Coronavirus (COVID-19)

[Elixir]

Just as Sky News are airing broadcasts shaming one of the terminals at Heathrow for being busy, it turns out their crusty fat b*****d of a presenter is part of the 'problem'.

 I wonder if it was like that when Kay Burley fucked off to Africa over Christmas and New Year as well, or for any of their other hypocritical presenters still getting to travel the globe.

[Sherrif John Bunnell]

1 hour ago, Distant Doonhamer said:

A certain irony that one of the last acts as a doctor by Richard Freeman who was the cycling Team Sky chief medic might well prove to have been giving Covid vaccinations yesterday.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/55774324

Quote

Having had a request for an adjournment rejected, he did not attend the virtual hearing as he was administering Covid vaccinations at a Lancashire clinic.

Watch out for a team of 85 year olds from Lancashire to do suspiciously well at this year's Tour de France.

 

Edited January 23, 2021 by Sherrif John Bunnell

[Billy Jean King]

Derek Rae tweeting this morning that Uefa plan on going ahead with the Euros as planned, at least in terms of using multiple venues all over Europe, but that it looks likely to go ahead with no fans. Decision to be made by April at the earliest.

They had previously said a decision on 5 March. If true clearly giving it every chance.

[Gaz]

21 minutes ago, Honest_Man#1 said:

I actually can’t believe that we have had to wait 21 years to get to a tournament, and not only was the joy of making it there robbed from us by Covid, but actually going to the tournament will be too. 

Absolutely gutted at the way this has panned out. Can’t believe I’m saying this but I’m verging on wishing we hadn’t qualified as this is fucking miserable.

Can the whole thing. Just don't have any qualifying for Euro 2024. Would rather wait another three years to actually see games than have to watch the diluted, sterile shite we're going to get on the telly.

Even the joy of qualifying was muted by the fact that even if folk weren't at the games, we should have been in the pub or at friends' houses watching it with everyone. Instead I'm stuck watching it in the fucking spare room so I don't wake up the baby.

Shite times.

[tamthebam]

6 minutes ago, Gaz said:

Can the whole thing. Just don't have any qualifying for Euro 2024. Would rather wait another three years to actually see games than have to watch the diluted, sterile shite we're going to get on the telly.

 

For most of the the last 25 years I have watched Edinburgh City in the East of Scotland/Lowland League.

Empty stadiums devoid of atmosphere where you can hear the players swear at each other is just normal match attending to me.

If it assists you I find alcohol helps.

[tamthebam]

3 hours ago, dirty dingus said:

 

Let the show begin.

The Staunch will be happy to queue up to be vaccinated against Mass

[Granny Danger]

Boo hoo, Scotland has qualified for a tournament and it should be cancelled because I can’t go see it.

Me, me, me...

I am delighted we have qualified and I will be cheering on the national team from wherever I can.

[craigkillie]

20 minutes ago, Gaz said:

Can the whole thing. Just don't have any qualifying for Euro 2024. Would rather wait another three years to actually see games than have to watch the diluted, sterile shite we're going to get on the telly.

Even the joy of qualifying was muted by the fact that even if folk weren't at the games, we should have been in the pub or at friends' houses watching it with everyone. Instead I'm stuck watching it in the fucking spare room so I don't wake up the baby.

Shite times.

I've seen this sort of opinion a few times, but the tournament isn't just for the fans who attend games, it's for the players and the spectators at home too. Unlike club football, most of the fans wouldn't be at the games anyway, and the experience of watching a BCD game on the TV probably isn't going to be hugely different to watching a game with fans on the TV.

I am completely opposed to the idea that you ask a group of players to wait 3 years to play at a major tournament, by which time the likes of David Marshall, Craig Gordon and several other guys who have essentially spent their entire career building up to this won't be able to play, purely to satisfy people who think it's a bit shit to watch it at home.

[Gaz]

2 minutes ago, craigkillie said:

I've seen this sort of opinion a few times, but the tournament isn't just for the fans who attend games, it's for the players and the spectators at home too. Unlike club football, most of the fans wouldn't be at the games anyway, and the experience of watching a BCD game on the TV probably isn't going to be hugely different to watching a game with fans on the TV.

I am completely opposed to the idea that you ask a group of players to wait 3 years to play at a major tournament, by which time the likes of David Marshall, Craig Gordon and several other guys who have essentially spent their entire career building up to this won't be able to play, purely to satisfy people who think it's a bit shit to watch it at home.

Yeah, that's a fair point actually.

[vikingTON]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-55779171

The government pretending that 'oh no, we're just interested in transparency by promoting an inconclusive study as DEADLY MUTATION EVIDENCE IS HERE via a live Downing Street media briefing and leak to the press pack is one of the most laughable claims in this entire farce. They were wilfully trying to mislead the public to enforce greater compliance and deflect blame from their own culpability.

Downing Street announcements about this issue should be automatically filed in the bin by this stage.

Edited January 23, 2021 by vikingTON

[Granny Danger]

Just now, virginton said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-55779171

The government pretending that 'oh no, we're just interested in transparency by promoting an inconclusive study as DEADLY MUTATION EVIDENCE via a live Downing Street media briefing and leak to the press pack is one of the most laughable claims in this entire farce. They were wilfully trying to mislead the public to enforce greater compliance and deflect blame from their own culpability.

Downing Street announcements about this issue should be automatically filed in the bin by this stage.

All you posts should be filed in the bin.  

[vikingTON]

1 minute ago, Granny Danger said:

All you posts should be filed in the bin.  

Swing and a miss, you stupid old jakey.

[Billy Jean King]

Different story over on the TA ramblings thread. Posts there suggests UEFA have announced a refund policy for ticket holders where games are moved ! No idea what's actually happening it's all rumour and personal opinion.

With the money I have tied up in tickets my plan B if no crowds is a trip to the Breeders Cup in the Autumn. Hopefully a win / win.

[welshbairn]

7 minutes ago, Billy Jean King said:

Different story over on the TA ramblings thread. Posts there suggests UEFA have announced a refund policy for ticket holders where games are moved ! No idea what's actually happening it's all rumour and personal opinion.

With the money I have tied up in tickets my plan B if no crowds is a trip to the Breeders Cup in the Autumn. Hopefully a win / win.

It's not all personal opinion, this is official UEFA policy:

Quote

In accordance with the Refund policy, if a match needs to be moved to another venue, UEFA will firstly decide if the tickets for the rescheduled match remain valid. When making this decision, UEFA would take into account various factors, such as whether the new venue is within a reasonable travelling distance from the original venue.
To provide further guidance on refunds in this situation, in the event that a UEFA EURO 2020 match is moved to a venue which is more than 50km away from the original venue, ticket buyers would be entitled to a full refund of the ticket price if they cannot, or do not wish to, attend. 

 

https://support.tickets-euro2020.uefa.com/hc/en-us/articles/360018865660-Has-UEFA-updated-the-change-of-venue-provisions-of-the-Refund-policy-

[djchapsticks]

25 minutes ago, Granny Danger said:

All you posts should be filed in the bin.  

So you don't honestly believe there's any merit in what he is saying? I certainly do.

There are doctors from Public Health England and the Pandemic Modelling group coming out this morning and saying that trying to understand the fatality rate of a variant is understandable but in their opinion, is far too preliminary to present to the wider public as fact or even something to speculate upon. It doesn't take a behavioural analyst to see that even Whitty and Valance who flanked Johnson yesterday were particularly uncomfortable with conveying this data as anything more than purely speculative at this point in proceedings and trying to downplay the sensationalist side of it.

Yet here we are with it being the leading line of a nationwide update. What other reason for this would there be to present this in such a manner without the actual facts, other than to try and reinforce adherence?

Edited January 23, 2021 by djchapsticks

[Bert Raccoon]

29 minutes ago, Granny Danger said:

All you posts should be filed in the bin.  

Play the ball not the man Danger.

[djchapsticks]

31 minutes ago, craigkillie said:

I've seen this sort of opinion a few times, but the tournament isn't just for the fans who attend games, it's for the players and the spectators at home too. Unlike club football, most of the fans wouldn't be at the games anyway, and the experience of watching a BCD game on the TV probably isn't going to be hugely different to watching a game with fans on the TV.

I am completely opposed to the idea that you ask a group of players to wait 3 years to play at a major tournament, by which time the likes of David Marshall, Craig Gordon and several other guys who have essentially spent their entire career building up to this won't be able to play, purely to satisfy people who think it's a bit shit to watch it at home.

Definite 'no' for delaying the tournament here as well.

It will be a pisser without supporters of course but then the football experience in general is a lot less enjoyable without fans in grounds. Even seeing empty stands when watching games on the telly just takes something away from it.

If we can at least get to a stage in the summer where games can be watched in some sort of social capacity, like groups of friends etc, it might make people a bit more enthusiastic I feel.

[Michael W]

1 hour ago, Ron Aldo said:

Derek Rae tweeting this morning that Uefa plan on going ahead with the Euros as planned, at least in terms of using multiple venues all over Europe, but that it looks likely to go ahead with no fans. Decision to be made by April at the earliest.
 

Absolute lunacy. If fans can't attend, pick a country (realistically England, Spain, Germany etc.) and just get on with it behind closed doors. Daft otherwise to be jetting people around for football matches without good reason. 

[Fullerene]

1 minute ago, djchapsticks said:

It will be a pisser without supporters of course but then the football experience in general is a lot less enjoyable without fans in grounds. Even seeing empty stands when watching games on the telly just takes something away from it.

I suggest they use green screens all around the pitch and use CGI to add in a crowd that isn't really there.  I am sure it would work.  Maybe cartoon characters would do the trick.

[Elixir]

So it looks like the poster girl for 'Zero Covid' is coming to terms with reality when tourism is the biggest sector of your entire economy:

https://i.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/124012148/jacinda-ardern-declares-2021-the-year-of-the-vaccine

Quote

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has used her first public remarks for the year to declare 2021 “the year of the vaccine” and stated the Government’s goal is getting Covid to the point where it will be managed like the common seasonal flu.

Ardern made the comments at the annual Labour Party caucus retreat in Nelson, a sort of team-building exercise that the major parties do at the start of the year.

On an unseasonably cold and dreary Nelson day, in a room overlooking an empty Trafalgar Park, home to the Tasman Mako, Ardern used the opportunity to try to gee up team Labour.

“This year, also, is the year of the vaccine ... and I don't use the word ‘year’ lightly that is what it is going to take, it will not be something that happens quickly,” Ardern said.

“It will, around the world, be a programme of work that we’ll see through over the course of the entire year.”

Ardern also stressed to her caucus that rolling out the vaccine was a part of making the management of Covid-19 more like the way the seasonal flu is dealt with.

“Our goal has to be though, to get the management of Covid-19 to a similar place as we do seasonally, with the flu. It won’t be a disease that we will see simply disappear after one round of vaccine across our population,” Ardern said.

Ardern warned her caucus that although Labour has all manner of policy priorities, Covid-19 is the one that rules them all.

“And so while people talk about many of our political priorities over the course of today, underlying that will be the need to get us through, and that is our top priority,” Ardern said.

“And although we are in this current fantastic position, it does take work every single day to be here and to stay here.”

The prime minister also revealed that while on holiday, she was unable to relax until after New Year’s “knowing that people had at least had a break” without another outbreak intervening to ruin summer holidays.

Ardern also said that Labour would reveal more details about its “work programme” around housing on Thursday afternoon.

It's good to see this pragmatism borne out, and once it comes to fruition they truly will be able to say that they aced the management of this pandemic, granted given their unique advantageous circumstances.

I wonder if this has made its way to the inboxes of Sridhar et al. yet. 

Edited January 23, 2021 by Elixir