Get rid of all restrictions

[AnEpisodeOfEastenders]

I think it's time for all restrictions to be removed. There has been plenty of time for people to be vaccinated / boosted that want to, those that can't or don't should take their own precautions.

If we test positive then we shouldn't need to isolate, shouldn't need to declare it and should just treat it as a normal cough / cold / illness. If you feel up to going to work, out to the pub, seeing friends or family then do so. Everyone I know who have had it say they feel fine.

Life has been disrupted for far too long, the costs associated are astronomical and will be a crippling debt for generations to come.

You know when this pandemic started and the food stock piling began, we saw the elderly and vulnerable take the hit. Turn into a bit of a survival of the fittest or even just more income to stock pile but no one would admit to stock piling. Must have been a good dam percentage of people acting selfishly though with a well I'm alright jack mentality.

Now however it seems that people are no longer ashamed to act and say things like this out loud , like all pretence is gone because people are bored. I suspect like with the stockpiling people have always had these tendencies but now just feel bit more justified in saying it out loud.

Bugger the vulnerable, I'm bored of this and I want it to end. The science doesn't back up what most of you are saying OP, anecdotal evidence means bugger all.

But let's ignore all that, the strong will survive (which is true) .But the catch is - one day you will be vulnerable due to age (no one can stop that) and the children of this pandemic have been watching how you treat vulnerable people, they may also take the view point the strong should survive and what about me... an not consider you when you need to be considered.

You will reap what you sow in the end.

COMPLETELY agree, it’s ridiculous now. Even my mother in law who is CEV agrees. This can only go on for so long and we have nothing left to throw at it. Let’s just get back to normal.

I agree OP, I want to be able to go back to the office actually. I actually miss all the extra exercise I'd get in just from the commute and moving about in the office, whether its the longer walk to the toilet, kitchen, going up and down stairs from meeting room to meeting room, its not easy to replicate all of that working from home. Not to mention just being in a different environment and not at home all the time!

But its also worth mentioning that there has been an increase in Pediatric cases due to Omicron (based on a larger US data set)

Only the JCVI is dithering here. US folks think we have lost our minds to be perfectly honest. They started on the 5 to 11 age cohort months ago.

Not think it's a bit ironic that the tin-foil hat anti-vax nutters called this months ago, though?

One side is bigging up the hysteria around the QUADRUPLE ped hospitalisations in NY (114 cases a day for the last week with 1.9% of them being children in a population of 8.5 million).

The other side is using that as an excuse to say "Told ya so. It's the 3 letter acronym we suspected would appear."

Of course they're wrong since 1.9% of 114 is like... 2 a day? And those two kids might have broken their arms or need their appendix out?

But isn't it just a prime example of how both sides of this madness have just completely lost the plot at this point.

@BooksAndGin

Completely agree.

Nobody would know what covid even was, if the media didn't bang on about it 24/7.

I’d have another gin and read your book if I were you…

183,000 cases today (Dec 29)

Are people seriously not understanding how bad this will get in the next 4 weeks?

We had 58,000 cases Dec 14

Thats from 58,000 to 183,000 in 2 weeks.

@candlelightsatdawn What about people who are vulnerable from a mental health or special needs perspective? Or because they are at risk of losing their livelihood/home? Or children at risk of abuse? Does only one sort of vulnerability matter to you?

Where I am they roll out the same group of doctors on our equivalent of BBC daily to make grim predictions but one can't help but consider that they are not exactly impartial, they are in their way a particular special interest group. They aren't there to understand or speak to wider impacts of restrictions only to speak from their specific lens as doctors. I see little effort to round out the debate - questioning the narrative makes you an immoral murderer of immunocompromised people or "stupid" as per several posters here.

As it stands I'm not for any lockdown style restrictions, no school closures, no cancelling of children's activities, no closing businesses. Masks, vaccine passports sure bang on. All the rest decidedly and emphatically no. Real purposeful investment in expanding health services capacity, training, red tape reduction, robust/mobile/community targeted vaccination programs, support for work from home/remote schooling initiatives for CEV kids and adults who require it, protected sick pay for all workers, countrywide initiatives to promote fitness and good nutrition amongst the populace - what else really is the way forward? We can lockdown now, we will be in the same position as soon as it ends IMO.

@BambinaJAS

183,000 cases today (Dec 29)

Are people seriously not understanding how bad this will get in the next 4 weeks?

We had 58,000 cases Dec 14

Thats from 58,000 to 183,000 in 2 weeks.

I think that some of the 'get back to normal' cries will get louder as things get worse.

A lot of people can't hack uncertainty. Few humans really like it, but a significant number just can not deal with it at all. They need a promised date, a signposted path, just any certainty even if it is an illusion.

I’ve seen a fair few posts claiming certainty in the other direction.

As people were certain in summer re numbers.

We’ll see over next week or two

@MarshaBradyo

I’ve seen a fair few posts claiming certainty in the other direction.

As people were certain in summer re numbers.

We’ll see over next week or two

Are you saying you think that cases will reduce in the next week or so?

I agree 💯

Are you saying you think that cases will reduce in the next week or so?

I don’t think many can do posts making definitive claims atm

I’ve not heard as much in last week due to Christmas but listening to experts the main area to look at was omicron / older age groups and hospitalisation

Which has taken time to become clear - and still is being watched wrt data

I agree. It's time to get on with living.

Although I wouldn't object to restrictions on the unvaccinated.

@candlelightsatdawn

You know when this pandemic started and the food stock piling began, we saw the elderly and vulnerable take the hit. Turn into a bit of a survival of the fittest or even just more income to stock pile but no one would admit to stock piling. Must have been a good dam percentage of people acting selfishly though with a well I'm alright jack mentality.

Now however it seems that people are no longer ashamed to act and say things like this out loud , like all pretence is gone because people are bored. I suspect like with the stockpiling people have always had these tendencies but now just feel bit more justified in saying it out loud.

Bugger the vulnerable, I'm bored of this and I want it to end. The science doesn't back up what most of you are saying OP, anecdotal evidence means bugger all.

But let's ignore all that, the strong will survive (which is true) .But the catch is - one day you will be vulnerable due to age (no one can stop that) and the children of this pandemic have been watching how you treat vulnerable people, they may also take the view point the strong should survive and what about me... an not consider you when you need to be considered.

You will reap what you sow in the end.

This is silly and meaningless. My friend has been immunosuppressed and vulnerable since her early 20s. I remember having her kids to live with me while they got through chickenpox- it might have killed her if I hadn't. There have always been very vulnerable people, very elderly people, and the rest of society has gone on, doing their best to protect them. Covid is just another problem on the list, but the world can't go on hold because of it.

You will reap what you sow
Is a good doom laden ill wishing phrase, but absolutely untrue. There's no such thing as Karma. Mostly, the rich and healthy get richer and healthier.

I won’t be vaccinating my young children for any reason, if vaccines are opened up to them. Absolutely not a chance in hell.

@BambinaJAS

183,000 cases today (Dec 29)

Are people seriously not understanding how bad this will get in the next 4 weeks?

We had 58,000 cases Dec 14

Thats from 58,000 to 183,000 in 2 weeks.

I have just spent two and a half hours waiting for an ambulance to arrive this afternoon after developing severe chest pain after having the booster vaccine a 11 days ago. I’m now sat waiting in A and E for blood test results which will tell me if I’ve had a heart attack or not. Again this is taking hours.

The health service in this country is collapsing. Just look at today’s infection rates, if only a tiny percentage of them need medical help the government will have a massive problem they can’t ignore.

I’m seriously concerned about the coming weeks.

@MarshaBradyo

Are you saying you think that cases will reduce in the next week or so?

I don’t think many can do posts making definitive claims atm

I’ve not heard as much in last week due to Christmas but listening to experts the main area to look at was omicron / older age groups and hospitalisation

Which has taken time to become clear - and still is being watched wrt data

Thanks - I was just hoping there might be some sign of hope for a reduction in cases.

@MarshaBradyo

Are you saying you think that cases will reduce in the next week or so?

I don’t think many can do posts making definitive claims atm

I’ve not heard as much in last week due to Christmas but listening to experts the main area to look at was omicron / older age groups and hospitalisation

Which has taken time to become clear - and still is being watched wrt data

The data is already clear enough. Dont confuse political posturing with scientific analysis.

The data for Delta was a 2% hospitalisation rate (2 out of 100 infected).

When you see comments like "it is 70% less severe than Delta" it is based on a relative comparison.

So 70% less sever means a c0.6% hospitalisation rate.

Delta (daily max) Winter Wave 2020
40,000 people * 2% = 800 hospitalisations

Omicron (daily max) Current Winter Wave 2021
150,000 people * 0.6% = 900 hospitalosations
200,000 people * 0.6% = 1200 hospitalisations

You see the problem now?

Number of infected matters immensely in the current scenario that we are now experiencing with Omicron.

Hope you get good news soon Achilles

Agree

@PastMyBestBeforeDate thank you. I think it’s muscle pain post vaccine but it’s still been very scary.

Dont confuse political posturing with scientific analysis.

I listen to scientists and experts on R4 mostly. I’m always interested in hearing the rational analysis.

I’ve seen some dodgy maths on here before though… not saying it’s your posts who knows.

I’ll keep going with the experts.

Totally agree with you OP.
Restrictions are old - were an emergency response to a novel threat so (just about) excusable on that basis. Now is totally unnecessary-everyone has access to the info that ‘Omicron’ is mild and can make decisions for their own situation.