What pandemic alert level do you think we are at?

[PrincessNutNuts]

In your opinion which coronavirus alert level are we currently at?

@Tealightsandd

Quartz you seem to have your own special type of British exceptionalism.

All this "We can't", "We couldn't" etc.

The reality is we're not spectacularly different to most of the rest of the world.

There was - and is - plenty we could do to mitigate (just as seat belts don't eliminate all car crash deaths but do mitigate).

Like Mark Drakeford says, England is an outlier.

Not it not we can’t or we couldn’t because we did and yes arguably too late in the past.

But we cannot (not can any of Europe) be compared to New Zealand because it is different

So it comes to now - and the question is not can or could we mitigate - masks certainly make sense. But what affect these restrictions have now against the current strain.

Looking back and saying but it worked then or it worked here against a previous variant isn’t useful against something that is different

And seat belts (like masks) mitigate with very little negative effect. You cannot say the same for other mitigations that like it or not come with a price to pay some heavier than others.

Wanting to know whether a mitigation positive effect on such an outbreak is (a) possible and (b) then positive effect outweighs any negative price isn’t British Exceptionalism at all.

Neither is asking what mitigations have been successfully put in place with Omicron as well.

Because simply saying look to other countries whilst posting graphs isn’t actually answering that

And I don’t think Boris has done a good job he is too much a politician without any beliefs or real idea how to lead and that has been to our detriment

There are simple basic infection control mitigations available.

Masks. Vaccines. Vaccine passes. Good ventilation including HEPA filters (or cheaper DIY Corsi-Rosenthal boxes).

British exceptionalism

Yes! I just need one more 🤞

As I always say when someone says that

We should be learning from the countries who have the best results as well as innovating our own methods. That's how best practice works, right?

@Sparklingbrook

Is this OP's 'Question of the Day'? I'm sure there was a question yesterday too. Is it like a coronavirus quiz?

That is such a good idea. I might start that. Cheers.

@Bordois

British exceptionalism

Yes! I just need one more 🤞

What is your bingo prize? Long Covid?

@PrincessNutNuts

As I always say when someone says that

We should be learning from the countries who have the best results as well as innovating our own methods. That's how best practice works, right?

Absolutely right

That, and simple commonsense, basic understanding of infection control, and easy mitigation measures.

What is your bingo prize? Long Covid?

Charming

You could stand to be less flippant about people’s health mate. You either take it seriously or you don’t — it’s not points on the internet.

That is such a good idea. I might start that. Cheers

A daily game of MN Covid Bingo? Fantastic. You've already started it TBF.

@NightmareSlashDelightful

What is your bingo prize? Long Covid?

Charming

You could stand to be less flippant about people’s health mate. You either take it seriously or you don’t — it’s not points on the internet.

Oh I agree.

But it's not me playing 'Covid bingo'. It's what some of the other posters on here are doing.

You're right. Neither Covid nor Long Covid are in any way something to be flippant - or dismissive of (eg. The old crap of "it's just a cold").

@Sparklingbrook

That is such a good idea. I might start that. Cheers

A daily game of MN Covid Bingo? Fantastic. You've already started it TBF.

No prizes though.

Years of repeated waves of the brain-invading bat virus are their own reward.

@Sparklingbrook

That is such a good idea. I might start that. Cheers

A daily game of MN Covid Bingo? Fantastic. You've already started it TBF.

Points every time there's anti vaxx misinformation, rants about Freeeeedom (without consequences), denial or downplaying of Long Covid, and Othering of the vulnerable?

@Tealightsandd And yet it’s under your byline that this comment appears. No one else made the remark about long covid being a ‘prize’ — you did that. Plenty of people take both covid and long covid seriously. (I’ve had covid twice FYI.)

The flippancy is yours and yours alone. If you want people to take the issue seriously start engaging with the actual argument and debate realistically rather than taking cheap pot-shots.

Yes @PrincessNutNuts

We should be learning from the countries who have the best results as well as innovating our own methods. That's how best practice works, right?

Is right - but what are they? You speak so much about them and following the countries but then that is it. Surely if it so obvious it is easy to explain then to me - who clearly cannot see it in those terms - working in other countries.

And dont show me graphs that compare us to countries whose omicron waves either havent hit (because border controls were able to work effectively) or those who are just starting.

Something concrete.

@Tealightsandd

Masks. Vaccines. Vaccine passes. Good ventilation including HEPA filters (or cheaper DIY Corsi-Rosenthal boxes).

Yes ok the first two fine - we have these now. Should we have ever got rid of them possibly not. But they are back now.

Vaccine passes - just went to the theatre in London and I showed mine no problem. So big events generally have them. Everyone needed to (or a negative LFT) and they were pretty hot on doing so.

So what are they. Because I am (like most) on board with effective mitigations outside of those basic ones if they are effective and work.

So spell it out then. I dont necessarily think that we are in disagreement about mitigations if they worked or indeed existed.

Although I guess we might about vaccine passes - I havent reconciled myself to being comfortable with restricting people based on vaccine status. Even though I am boostered, all the adults in my family and close friends are and my 12 year old had her second. Not sure how right it sits with me.

Nice strawman you're building there tealights 👌

There's nothing more concrete than two years of real world results @Quartz2208.

You have seriously misinterpreted my post. Which was a sarcastic calling out of other people's flippancy over playing 'Covid bingo' when posters like myself point out the seriousness of Covid and Long Covid.

I apologise if that passed you by and for any misunderstanding.

My posts make crystal clear I am the very opposite of flippant.

It's strange that you're incredibly outraged over my post yet not about the posts responding to mine (where I point out the seriousness of Covid) with jokes about Covid bingo. But perhaps you haven't read through the full thread hence your misinterpretation.

No strawman. Not my thing.

After two years of this, and if you, less has ‘passed me by’ than you have assumed, I think.

Sure.

*of

Oh god, not this doom-mongering bunch again. I thought they'd name-changed and slunk away quietly when the 100000,00000,0990000.99900 deaths they predicted didn't happen.

The NHS is always overwhelmed in winter. It's crap and I feel for the staff and yes there needs to be a big overhaul/incentive of nurse training etc.

But we can't keep going round in circles for COVID. It's another thing we have to live with/die from.
The multi-levelled fallout and ramifications from lockdown and restrictions is going to take years to get over already.

We're at the 'oh fuck it, we're just going to blag it' level, whichever number that is.

Obviously the system is really out of date now. We will never get to alert level 1, and yet we dispensed with social distancing months ago when still in level 3.