Coronavirus (COVID-19)

[doulikefish]

10 minutes ago, Honest_Man#1 said:

Gyms will close before schools regardless of whether there’s any evidence if they cause a spread, nap.

And Hancock has just announced that Schools/Unis and retail will remain open but leisure will be subject to further closures 

[Ron Aldo]

I read something last month which said that, in England, 78 cases of Covid had been traced back to gyms from 22 million visitors since they reopened there. The article can be found here - https://www.ukactive.com/news/fitness-and-leisure-sector-reports-covid-rate-of-0-34-per-100000-visits-since-reopening-in-england/


As has been said gyms would be closed before schools regardless of what the data shows and, like pubs, I think the government probably sees them as an easy target.

[Detournement]

1 hour ago, ICTChris said:

Saw someone on my FB share this post, from a gym basically refusing to close in the Wirral.
 

The Swoletariat uprising is happening!

In my gym everyone is taking disinfecting the equipment seriously so it would be a shiter if Sturgeon shuts them down at the next review. I fully expect her to do it but at the same time they might consider it's going to be a long difficult winter and the gym is a positive force in a lot of people's lives. 

Edited October 13, 2020 by Detournement

[ICTChris]

4 minutes ago, Detournement said:

The Swoletariat uprising is happening!

In my gym everyone is taking disinfecting the equipment seriously so it would be a shiter if Sturgeon shuts them down at the next review. I full expect her to do it but at the same time they might consider it's going to be a long difficult winter and the gym is a positive force in a lot of people's lives. 

Yeah, the gym I'm a member of is very clean - even before the outbreak they had cleaners on duty all the time.  They are also enforcing mask wearing if you aren't currently exercising.

I think they'll get shut eventually but it's pretty shite.

[Boostin' Kev]

The gym I go to is probably cleaner than my home. 

[madwullie]

"We're not staying open for financial gain but for our members mental and physical wellbeing" 

[GiGi]

Even if you think that's shite there's definitely a bit of 'why  not both?' to it.

Not sure why some of the cleanest, most well ventilated and distanced places, which are good for ones physical and mental wellbeing should be papped again except for blanket overreaction.

[Inanimate Carbon Rod]

1 minute ago, GiGi said:

Even if you think that's shite there's definitely a bit of 'why  not both?' to it.

Not sure why some of the cleanest, most well ventilated and distanced places, which are good for ones physical and mental wellbeing should be papped again except for blanket overreaction.

Agree, obviously they are running a business but gyms have helped a lot of folks improve their mental health.

[Guest]

It's never been a case of Gyms v Schools (what's the safest), it's a case of a trade off as most politicians across Europe have agreed, Yes, Schools and Colleges / Unis being open isn't perfect, however it's perceived that the education of our kids is a must, virus or no virus, nobody has ever said there's no risk and in fact the risk has been acknowledged.

As has been mentioned before, there's no right or wrong and you can't please everyone. On this forum alone, there's people who think the restrictions are ridiculous and way over the top, destroying the economy etc and that the risk is acceptable, however there's also many who believe that we should have a full lockdown in order to try and control the spread and zero tolerance of those who break the rules, then in between there's those who would like to pick and choose what they think should open and what should not and few are in complete agreement.

Ultimately none of us really know what's right or wrong and what's working and what's not, it's definitely a suck it and see situation and not just here but across Europe and the world in general. The Czech republic is actually a prime example as only recently they were being lauded for how they dealt with the virus but now have the worst statistics in the whole of Europe.

Lots of things could be done better and lots could be done differently but incompetence aside, I'm sure everyone is trying their best to do what they believe is right, however misguided that may turn out to be............

Edited October 13, 2020 by WATTOO

[anotherchance]

I'm not keen on laying off those in charge, and T&P is undoubtedly a shambles at many levels, but for a disease where you could potentially have a large number of asymptomatic carriers and superspreaders, this sort of testing is probably way more of a necessity than even the vaccine. It does seem to take a back seat news wise.

Absolutely this.

I think some of the rapid tests aren’t as accurate as people might like them to be, but even if they catch a high % of cases then it’s surely a game changer.

If they do get the vaccine to the elderly/vulnerable early next year then combined with rapid testing for everybody else, it seems like it’d speed up an exit out of this pish.

[ICTChris]

One thing that's interesting about it, more than the pros and cons of gyms, is that it's happening at all.  If a gym had done this in March they'd have been condemned by everyone.  Obviously there aren't hundreds of people dying every day with Covid  at the moment but it's an indication of the differences in the situation.

[mizfit]

That’s Cristiano Ronaldo testing positive for Covid

[Marshmallo]

4 minutes ago, mizfit said:

That’s Cristiano Ronaldo testing positive for Covid

[Ron Aldo]

16 minutes ago, madwullie said:

"We're not staying open for financial gain but for our members mental and physical wellbeing" 

There probably is a bit of bullshit to their statement in terms of playing on the "mental health" aspect of gyms but there's no doubt that gyms can have a massively positive impact on mental health which is something I genuinely didn't realise until they closed. Prior to Covid, the gym for me was something I just always looked at as a hobby but when they closed it definitely had an impact on me. I've been fortunate to have never had any issues with mental health and i'm not for a second suggesting that the gyms closing suddenly changed that but it definitely impacted on my mood and I always felt as if I was at a bit of loose end with loads of pent up energy. I can completely understand how much of an impact gyms closing could have had on people with genuine mental health issues who used the gym as a release.

[Michael W]

24 minutes ago, WATTOO said:

It's never been a case of Gyms v Schools (what's the safest), it's a case of a trade off as most politicians across Europe have agreed, Yes, Schools and Colleges / Unis being open isn't perfect, however it's perceived that the education of our kids is a must, virus or no virus, nobody has ever said there's no risk and in fact the risk has been acknowledged.

As has been mentioned before, there's no right or wrong and you can't please everyone. On this forum alone, there's people who think the restrictions are ridiculous and way over the top, destroying the economy etc and that the risk is acceptable, however there's also many who believe that we should have a full lockdown in order to try and control the spread and zero tolerance of those who break the rules, then in between there's those who would like to pick and choose what they think should open and what should not and few are in complete agreement.

Maybe, but from the stats published we are sacrificing lower risk activities in order to keep much higher risk activities open. It's not even close, either, particularly noting the case rate from universities. Indeed the government is openly tolerating very high risk activity whilst grabbing some very low hanging fruit here in an attempt to control the rate of cases.

Schools are a different matter to universities, to be fair - with a few exceptions, how many people actually need to be on a university campus? You're lectured and not taught so remote delivery should be absolutely fine. Even tutorials, whilst they won't be ideal, could be delivered remotely quite effectively. I say that as someone who studied Law, so perhaps others may well disagree based on their experiences. 

Schools also have their part to play here too. I accept that it's far from ideal having them learn remotely, but in areas where the rates of covid are high enough to merit the shutting of hospitality et all, why are we insisting on mixing thousands of households a day, five times a week? It defies the logic of what we're supposed to be trying to achieve. There is a trade off, but this looks like very high risk activity when there are large numbers of cases and I don't think the government should be tolerating this level of risk whilst subsequently shutting down places where the risk is lower, to "control the virus". It is illogical and the government is rubbing salt into the wounds by refusing to publish its evidence. 

I understand why all of the above is the case, but some honesty about this would be appreciated. It is a clear political decision that is not being made in accordance with "The Science". 

Edited October 13, 2020 by Michael W

[super_carson]

I must admit, I thought that if gyms were going to be closed they would have done so in the last set of restrictions and I was expecting that to happen.  Considering they opened ahead of schedule due to a bit of pressure and stats showing they're amongst the lowest risk areas I would like to think that the SG government have recognised that their benefits may outweigh the risks but they probably are very much in the firing line.  Despite most gyms doing a great job in terms of cleaning, distancing, tracking etc., they'll be the next to go if things continue to get worse.  Everything is about keeping schools open, and the SG will quite happily ban everything apart from schools.  

As a teacher it's a bit of an odd situation for me.  My job is far easier and far more effective when I'm in the class with my pupils and I'm all too aware of the benefits of schooling (particularly for the most disadvantaged) and I am glad that education is being treated as a priority.  But, if I'm being honest, if it was to come to the point that everything was to be scrapped to keep schools open then I would have nothing apart from going to work and it's hard not envision becoming resentful in that situation.  

 

Edited October 13, 2020 by super_carson

[Guest]

5 minutes ago, Michael W said:

Maybe, but from the stats published we are sacrificing lower risk activities in order to keep much higher risk activities open. It's not even close, either, particularly noting the case rate from universities. Indeed the government is openly tolerating very high risk activity whilst grabbing some very low hanging fruit here in an attempt to control the rate of cases.

Schools are a different matter to universities, to be fair - with a few exceptions, how many people actually need to be on a university campus? You're lectured and not taught so remote delivery should be absolutely fine. Even tutorials, whilst they won't be ideal, could be delivered remotely quite effectively. I say that as someone who studied Law, so perhaps others may well disagree based on their experiences. 

Schools also have their part to play here too. I accept that it's far from ideal having them learn remotely, but in areas where the rates of covid are high enough to merit the shutting of hospitality et all, why are we insisting on mixing thousands of households a day, five times a week? It defies the logic of what we're supposed to be trying to achieve. There is a trade off, but this looks like very high risk activity when there are large numbers of cases and I don't think the government should be tolerating this level of risk whilst subsequently shutting down places where the risk is lower, to "control the virus". It is illogical and the government is rubbing salt into the wounds by refusing to publish its evidence. 

I don't disagree with your post at all and in fact totally agree with it, however Governments both here and across Europe seem to be willing to throw caution to the wind in order to keep our places of learning physically open and they're all pretty up front about this as well.

Personally though and as you say, I see no reason why they can't have remote learning but do wonder if it's maybe more to do with a child minding service to ensure the parents can go back to work ???

[mizfit]

That’s Cristiano Ronaldo testing positive for Covid

[Michael W]

6 minutes ago, WATTOO said:

I don't disagree with your post at all and in fact totally agree with it, however Governments both here and across Europe seem to be willing to throw caution to the wind in order to keep our places of learning physically open and they're all pretty up front about this as well.

Personally though and as you say, I see no reason why they can't have remote learning but do wonder if it's maybe more to do with a child minding service to ensure the parents can go back to work ???

Yeah. It's just the lack of honesty accompanying it that annoys me. I probably should expect that from politicians to be fair, but they are treating us like children and it is breeding resentment. 

Ironically, the measures implemented mean that at least some of the parents concerned  are going to be spending increased amounts of time at home for the foreseeable in Northern England and will not be needing state provided childcare. Other parts of the UK likely to follow there as well, in the next couple of months. 

[Detournement]

5 minutes ago, WATTOO said:

 

Personally though and as you say, I see no reason why they can't have remote learning

Other than kids without devices to learn from or internet access, kids with special needs and the likelihood of children actually paying attention to the device when they have other screens/distractions.

Anyone who thinks u16s are going to be able to log in and focus on learning for 5-6 hours a day with no direct supervision obviously doesn't remember what it's like to be a child. 

There would be a massive gap between kids with a high level of parental supervision/help and those who don't have that.