Coronavirus (COVID-19)

[Steven W]

2 minutes ago, MONKMAN said:

 

Going by that statement, I’m assuming you’ve never been to Cheltenham racecourse? It’s quite an eye opener when you see the scale of the place.
Hospitality is a huge part of it, with numerous restaurants seating thousands of people a day, as well as god knows how many bars. The Guinness village is literally thousands of pissed up race goers crammed into a mini music festival. The centaur is one of the largest indoor arenas in the southwest of England, again full of people drinking and gambling.
There’s probably more people crammed inside the various venues at any given time at the Cheltenham festival, than live in the majority of towns in Scotland.

 

I've been - and what you're saying is quite correct.

But that shouldn't mean that a wet Wednesday afternoon meeting at, say, Kelso couldn't go ahead with a crowd.

[madwullie]

3 minutes ago, DeeTillEhDeh said:

My wife is getting hers.

She has a second mammogram next week - she needs a second op - they used a magseed but have left the clip in her because the magseed was not placed close enough - the lumpectomy only removed healthy tissue. To say she and I are fuming is an understatement.

Thankfully the lymph nodes biopsy they took is clear but it means she won't get radiotherapy until around May/June now.

She also got a call from the GP today - she's getting her first Covid-19 jab tomorrow.
 

Fingers crossed for you all mate  

[ayrmad]

17 minutes ago, DeeTillEhDeh said:

My wife is getting hers.

She has a second mammogram next week - she needs a second op - they used a magseed but have left the clip in her because the magseed was not placed close enough - the lumpectomy only removed healthy tissue. To say she and I are fuming is an understatement.

Thankfully the lymph nodes biopsy they took is clear but it means she won't get radiotherapy until around May/June now.

She also got a call from the GP today - she's getting her first Covid-19 jab tomorrow.
 

As long as you clap when you're telt. 

Edited February 17, 2021 by ayrmad

[Steven W]

BBC website. Troubles me that I'm agreeing with Tories on a more frequent basis. But - correct me if I'm wrong - where's this kind of chat from SG?

 

The UK is "going to have to live with some level" of Covid infection and deaths in the future, according to the Conservative chair of the Science and Technology Committee.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s World at One after hearing evidence from scientists earlier today, MP Greg Clark said: “I don’t think you’re ever going to have a precise figure [for acceptable levels], just as we don’t target a figure for road deaths.

But the key insight from that is that it’s not zero.”

“If we’re going to live with Covid... then we are going to have to live with some level of infection, and not pursue policies that are predicated on completely eradicating it, which is likely to be impossible.”

“It is for Parliament and leaders to indicate through the policy decisions they make, what kind of tolerance they have.

"It’s clearly not zero, otherwise we wouldn’t be driving cars, and we wouldn’t be going out in the winter for fear of flu.”

 

[MONKMAN]

3 minutes ago, Steven W said:

I've been - and what you're saying is quite correct.

But that shouldn't mean that a wet Wednesday afternoon meeting at, say, Kelso couldn't go ahead with a crowd.

I agree. 

[The Moonster]

1 hour ago, Todd_is_God said:

I love the cynicism haha.

In all seriousness, though, why only do this now?

That would surely be more impactful when we had 10 cases per day, than 1,000?

I find it thoroughly infuriating that all these things that should've been implemented in March last year are now being thrown upon us with the premise that we need to do it to deal it. It's an admission of how wrong we got things last year being dressed up as "doing the right thing" this year.

1 hour ago, Caledonian1 said:

"Jackie Baillie also focuses on the Audit Scotland report saying it makes clear "a pandemic should have been anticipated"."

 

Aye, thats right Jackie.....I recall you going on and on about an imminent pandemic for months before anyone had heard of Covid-19...would they listen?

 

18 minutes ago, Granny Danger said:

I would never defend Jackie Baillie, but whilst Covid could not be anticipated there was meant to be a strategy in place for dealing with such a pandemic.

The U.K. officially saw a global pandemic as the biggest likely major threat to society; more so than mass terrorism or a rogue nuclear state.  The U.K. government ran Operation Cygnus in 2016 and its findings were: “The UK’s preparedness and response, in terms of its plans, policies and capability, is currently not sufficient to cope with the extreme demands of a severe pandemic that will have a nationwide impact across all sectors...”

Despite this finding the U.K. government did not follow up on these failings.  Maybe if they had...

Jackie Baillie can f**k off. She's been an MP and MSP for pretty much all my adult life and I don't remember her chanting about a pandemic plan at any point before now. She's a sly wee f**k, she started closing down our local hospital when her party was in power and when the SNP took over and continued her work, she turned her entire election campaign on keeping the hospital open. 

She was stood outside my polling booth in 2014 and the delight I felt smiling at her after I voted could only have been beaten if I'd claymore'd her fat wee toads head straight off her shoulders. 

[Gordon EF]

For me Labour have potentially come out of this in an even worse light than the Tories. They're not in power in either HR or WM so have no real responsibility for anything and all they ever do is constantly carp and moan with pretty much zero constructive suggestions. It's utterly pathetic. Absolute balloons like Jackie Baillie coming away with all this 2020 hindsight when she knows full well that Labour never said anything about it before the pandemic hit and the SG don't even have the full range of powers to deal properly with a pandemic independently anyway. 

[DeeTillEhDeh]

True. But all of those activities take place outside.
I'm yet to hear of any outdoor activity of any size be linked to a covid outbreak, including the aforementioned beaches, BLM activities & statue defending, and indeed any protests across Europe and the US

A lot of the facilities at racing courses are inside and that includes some of the bookies.

[101]

1 minute ago, Gordon EF said:

For me Labour have potentially come out of this in an even worse light than the Tories. They're not in power in either HR or WM so have no real responsibility for anything and all they ever do is constantly carp and moan with pretty much zero constructive suggestions. It's utterly pathetic. Absolute balloons like Jackie Baillie coming away with all this 2020 hindsight when she knows full well that Labour never said anything about it before the pandemic hit and the SG don't even have the full range of powers to deal properly with a pandemic independently anyway. 

And Welsh labour do more extreme versions of what Scotland and England do, so presumably if they were in power they would be following something similar to the Welsh system which has been useless

[bairn88]

12 minutes ago, Steven W said:

BBC website. Troubles me that I'm agreeing with Tories on a more frequent basis. But - correct me if I'm wrong - where's this kind of chat from SG?

 

The UK is "going to have to live with some level" of Covid infection and deaths in the future, according to the Conservative chair of the Science and Technology Committee.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s World at One after hearing evidence from scientists earlier today, MP Greg Clark said: “I don’t think you’re ever going to have a precise figure [for acceptable levels], just as we don’t target a figure for road deaths.

But the key insight from that is that it’s not zero.”

“If we’re going to live with Covid... then we are going to have to live with some level of infection, and not pursue policies that are predicated on completely eradicating it, which is likely to be impossible.”

“It is for Parliament and leaders to indicate through the policy decisions they make, what kind of tolerance they have.

"It’s clearly not zero, otherwise we wouldn’t be driving cars, and we wouldn’t be going out in the winter for fear of flu.”

 

That statement is pretty much spot on. A relief that they're seeing sense, and really poor that SG hasn't said anything of the sort. 

Covid deaths (probably in their thousands) will happen for winters to come. Tens of thousands of flu deaths happen every year without an eyelid bat. This is an acceptable trade off for life to be worth living again.

[Detournement]

35 minutes ago, madwullie said:

His definition of what a false positive is is incorrect. He's talking about positive cases that are so lightly infected that they have no symptoms or even transmissibility, which is different from a test returning a positive result for someone that is covid negative. 

I'm not saying what he's saying in general is wrong, (I've only lightly skimmed it and my own knowledge is v limited) but that's a pretty basic piece of knowledge to get wrong when writing a scathing criticism of a widely used test. Like, if he's got something that fundamental wrong, how can we be sure anything else he says is right. 

Is part of his argument not that the test be triggered by traces of non Covid viruses and also minimal amounts of Covid which don't amount to an infection?

 

[dirty dingus]

2 hours ago, Thereisalight.. said:

You guys think Craig Tara is grim? You should be thankful it’s not the Butlins that was on the same site. That place was ten times worse

That's sacrilege. Bultins was the first place I ever got drunk, went with a mates family and bumped into a guy who was a few years above us at school who kept going up and getting us pints of cider and blackcurrant while we hid behind the foliage in the beachcomber bar.

[SANTAN]

What's the latest on how long the vaccine is meant to be effective for? 

[Bairnardo]

What's the latest on how long the vaccine is meant to be effective for? 

Less than 90 minutes in the outdoors

[vikingTON]

1 hour ago, David W said:

Not being prepared for a pandemic...It's almost like endless elections and referendums affects getting stuff done.

What, was Clownshoes Leitch and the gang out campaigning for Yes and Remain over the past few years? It would certainly explain why both lost. 

The idea that a 21st century democracy is  incapable of carrying out long-term policy and hold short-term elections at the same time is idiotic and an argument for Putin-esque 'managed democracy' instead. 

[superbigal]

On 16/02/2021 at 14:23, superbigal said:

 

Todays Headlines:  It is all over. 40 days of daily drops no more as we rise for the 1st day. Not a great day as Wales continues accelerating past us. England & NI catching at a rate of knots. 

 Total cases are 5,558 and the positive test rate is still  5.5% 

The only real good news story is the amazing progress of little East Dunbartonshire and South Ayrshire from that part of the country. Dundee & Aberdeen continue to be the shining lights. Why is West Dunbartonshire like a different planet to the East  in case numbers, they previously were both top 10 areas.?  Glasgow continues to do well and has dropped from top spot to 11th place.

Private prisons appear to be a complete shambles.

England 157.5 to 148.8 have dropped 5.52% in last 24 hours.  Wales  96.8 to 92.9 have dropped 4.03% in last 24 hours , Northern Ireland  133.8 to 128.2 have dropped 4.19% in last 24 hours.   UK Average is now 142.0

Scotland peaked at 301.9 for figures 29th Dec to 4th Jan    

Yesterdays figure for 7th Feb to 13th Feb was 100.9

Todays figure for 8th Feb to 14th Feb is 101.7   Up 0.79%

Council progress in last 24 hours as follows.

Click cases by neighbourhood to see the spread on the geographical map. 

https://public.tableau.com/profile/phs.covid.19#!/vizhome/COVID-19DailyDashboard_15960160643010/Overview

East Ayrshire 303.3 to 302.4   Serco and their Screws responsible for majority of this.

Clackmannanshire  219.2 to 240.6  This  small council area needs some head knocking. 

West Dunbartonshire   227.1 to 223.8 

Falkirk  193.3 to 192.7  

West Lothian 159.5 to 176.4    Another privately run Prison shambles in action.

Renfrewshire 154.7 to 162.5  Paisley on the general rise again.

Stirling 158.2 to 158.2  

North Lanarkshire   147.1 to 148.2   

South Lanarkshire  142.9  to 138.8

North Ayrshire 130.6 to 135.8   

Glasgow City  131.9 to 130.6 

THEN a large GAP

Midlothian   91.9 to 103.8  Shocker of a day 

Inverclyde  96.4 to 100.3

East Renfrewshire  103.6 to 102.6  

Western Isles  82.3 to 93.6  

South Ayrshire   76.4 to 70.6 First good news story of day

Moray  66.8 to 68.9 

Dumfries & Galloway   72.6 to 67.8  

Argyll & Bute  71.0 to 61.7  Excellent 24 hours

City Of Edinburgh   56.2 to 61.2  Disappointing now climbing the charts

Perth & Kinross    57.9 to 59.9

East Lothian  58.8 to 59.8

Fife  54.6 to 58.6  

Highlands  57.2 to 57.2     

East Dunbartonshire   67.2 to 55.2  Brilliant  stands out in this part of the country.

Angus 50.8 to 47.3

Aberdeenshire 44.0 to 39.0

Dundee City 34.8 to 34.8 

Aberdeen City 35.9 to 34.1  

Scottish  Borders   30.3 to 27.7

Orkney Island  26.9 to 26.9

Shetland Islands  4.4 to 0.0

Edited February 17, 2021 by superbigal

[vikingTON]

21 minutes ago, Gordon EF said:

For me Labour have potentially come out of this in an even worse light than the Tories. They're not in power in either HR or WM so have no real responsibility for anything and all they ever do is constantly carp and moan with pretty much zero constructive suggestions. It's utterly pathetic. Absolute balloons like Jackie Baillie coming away with all this 2020 hindsight when she knows full well that Labour never said anything about it before the pandemic hit and the SG don't even have the full range of powers to deal properly with a pandemic independently anyway. 

Don't forget about the roaring binfire their administration has made of handling the pandemic in Wales, with about 17 'this time it's serious!' circuit-breaker lockdowns in the autumn.

Starmer's approach has probably been the worst, as all he does now is offer support for whatever the government says, while bleating for tougher measures about any single element of the response, while also demanding to fire weans into classrooms. If Labour withdrew government support then Johnson would be caught between rebels and the opposition and forced to try and do his job properly: instead he's getting a free pass.

[Detournement]

Why is East Dunbartonshire different to West Dunbartonshire?

Have you ever left Fife?

[The Moonster]

10 minutes ago, Stormzy said:

What's the latest on how long the vaccine is meant to be effective for? 

Last thing I read said 8 months, possibly longer but we don't know yet. I haven't seen any advances on that yet.

[The Moonster]

1 minute ago, Detournement said:

Why is East Dunbartonshire different to West Dunbartonshire?

Have you ever left Fife?

Perhaps this is an east coast joke, but I don't understand. Are you asking why it isn't just called Dunbartonshire i.e. merged? Or are you asking why one has a large amount of cases and the other doesn't?