Then we shouldn't be allowed to forget.. that's the issue with the public, too easily distracted.

I know the media is a bit ' hide yo wife, hide yo kids' but really..you do need to atm.

It was tried though. Unofficially, but it was definitely tried. Boris gave speeches about how we would be carrying on as normal and staying open, which is how herd immunity was tried, then he went on with Phil and Holly and raised letting it spread through the population. That's how we were worse off than countries like Italy and France from the off.

Blaming China doesn't really do anything though, does it?

What would I do?

It's currently out of control, so I'd implement a full lockdown again. I understand why they don't want to do it, but we're rapidly losing more and more control by the minute.

i think other virus's will follow on after covid because thats how things roll. While we have all been self isolating and social distancing across the world, we have reduced our immunity to everything else thats going around, so when people start mixing again properly. people are going to start dropping like flies. Whether it will be as bad as covid remains to be seen, but we have totally ****ed with the equilibrium and that will have consequences

What numbers change the science? Masks are primarily there to stop us spreading it, so if you're near someone who's not wearing a mask, then they will be infecting loads of people (that's how it's spreading so much), and we have loads of anti-masker. I really shouldn't need to explain this to you after 9 months. Haven't you spoken to your parents about it at all?

The numbers are also dire, I'd rather listen to science than politics or business when it comes to killer viruses too tbh.

I don’t mind those so much, at least that is trying to give the right message


It’s the Summer holidays are back on for sun starved Brits

AND

Christmas is Cancelled type of unhelpful headline I won’t be sorry to see the back of :)

getting people vaccinated is how we get herd immunity. Everyone vaccinated will have anti bodies. That's exactly how we have dealt with other virus's and why we have vaccination programs :laugh:

....is this real life?

Ask yourself this, if she had washed her hands after going in the random ( assuming it was not her pocket) pocket, would she have got covid or not?

Masks do help... they help a lot in everyday circumstances. Have you seen the vapour test? I can't find it but there's a very easy way to test the effectiveness of masks. Breathe into a cold room...see your breath?
Now put your mask on and repeat that.. notice how there is significantly less vapour in the air?
That's how masks reduce the risk of transmission.

However.. as you say if you are open to infection if someone spits at you as droplets may make their way through your eyes. That's hopefully not an everyday occurrence getting spat on and the 2 metre distance rule helps with that.

Face Shields might be better if at high risk of being spat at.

That would be the 'business at any cost' right wing message that is killing people. Literally.
I agree that there is 2 camps when it come's to advice and little in between from the media... stay in alone or carry on as normal :/

it *should* be painfully obvious to everyone what they need to do at the moment to keep themselves and their loved ones safe. Individual circumstances will be widely different but the principles remain the same.The media, i will never forgive for their at times obscene reporting of this pandemic

What respect in relation to the media? I agree, but think we might have different perspectives and reasons.

I'll be surprised if things ever go back to the way they were. Hopefully people will adopt the hygienic practices they've picked up during this ordeal and carry them on. I wouldn't mind it if the idea of wearing masks when you're sick becomes commonplace either. Places like Japan, despite being close to the epicentre that was China, managed to recover quickly because the use of masks when sick is considered commonplace courtesy.

With a bit of luck, people will not forget this pandemic so quickly because basic hygiene and common sense is how you help curb a situation like this from happening again.

they have often gone against the tide and made things worse for a headline. They have undermined common sense at almost every turn. Stirring the people up with their christmas is cancelled nonsense and then saying ... why are we still having christmas when the infection rate is so high is the most obvious recent example. I personally blame Boris for what will be a Christmas catastrophe because he was spouting about a normal Christmas back in the summer so the government don't get away with it either

Ahh ok, we view things pretty similarly on this. People like JHB need to burn in hell for the way they've played this down constantly.

You should always blame the leadership for mismanagement. Other countries that were hit harder than us initially managed to bounce back through good management from the government and a willingness to do what needed to be done but Boris' government acted too late and did too little despite having months of warnings in advance. People should blame the government for how they handled this. They shouldn't baby Boris just because he's Boris. He is the head of a government that is failing it's people. It's mistakes are his mistakes. Leadership is taking responsibility, not shirking it.

I remember when cinemas were still open and they were cleaning the theatres more thoroughly and someone pointed out that it’s mad that they’re doing things they should have already been doing in the first place.

I think people will change the way they act and do things more differently going forward which of course will be a good thing.

I would suck all the covid in the world into my body like the green mile if it made you all get back to normal.

There's more than just the masks in Japan really... Just generally better hygiene standards e.g. People would simply not accept the conditions in more than half of the UK's toilets in bars and restaurants etc, never kind public toilets. There's also loads of etiquette things like taking your shoes off when you go into someone's home. There are many who consider that polite here but over there it's basically often considered unimaginably rude NOT to. They bow rather than shaking hands when doing business. And I assume all of that is rooted in a general culture of good hygiene rather than coincidence.

But yeah I think these sare things that people world wide will be more aware of in future. Personal space, who they touch and when, generally keeping things cleaner etc.

When it comes to the cleanliness of public spaces, really that's simply down to demand. If people stop accepting grubby facilities and vote with their feet, businesses will improve standards VERY quickly.

I totally agree with all you've said here. I'd like to think that we might have some sense of normality by August, but I have no real confidence of that. As you've said, if the virus mutates we could have an Autumn/Winter like this one.

My feeling is, as a country, the actions taken have been too little too late. My opinion is that unless the government is proactive, rather than reactive, this virus is going to be with us much longer than it needs to be.

And if you listen to the experts, they suggest that we can expect this sort of thing to occur much more often.

I wonder if what we regard as 'normality' will ever return.....

You're so right, Nicky, yet we repeatedly fail to learn from the actions of these countries, and keep blundering from one mistake to another and making the same mistakes repeatedly. I'm thinking particularly the UK here.

I like what you've said here. If world leaders take stock and make the right decisions, the world can adjust and change for the better. New 'industries' will emerge and different jobs will be created.

This could be a massive opportunity for the human race to repair some of the damage we have caused to our environment. But the focus needs to change from returning to 'normality' to creating a new and better way of living.

The question is whether that opportunity are taken. I'd like to have trust that the human race will learn from this.....

Masks won't stop all infections especially if used in isolation, but they do reduce the spread if used alongside other measures that Nicky has mentioned.

The problem is the amount of people that choose not to wear masks, or fail to wear them properly, lack of social distancing and lack of hygiene measures.

Sadly, too many people choosing to mock the use of masks and refusing to accept proven science, and too many ridiculous conspiracy theorists are part of the reason that the virus is continuing to spread.

At least 72,000 people in the UK are already dead as a result of this virus and we all have a responsibility to play our part to prevent those numbers rising. Maybe think of those people and have some respect for them, before mocking the use of masks.

I agree with Nicky, we absolutely should never forget and I don't think the majority of people will forget.

100% agree. :clap1:

Let’s hope 2022 so we can all continue to work from home