Covid-19

[Ruby]

Even now they are lying about the testing.

Yes. And lying by saying that tests "were available" when they were discharging suspected cases from hospitals into care homes. No they weren't! And the government wasn't telling the care-homes and hospitals that they had to - and care homes had virtually no PPE. It's like state-sponsored gaslighting! It was only a few weeks ago.

[smalex]

I had a really bleak spate last week contemplating a wave in the autumn /winter, in the run up to Christmas which would be twice as bad, at least, psychologically and economically, than what we've just had to do. I just don't think people could hack it. We only get through the long bleak winter by sticking a massive social event in the middle of it.

[Pippedydeadeye]

How much will seasonality play a part, do we know? It seems to have affected the Southern Hemisphere just as much right now, but that is probably the novelty of the disease?

[Mountain Goat]

And aren't they now saying that they're counting the swab tests (like the one I did) as two tests, because you swab your throat AND your nose?! Oh do please fuck off.

[Topcat]

That's what I saw Goat, yes.

It's despicable and they're getting away with it.

[Luce]

I had a really bleak spate last week contemplating a wave in the autumn /winter, in the run up to Christmas which would be twice as bad, at least, psychologically and economically, than what we've just had to do. I just don't think people could hack it. We only get through the long bleak winter by sticking a massive social event in the middle of it.

I can't even think about what Christmas will look like without family, school, socialising etc. I know schools have been told they should plan for these measures to be until at least January. Bleak.

[Luce]

That's what I saw Goat, yes.

It's despicable and they're getting away with it.

And they've got away with much worse too; Brexit for example.

[Smunder Woman]

I would be interested in a proper academic study about how people have responded to lockdown. Going purely off social media, the main lockdown-cops on my local FB page are definitely not affluent middle class.

We are working on this right now

[smalex]

I've always thought the idea that VE day would cause a second wave was a bit implausible because for the first wave the virus was basically allowed to rampage through the country for weeks and 65million people were all merrily going about our normal business, it seemed unlikely that a relatively small number of people having street parties which got out of hand, for one afternoon/evening, would cause a massive surge in cases. That remains to be seen in the next couple of weeks I guess. It was still, clearly, not the best idea, mind you.

[ParisGal]

Over here lockdown has been semi-relaxed for almost a fortnight. The total number of new cases each day has been very stable (relatively); between 200 and 700 since 7th May. Except for weird blips, that's a rate we hadn't seen since 12th March.

Numbers of COVID-19 patients in ICU has reduced every day since 9th April, and in other hospital wards has reduced every day since 15th April.

I presume it's still a bit too early to see the effects of relaxing the rules if the incubation period is 11-14 days, but it seems like people have relaxed quite a lot in all ways outside of business practice.

[Mountain Goat]

I think that it was more that it broke the seal, as it were. Once people had done that, it felt like it was all over and the rules had vanished. If you're conga-ing one day, do you then go back into your house and not come out again for two weeks? Or do you think you may as well visit Val at number 42 seeing as you already spent 3 hours chatting over a trestle table. And the whole yay-war-is-over theme dovetailed a bit too nicely into a yay-corona-virus-is-over mindset.

[Mountain Goat]

That's heartening, PG.

[Hazey_Jane]

Is that your region or France as a whole PG?

[Derek Nimmo]

Ah, so I've been spouting a load of bollocks about vaccines and immunity then. Sorry

[Ruby]

I would be interested in a proper academic study about how people have responded to lockdown. Going purely off social media, the main lockdown-cops on my local FB page are definitely not affluent middle class.

We are working on this right now

I need a Venn diagram of who votes what and how many times they have "clapped for carers". Pleaseandthankyou.

[Shoe]

I'm doing a couple of study things about how I am fairing during lockdown. One is through 23 and me, the other is through some anxiety survey I did a while back that they've now decided to add to.

I can't wait to be able to read all the studies that must be going on. It would be completely fascinating of we weren't having to live through it.

[Ruby]

Ah, so I've been spouting a load of bollocks about vaccines and immunity then. Sorry

Is this not quite a pessimistic article? I have read something else that suggests we are likely to get *a* vaccination relatively quickly that will help minimise the extent of the virus but not stop it all together. I think that - combined with good hygiene, testing and tracing - could help return us to some semblance of normality.

[ParisGal]

Is that your region or France as a whole PG?

The whole country (inc. overseas territories, which fortunately have few cases).

My region is surprisingly unscathed (only 70-ish deaths for 600K-ish pop) - although we're rural, and tourist season hadn't started up, the main city (Tours) is a commuter base for Paris.

[Ella77]

PG, have they not had to close quite a lot of schools again though? I thought I saw that somewhere.

[smalex]

I think that it was more that it broke the seal, as it were. Once people had done that, it felt like it was all over and the rules had vanished.

I completely agree but that would come under other reasons why it wasn't a good idea, for me.
I think I've just got a high percentage of people on my fb who shout Second Wave! every time 50 people sit on a beach and the papers print it and it's annoying me a bit because I think it'll breed a lot of complacency in the long run.