New Covid variant *title edited by MNHQ at OP's request*

[Wingingthis]

Can anyone talk some sense about how dangerous this is or is it just the media over exaggerating?

That was quick - last I read they were telling their citizens to come back urgently, I guess knowing they’d be banning travel then.

But yes, horse has long bolted.

The news certainly is coming thick and fast this morning. France has at least 8 suspected cases and Portugal has 13 confirmed linked to a football team who travelled.

Meanwhile Nicola Sturgeon is calling for all returning travellers to the UK to isolate for 8 days.

Personally I don't see that happening but it certainly is going to spook a lot of people and mean they will cancel / think twice about going in case that happens.

@RedToothBrush

Remember we have the health and scientific side of this, but we also have the political optics of it too.

The government want to look like they have learned lessons and are acting quickly. Just so they can say 'oh look what we did'.

I think you have to look to their actions more carefully though. If they were being serious about stopping this firmly they would have introduced working from home immediately.

The fact they didn't reveals where they are more accurately - its about public crowd control.

If your booster campaign is somewhat lagging and behind were it should be, then actually a kick up the backside with a bit of a scare isn't the worst thing...

Yes and it's very handy to have something to latch onto in case restrictions will have to be brought in over Christmas. Make a big enough fuss about Omicron and people might not realise it was the governments shitty management of covid and underfunding of the NHS that's led to another round of restrictions.

Make a big enough fuss about Omicron

Tbf it’s being repeated across world

Hmmm, joining in with MarshaBradyo to ask why you think, @SmellyOldOwls , that it’s just the UK making a “fuss” ? No other countries, then?

@DottyHarmer

Hmmm, joining in with MarshaBradyo to ask why you think, *@SmellyOldOwls* , that it’s just the UK making a “fuss” ? No other countries, then?

Why let a good stick to beat the government get in the way of a good argument?

Far easier to get sucked into conspiracy theories and believing that the international scientific community have suddenly succumbed to the political agenda of the British government because it aligns with your views.

Yes and it's very handy to have something to latch onto in case restrictions will have to be brought in over Christmas. Make a big enough fuss about Omicron and people might not realise it was the governments shitty management of covid and underfunding of the NHS that's led to another round of restrictions.

Switzerland have closed their borders. They certainly don't have our NHS funding woes.

2-8 weeks…! They’re having a laugh!

If anything is aggressive about this one, it’ll be surfacing well in advance of that.

If that’s what they’re really touting they need to get their ass kicked into gear, or fess up to what the alternative agenda is!

@puppeteer

2-8 weeks…! They’re having a laugh!

If anything is aggressive about this one, it’ll be surfacing well in advance of that.

If that’s what they’re really touting they need to get their ass kicked into gear, or fess up to what the alternative agenda is!

I think 2 weeks is a pretty short time frame tbh!

@puppeteer

2-8 weeks…! They’re having a laugh!

If anything is aggressive about this one, it’ll be surfacing well in advance of that.

If that’s what they’re really touting they need to get their ass kicked into gear, or fess up to what the alternative agenda is!

But they need to collect data. People don't catch and die from covid in a few days usually. Of course they need time to figure out exactly what this is.

@puppeteer

2-8 weeks…! They’re having a laugh!

If anything is aggressive about this one, it’ll be surfacing well in advance of that.

If that’s what they’re really touting they need to get their ass kicked into gear, or fess up to what the alternative agenda is!

Do you think you possibly don’t know what you’re talking about?

When will they know if it's worse than delta or not ? .. I've heard it's only mild.

@the80sweregreat

When will they know if it's worse than delta or not ? .. I've heard it's only mild.

2 weeks tops and then we'll go back to looking for something else to worry about.

2 weeks to all hold our breath then!
..

@the80sweregreat

When will they know if it's worse than delta or not ? .. I've heard it's only mild.

You are referring to a misquoted GP. It is mild in the young, healthy people she has so far treated. We don't know more and won't for 2+ weeks.

Cornettoninja, I'd be interested to see how you would get any data quicker than 2 weeks on deaths given the variant was identified last Wednesday and to date it usually takes 10 days or so for people to due from covid from onset of symptoms...

I think two weeks is optimistic tbh it can take that long for people to become seriously ill with covid. If it is that quick it won’t be because this variant is milder.

If you factor in time for spread and confirmation of this particular variant it may take some time to gather reliable data taking into account variables. Vaccinations might muddy the water slightly too.

@RedToothBrush huh? That was my point to @puppeteer. Being outraged that gathering data may take 2-8 weeks and insinuating there was another agenda tells me they don’t know what they’re talking about.

@RedToothBrush

Cornettoninja, I'd be interested to see how you would get any data quicker than 2 weeks on deaths given the variant was identified last Wednesday and to date it usually takes 10 days or so for people to due from covid from onset of symptoms...

I think cornettoninja is on the reasonable side like you and I!

@Cornettoninja

I think two weeks is optimistic tbh it can take that long for people to become seriously ill with covid. If it is that quick it won’t be because this variant is milder.

If you factor in time for spread and confirmation of this particular variant it may take some time to gather reliable data taking into account variables. Vaccinations might muddy the water slightly too.

The vaccine companies will very quickly work out if their vaccines are effective or not. Should they be so, then we can all breath a sigh of relief and please, lets get vaccinating the RoW.

Gordon Brown has just said that the UK is about to throw away 100m vaccines that will be out of date, thats nothing short of criminal.

[quote Cornettoninja]**@RedToothBrush* huh? That was my point to @puppeteer*. Being outraged that gathering data may take 2-8 weeks and insinuating there was another agenda tells me they don’t know what they’re talking about.[/quote]
I was agreeing with you and asking you how the hell they thought it would be quicker!

If you have more than one passport (my daughter does, for example) you could come in to another country from SA and then travel on to a third country on the other passport without them being able to tell where you have been. Assuming they don't ask that is, but I presume countries will be starting to ask whether you have been in Southern Africa in recent weeks, the way they asked about China and Italy at the very beginning of the pandemic.

Sorry reading back I can see how you've taken it the wrong way. I was trying (badly) to suggest why what they were saying was utter bollocks and basically anti-scientific anti restriction ballcocks

@QuentininQuarantino There are no direct flights from SA to Ireland

@RedToothBrush, no worries

It reminds me of a woman interviewed in summer 2020 when there was lots of opening and closing of travel corridors. She was outraged that there wasn’t a vaccine available and ‘they’ should just pull their fingers out. We’re at a funny point in history where the science is really good but to the point people have no concept that not everything can be done in a couple of weeks if at all.