Why are we not in lockdown right now?!

[InkyPinkyParlezVous]

If things are as bad as they say, why are we not locking down right now?

Surely waiting til after Christmas is just too late to stop this "tidal wave"

They are hoping boosters will be enough. The only reason for lockdown now will be to give more time for boosters and they will struggle to get people to comply over Christmas. They are leaving people to decide on their own level of mixing. Plus Tory backbenchers won't vote for it.

I have come to the conclusion that peole who are happy to be constantly locked down are either:

A/ Working from home with little to no stressors and are financially very secure.
B/ Working from home and hate the idea of driving to work and having to actually work for 8 hours solid without experimenting with different bath bombs and their new coffee maker.

I bet they also have more than one vehicle so not trapped to the house in a sea of depression.

Because we can’t keep locking down. We can’t afford it and this generation of kids deserve an education as much as any other…

We are not in lockdown because large swathes of the population would flout it for Christmas. This would significantly weaken the government's position, particularly that of the PM. It is simply not possible at this point.

'Just to be clear, I don't want to lockdown. But, if we are that concerned about the NHS and the country being overwhelmed then surely the time to act is now. I suspect were the finances in place we would be in lockdown today'

Don't people watch the news?! this stuff is on constantly at the moment.

Because they are hoping vaccinations and boosters will keep it manageable, however no one knows at it's a new variant you see so tighter measures may be needed but not yet.

That South African gp going on every TV show saying it only causes mild symptoms isn't helping, yes in her experience but data needs to be a bit more reliable than that.

The ambulance waiting times are concerning and unacceptable. That is my main fear right now. Not COVID, but the chance that myself or my children, or anyone close to me for that matter could become very poorly and not get help in time. My friend lay screaming for hours on her bathroom floor with meningitis a few years BEFORE the pandemic and it hasnt ever left my mind.

It's the isolation period once you've caught it that's the biggest problem , the scientists either need to half this time or we will be in trouble. Not sure if they can though ? Can they do this ?
I don't want any more lockdowns or schools to close and I don't want people dying ( who does ?) but it's still all the unknown and even Chris Whitty said yesterday they need more data and it might be milder and easier to control.
I still think we are holding our breath, but it's not as bad as last year because of the vaccines etc

'Lockdown' is a sop to the fretting middle-classes.

Only people in certain circumstances can actually lock down. Everyone else has to carry on, because the bins still need emptying, you've got to maintain police, fire and ambulance services, doctors and nurses, most if not all retail, supermarkets and food suppliers, haulage, education, heat light + power, sewerage... the list goes on.

Lockdown is the 'leakiest' of all NPIs. It's a luxury of the privileged that society more broadly can no longer afford. It doesn't work, not fully; it just protects the comparatively comfortable at the expense of the less well-off.

We now have vaccines, rapidly improving treatments and an almost two-year global knowledge base about covid. We don't need lockdown any more; it's a medieval approach to a 21st century problem.

Why lock down and pay for it, when you create a flurry of fear through carefully presented words, stay away from the facts, and people will lock themselves down.
Much cheaper and less political collateral.

And my friend's sister almost died last year from internal bleeding. She was pregnant and short of breath but the ambulance didnt come and they couldnt carry her to the car. It was only the pressure from the baby that saved her life. That and the many pints of donated blood.

Because we can't afford any more unless we've literally no choice (eg complete worst-case scenario, IMO). We've exhausted it. We can't afford the hit to the education and livelihoods of so many people, and our economy can't take much more either.
We're still in a better position than we were last winter. The vaccines are making a difference. If we'd had this variant last Christmas, we'd have been fucked.

Parliament have to vote to approve any new restrictions

The Tory Backbenchers are opposed to more restrictions and have made it clear to Johnson that they will challenge him for the leadership if he tries to do this.

So even if Johnson wants to put in more restrictions he has a problem.

If the Tories challenge him for the leadership, they are likely to replace him with someone opposed to restrictions.

So we a caught in a situation which is a total mess.

@InkyPinkyParlezVous

If things are as bad as they say, why are we not locking down right now?

Surely waiting til after Christmas is just too late to stop this "tidal wave"

Because of all their Christmas parties in the news from last year. Would be political suicide.

And to be honest restrictions are unlikely to stop omicron because of just how infectious it is.

twitter.com/mugecevik/status/1471088936999137281
Here is a thread by a virology specialist. The last tweet in the thread puts things into particular perspective:

Muge Cevik @mugecevik
The only thing I am sure of is that omicron will spread so quickly through the population, making it likely impossible to contain even with the most stringent measures & giving us very little time over the next few weeks. So get your vaccines & boosters!

Lockdown is the 'leakiest' of all NPIs. It's a luxury of the privileged that society more broadly can no longer afford. It doesn't work, not fully; it just protects the comparatively comfortable at the expense of the less well-off

this was what put me off reading reddit last year, not been back since. There's an over all attitude that lockdowns and permanent wfh are for keeps. Most stating how little work they have to do now, but are infinitely more efficient.
I call bullshit, and i have wfh since 2004.

Most services, phone lines, from banks to GP are a fucking mess, so if wfh is so efficient, why is everything at a permanent standstill?

I can chuckle about my privilege but that Ocado driver had better arrive on time, and doff his cap at me whilst doing it!

Because deaths and hospital rates are low compared to previous times we have faced when we had no immunity and no vaccines … it’s assuring that people aren’t dropping like flies and if you listen to peppa pig Borris and not the sensationalist headlines you would see at the moment there is no need to panic as they are hopeful they are slowing the spread

Schools won’t close when pubs are open
There’s no mention of travel restrictions
We aren’t even in hands space face 2 meters territory so calm down

There is no evidence that lockdowns work in the medium to long term and on the contrary there is evidence that they are counterproductive, as they just produce another 'exit wave' of infections when they end. It's up to us to learn to live with covid. There are by now well known prevention/mitigation measures we can all do at home to minimise our chances of getting seriously sick, plus there are a roster of cheap generic off-patent drugs that should be (but largely are not in the UK) prescribed to people when they get sick but are still walking around at home, in order to prevent hospitalisation and deaths.

Lockdowns delay infection and nobody is going to give up Christmas again.

I still keep 2m apart from people and wash my hands wear a mask etc
I don't care if people think im a sheep or whatever , but I've had covid and it was awful. I
Wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy
Luckily I could sit indoors and was paid and just self medicated.
Many won't be able to do this or will be much more poorly than I was.
I still think it's the unknown atm . The booster roll out is doing well ( I think) and there isn't the panic there was last year. Not yet anyway

@angelopal

They would have to do furlough again and they can't afford it.

Well actually, WE can't afford it. Where esle do you think the money will come from?

Yes as others have said.. No need to lockdown (that costs money)... Scare the sh*t out of people via the media and tell people to isolate for 10 days after a positive test, government doesn't have to bale out hospitality etc..kinda takes care of itself doesn't it? Kind of 😜

If people won't wear masks for 10 minutes in supermarkets they're not going to adhere to lockdown rules. And those healthy enough to think they're safe because they're vaccinated don't give a shit about how a lockdown could help others, so they also won't adhere to rules. And pwecious Chwistmas needs to be saved

Sadly, though, this will mean only the sickest, most fearful, and most conscientious people will stay away from others. But it's better than nothing.

We are not in lockdown because that would be the final nail in Boris Johnson's coffin.