer citizens are on a worthier path.

I’ve seen this view being pushed a few times on MN in the last day or two. I don’t know whether the posters are anti-vaxxers, political, anti-English, joyful at all the misery, or all of these.

@Puzzledandpissedoff

in fairness to Whitty/Vallance (can’t remember which, both possibly) they said back in January that although the vaccines were great news they weren’t a silver bullet

I know, and you're quite right; however it was another media thing (plus, as you say, government running with it) which unfortunately too many placed an awful lot of faith in

It’s right to say the media has been a total farce regards criticality.

But it lets the government off the hook. They are there to govern. Yet if all they do is point at public opinion and say “shit, we better do that”, they need to be strung up!

I’m not sure where I stand with advisers like Vallance and Whitty. I’m tempted to not excuse them either, on the other hand, standing up in a way that would have been perceived as counter to the government fear machine would have been hard, and probably career limiting.

I think our proportion might be ok in terms of vaccine take up

It’s made me feel more ok rather than less listening to views

Still trying to get more info though

Yet if all they do is point at public opinion and say “shit, we better do that”

I think you’ve just summed up this cabinet rather nicely for the history books

@DottyHarmer

I agree that there’s a nasty narrative creeping in that vaccines are not just a waste of time but our vaccination programme is actually bad and other countries who have vaccinated fewer citizens are on a worthier path.

I’ve seen this view being pushed a few times on MN in the last day or two. I don’t know whether the posters are anti-vaxxers, political, anti-English, joyful at all the misery, or all of these.

There's a weird pleasure that some people get from their belief that the UK is the absolute worst at everything and that all other countries are doing better by comparison. I don't know if all countries have both people who are raging nationalists and people who believe their country to be the worst in every possible way; I suspect that they do. They're just two sides of the same coin, in any case: they both stem from a belief that your country is far more unique and important than it really is.

I agree that there’s a nasty narrative creeping in that vaccines are not just a waste of time but our vaccination programme is actually bad and other countries who have vaccinated fewer citizens are on a worthier path.

The problem is that the public were told time and again vaccination was our way out of it, now we are being told we still need restrictions, which is it as if we still need restrictions it kind of defeats object.

@Againstmachine

I agree that there’s a nasty narrative creeping in that vaccines are not just a waste of time but our vaccination programme is actually bad and other countries who have vaccinated fewer citizens are on a worthier path.

The problem is that the public were told time and again vaccination was our way out of it, now we are being told we still need restrictions, which is it as if we still need restrictions it kind of defeats object.

The problem is all the people refusing to be vaccinated. 🤬

84% both and 71% one on my area I think that's damm good.

We have a very good take up of vaccines in the UK. We are very lucky in this respect. We do not have an anti vaxx movement. But the UK also needs to be careful that the bullying and coercion doesnt create one.