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Original poster

What has happened to the Press Conferences?

55 replies

PurpleVerbena · 18/08/2021 17:17

With numbers of cases, hospitalisations and deaths going up again, isn't it about time that Whitty and Valance and JVT were wheeled out again to give us some facts and figures. Also, whatever happened to Jenny Harries? She seemed to disappear some time in February and not been seen since.

OP posts:
newnortherner111 · 18/08/2021 20:45

Jenny Harries is a woman, so understandable why not there any more. Of over 100 conferences, very few (is it three) have been headed by a female cabinet minister.

amicissimma · 18/08/2021 21:24

According to the ONS, the 5 year average daily deaths from all causes in England and Wales for week 30 is 1207. In week 30 2021 there were 404 Covid deaths registered for England and Wales (averaging about 58 a day).

Does that justify a Press Conference? What about all the other deaths? Should the government be disregarding those?

Quartz2208 · 18/08/2021 21:34

Was just wondering the same thing whilst watching an old Gogglebox

@Tealightsandd why do you distrust the AZ vaccine so much. The UK is further ahead in the delta variant than the US and we arent the only country who have reduced down

Where is the data that shows that it is a lesser vaccine. NONE of them stop transmission - the efficacy for this I think varies between 40-70% but all 3 stop serious illness.

If AZ was as useless as you insinuate in all your posts surely we would have noticed!

We are planning on boosters for the over 50's - the US vaccine programme roll out is very different to ours

Againstmachine · 18/08/2021 21:36

The problem you have people coming upto you on forums saying well you aren't a epidemiologist, well neither are a number of high ranking sage members and independent save members and some are frankly a joke.

lannistunut · 18/08/2021 21:39

And long covid isnt as big off a worry for many in real life than on here.

Well, apart from the hundreds of thousands of people who are seriously unwell Hmm and the hundreds of thousands more who will be ill by next year Hmm

OnTheBrink1 · 18/08/2021 22:04

@WTF475878237NC

Deaths are now at the average rate for flu/pneumonia in any given year so It's probably just what we have to live with now

I've never known so many people in their 30s get Long Flu though.

People in their 30’s have always been getting long flu and long most other viruses. It just wasn’t called that!
OnTheBrink1 · 18/08/2021 22:11

@lannistunut

And long covid isnt as big off a worry for many in real life than on here.

Well, apart from the hundreds of thousands of people who are seriously unwell Hmm and the hundreds of thousands more who will be ill by next year Hmm

Where are you getting your information from? ‘Long covid’ is a self diagnosed condition. The numbers trotted out anywhere are meaningless because anyone can claim they have long covid for the mildest of things. Headaches that linger - long covid. Slight breathlessness that ligers - long covid, taste or smell affected slightly- long covid, sinus issues- long covid. I am in my mid 40’s and I have had all of these from previous viruses way before covid. Tonsillitis, flu, several random unknown virus’ over the years, a bad cold one year gave me 3 months of horrible sinus pain. You get ill, you may have a lingering effect. In most people this will be mild. It’s still reported as ‘long covid’ so we are not getting a true picture at all!
lannistunut · 18/08/2021 22:23

@OnTheBrink1 your post is wrong. Believe whatever you want, but I think the BMJ and the NHS may know just a teeny bit more than you do.

Chillychangchoo · 18/08/2021 22:34

I’m yet to meet one of these “hundreds of thousands” of people with long covid. I’m fairly sure from that hysterical, non evidence based description I should know at least one. Or people i know should know of at least one…..

Amazing because pre covid if someone’s cold was lasting longer than usual it was never called a long cold 🤣. I mean sure I’ve heard people use expressions such as “I just can’t shift it” “it went to my chest” “I’ve had a cold for weeks” etc etc etc …… but I’m 99 percent certain we didn’t have clinics for long colds.

I think the nation will calm down a bit come the spring and then we can really start to get our knickers in a twist over climate change.

lannistunut · 18/08/2021 22:46

I honestly find comments like the ones above about long covid amazing. How people have the self-confidence to simply disregard the considered views of people who have devoted their lives to studying disease and illness just fascinates me.

It is a special form of ignorance to deliberately ignore information provided by experts and instead believe only what you have seen with your own eyes.

I have never (to my knowledge) met someone with HIV. Or hepatitis. Or Lyme disease. Or MS. What does that prove? Nothing.

Againstmachine · 18/08/2021 22:49

It's not that but on mums net everyone and their cousin is going to get itm

Chillychangchoo · 18/08/2021 22:52

@lannistunut

Oh come off it are we really at the stage whereby we have people comparing “long covid” to the likes of HIV and MS.

Long covid will be dumped in the same category as post viral illnesses soon enough once the hysteria has died down and all the “hundreds of thousands” of people have recovered.

lannistunut · 18/08/2021 23:05

[quote Chillychangchoo]@lannistunut

Oh come off it are we really at the stage whereby we have people comparing “long covid” to the likes of HIV and MS.

Long covid will be dumped in the same category as post viral illnesses soon enough once the hysteria has died down and all the “hundreds of thousands” of people have recovered.[/quote]
No, you misunderstood me Hmm

My point is that someone saying 'I have met someone with x disease' doesn;t mean it doesn;t exist.

If you want to believe long covid doesn;t exist that is fine. Your belief or not changes nothing factual.

OnTheBrink1 · 19/08/2021 00:07

@lannistunut what part of my post is wrong. Please do enlighten me.
It’s a fact that the stats regarding the number of long covid sufferers is self diagnosed. Fact. Doctors can confirm HIV or MS via a blood test.
No doctor in the world is confirming someone is 100% suffering with ‘long covid’ via a blood test or any other test right now.
The stats are from people who have self diagnosed themselves with long covid. You know nothing about the severity, length or even truth in their symptoms!
Post viral symptoms have always been around!

lannistunut · 19/08/2021 00:12

‘Long covid’ is a self diagnosed condition. The numbers trotted out anywhere are meaningless because anyone can claim they have long covid for the mildest of things.

This part is wrong. To get a referral it takes a hell of a lot more than a cough.

People have scans and other tests showing lung and other organ damage.

Heart problems show up in tests.

Liver and kidney problems show up in tests.

Canigooutyet · 19/08/2021 00:29

For decades people have been fobbed off with names like chronic fatigue when they haven't recovered for sometimes years after the initial virus. Lots of studies have been conducted about immune amnesia well before cv -19 came along. For decades those suffering with the long term impacts have been dismissed as well by the medical community by not only saying chronic fatigue but also things like it's all in the patients head.

Age also isn't a factor, research was conducted a few years ago with children having immunity amnesia after having measles for example.

TableFlowerss · 19/08/2021 00:32

@Aposterhasnoname

It’s part of the push to normalise things, and rightly so in my opinion. We don’t have press conferences for flu, or norovirus, so why should we with Covid. This is as good as it’s going to get, this is what living with Covid looks like. Get used to it.
This
lannistunut · 19/08/2021 06:39

This is as good as it’s going to get, this is what living with Covid looks like. This is what living with covid is like in the UK, which is a political decision, and political decisions can change. No one has to get used to anything if they don't want, they can hope for better.

I retain my hope that a change of government approach is possible.

HungryHippo11 · 19/08/2021 06:48

@Tealightsandd

deaths are at a acceptable level

No they're really not. For many other countries, it's a level that constitutes genocide. Sadly this is the UK.

long covid isnt as big off a worry

No, but it should be. Pretending it isn't an issue doesn't make it go away.

Genocide 😂 go home

450 die from cancer per day (pre covid, probably more now)
460 from heart and circulatory disease
180 from dementia and alzheimers

Are those all "genocide" too? Should we be bringing in forced exercise, banning smoking, drinking, fast food, tanning beds etc etc to prevent those deaths?

Mybalconyiscracking · 19/08/2021 06:55

I know three people with long Covid, it’s definitely a thing!

lannistunut · 19/08/2021 06:57

I see the latest line is 'there are lots of cancer deaths', it is on every thread now as a reason for doing nothing about covid.

We should be doing more about both covid and cancer, but there are more levers than just 'banning'. Talking about 'banning' is a deliberate political scare tactic, designed to shut down genuine policy discussion. For cancer the biggest lever is earlier screening.

So yes, I would be in favour of earlier screening to cut cancer deaths, and improved ventilation in schools to cut covid deaths.

Things can be improved, the UK is not doing that we'll and we can always hope for better.

newnortherner111 · 19/08/2021 06:59

Whilst I consider the Prime Minister's actions and inactions to be that akin to a serial killer in all but name, I do not think we should refer to the deaths as genocide. That diminishes those such as in Srebenica and Rwanda and the genocides before that.

idontgetpaidenoughforthis · 19/08/2021 07:20

@WTF475878237NC

Deaths are now at the average rate for flu/pneumonia in any given year so It's probably just what we have to live with now

I've never known so many people in their 30s get Long Flu though.

I got "long covid" at 27, but it was then called Post Viral Fatigue, after having glandular fever. This isn't a new thing, just that more people got it after having covid.
Treezan82 · 19/08/2021 07:42

I agree, my dad keeps telling people he has long Covid. The reason he thinks that is because he thinks he's a bit more forgetful than he was before. He really isn't.

Arcminute · 19/08/2021 07:44

I know one person with long covid. I also know many people with long term conditions as a result of other viruses (one in my family, the others are people he has had contact with via support networks). They don’t have diagnoses of “long XX virus”, they have diagnoses of the resultant conditions. For my family member this includes reduced lung function, heart problems, other organ function problems, reduced life span, fatigue, diabetes (caused by steroid treatment), frequent ICU admission due to complications of what would be for others a mild cold. It doesn’t surprise me that a proportion of those who contract covid have long term difficulties of varying severity. In some ways I’m glad it’s a surprise to others because it means their lives haven’t previously been touched by this.

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