Guilt Free Railing 18

[WouldBeGood]

Will it ever end?

@Runningpink good luck, enjoy some pampering.

@lockdownbear yes I definitely don't have people close to me. I do get stares and looks some people have really rubbish poker faces! I do find smiling helps diffuse and usually they realise they have been clocked and look away etc.

I can understand if people are wearing a FFP2 grade that does offer protection but I do chuckle to myself that people take a high and mighty stance in a cloth mask as its been shown by research to do Jack all!!! Especially against omicron!

Enjoy your liberation @runningpink . I wonder if I might have a rubbish face when I see people with masks on but under their nose. What's that about? Do they think, well at least my mouth is covered or do they hate wearing masks but are afraid of being challenged so have the option to pull it up if challenged?

I don't know what's worse, the chin coverers or the face shield things designed to protect eyes.
Why bother!

Well done runningpink! IKEA is bad enough at the best of times - not sure I could hack it with a mask.

I assume the mouth-only maskers will be mostly - "well, I can't cope with it covering my nose as well - but it's probably better for at least my mouth to be covered than nothing". Which I suppose is at least partly logical thinking. The face shields I think are very much "have to be seen to be doing something" though - which says more about how society treats the unmasked than anything else . As if people who are "trying" with a face shield are better than people with just a lanyard, and people with a lanyard are better than people without anything. It's pretty unpleasant thinking, but we are where we are...

I have the thinnest fabric mask imaginable. I wear it "properly" and wash it after a day's use, but am under no illusion it's doing any good whatsoever to me or anyone else, and I don't really care. I'm following the letter of the law, and that is what the SG asks of me, and enough to give the protection they think society needs from me wearing it. I'm not trying different types to find one that provides more protection or is less inconvenient/ glasses-steamy because I'm fed up spending money on things I hate and are wasteful. So there... I'm more than happy to give people a bit of space where I can - but I did that anyway pre-covid, 'cos it's polite and i don't like feeling jostled and enclosed. I don't really need an abstruse badge to tell me to keep a sensible distance

@Lockdownbear

I don't know what's worse, the chin coverers or the face shield things designed to protect eyes. Why bother!

DH was tuned into a session (for his job) the research was showing that the face shields alone were actually worse as they contained particles much more! Again I think it comes down to "feeling protected" or being seen to do something.

Chin wearers I think there is 3 types the ones that don't want to wear it so chance it but have it available, the ones who forget as they have pulled it off between shops and those who really should be exempt but want to be seen doing something however hugely struggle with it.

It's a sad state of society though when it's easier to be seen doing something and avoiding that potential backlash and judgement but making yourself struggle and potentially ill.

Having a rail about the piss poor job that the SNP are doing with the economy and that no-one seems to care! It has been clear for a while that in Scotland we have lower productivity and lower income tax receipts, and the increased powers at Holyrood over setting tax rates etc. seem to have made things worse rather than improved matters. We also have 'more generous welfare benefits' to be different from Westminster 'more caring', but without a strong economy to pay for these this is just storing up more problems for the future. This committee notes that various strategies to help are still in early stages and overly complex, and requests for the SG to outline how things could be streamlined have been ignored. The finance committee notes that: "We consider that evidence showing that Scotland is lagging behind almost all other areas of the rest of the UK in key indicators of economic performance is deeply worrying.".

Getting the economy right is very basic, absolutely fundamental stuff for a government, but the SNP continue to prove that giving them more powers just means giving them more scope to fuck things up. All of these freebies that make us such a caring society, as well as basics like healthcare and education, have to be paid for somehow. And in a few weeks we're going to be subjected to another independence 'campaign' where we'll be asked to believe that this bunch of chancers will suddenly become wonderfully competent if only they were freed from the shackles of Westminster. The thought of them having free reign is an absolutely terrifying prospect.

Did she even mention schools? In passing? Any hints? I am so, so bloody angry about continuing restrictions in schools. Mask wearing is being seen as no different from wearing a tie. So cross.

Oh. She did mention them. Only to pretend that they make a difference.

I really hate this.

Sometimes I wonder if people have forgotten that mask wearing, unless it's a fitted mask with a filter, is supposed to be to protect other people. From the remote chance that you cough or sneeze on them while being infectious with covid (knowingly or unknowingly). Especially now that we're being encouraged to use lateral flow tests, what are the chances of that? Slim.

In December when they were on and on about how incredibly infectious omicron is and how we were in for a Tsunami of cases I took to wearing more protective masks with a rubber seal bit, filter and metal clip over the nose and discovered that they don't steam up my glasses, which is reassuring and better. But the filter is red, which looks absolutely ridiculous. At least in December I could joke I was dressing up as Rudolph the red nosed reindeer.

I have a cloth mask with two ties. As a tiny, cowardly attempt at protest I wear it with only the upper ties tied. It's not too bad for steaming up my glasses, presumably because my warm breath is going out the untied lower bit of it.

Oh yes! She's 'on' isn't she? What did she say please?

Agree 100% @Y0uCann0tBeSer10us - I'm sure it all boils down to needing economic levers to borrow money and lower interest rates

Ah yes @mapleleavesreturn, we'd just borrow the money to pay for everything, if only we had the power, I forgot. Because we're going to have such a great credit rating as a small low wage economy with a massive deficit, no borrowing record, and no currency or central bank. Plus it will never have to paid back either. Awesome plan.

Right - so things are looking good - cases declining, hospitalisation and ICU dependency declining. We're able to go back to nightclubs, drop table service, go back to the office (careful now...) from Monday, go back to 1m distancing rather than 2m inside (didn't realise this was a thing... )...

But children still need to wear masks in schools still because it's obviously working because rates in under 15s are increasing and they're dropping in other age groups . Obviously ignoring the fact that some of the Plague Group

You’d really have to be a total fuckwit now to think the SNP could set up an independent country

Regardless of your view on independence, no woman should be voting SNP purely on the stance of their views on women. I also noted that there are currently six councils where Labour have gone into a coalition with SNP so they wont be getting my vote in the May elections either. It would be nice if there was a decent independent candidate standing in my area.

Going by BBC News both Douglas Ross and Anse? Sanwar have questioned masks in schools. So at least the pressure is starting to mount.

Sorry about the spelling 😉

@WouldBeGood

You’d really have to be a total fuckwit now to think the SNP could set up an independent country

You have to give it to Boris and the Tories they've proven beyond all reasonable doubt at least proved their ability to organise a piss up!

I doubt the SNP could nevermind run a country.

@ElephantOfRisk

Regardless of your view on independence, no woman should be voting SNP purely on the stance of their views on women. I also noted that there are currently six councils where Labour have gone into a coalition with SNP so they wont be getting my vote in the May elections either. It would be nice if there was a decent independent candidate standing in my area.

Oh, but our FM is now feeling it’s her responsibility to talk to us (women in Scotland) about the Menopause (See posts today re the podcast) 🙄 and lots of women across Scotland appear to be gushing over this media opportunity. What am I missing?

There is not a big enough eye roll emoji available that does this any justice.

But children still need to wear masks in schools still because it's obviously working because rates in under 15s are increasing and they're dropping in other age groups .

But surely this is testament to the vaccines working as large proportion of this age group is too young to be vaccinated
That would certainly be my 1st thought, not face masks

Makes me so cross that yet again young people's needs are neglected - last out of face masks while everyone else cracks on. No doubt this it to appease the teaching unions ... frankly if I was a parent of high school aged children I would stop testing

Thank you for the update @ResilienceWanker . It's great to hear that masks in schools are working so well that they're now under constant review. I thought they were supposed to be being reviewed every 3 weeks but I'm post menopausal so what would I know?

If only there were another method of reducing transmission in schools. Something else to appease teaching unions. Maybe some sort of machine that filters the air?

I didn't see it but my mum said someone asked NS why our numbers aren't better than England if the extra restrictions have been worth it. Apparently she didn't answer?

I’m praying Boris doesn’t go anytime soon in case we get someone who is on same wave as Nicola cos then we will have no hope.
At least now there will hopefully be more and more pressure for the Scot’s to have same rules as England

It’s a bad state of affairs that this is a preferred option to have Boris in power!

Totally with you @runningpink though I feel dirty 🤣