Friday 5 February 2021

Friday Fun - "We're alrigght!"

 So with the vaccine first phase roll out going very well and the lockdown working from a cases perspective, we have seen two weeks now in the UK of rapidly falling cases and hospitalisations. 

Inevitably we are back to splits in the cabinet about when and how to ease back to real life. It seems to me this might happen a lot more quickly than we think, having all been battered with bad news for so long, hope is hard to create.

What do you think will happen?

A) end of lockdown in early March, into national tier 2, end of that by June. then next winter occasional tiering in areas with low vaccine uptake or new variants. International travel dependent on other countries getting their vaccine act together. 

B) Tier 4 by end of march, slow reduction in tier levels over the summer, with most restaurants and shops open by May or June. Maybe even sports events over the summer. 

C) Lockdown until end of April to really lower cases and allow vaccine her immunity effect to kick-in. Tier 3 over the summer and then staying there until year end and the whole population vaccinated. 

Which will it be, the sun is our I am plumping for A...

Extra points if you can name the accent in my head of the phrase, together with the date and place. 

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

I will be cautiously optimistic and go for "A". Second part, Neil Kinnock, March 1992, Sheffield.

TonyB

jim said...

I reckon B. Accent - Cornish

Nice article (FT I think) on India's progress with Covid. Down to about 100 deaths/day - as if anyone would notice. Talk of herd immunity being established due partly to a younger population and partly to a pre-existing pathogen load.

Put in plain terms, don't worry about the oldies and dish out free cow muck.

More seriously we might remember that polio became a big problem post-war mainly because we got rid of outside lavatories and established pure water supplies. We became too clean and it cost us.

djm said...

C.

The political classes are enjoying their ever increasing control & diktat over peoples lives, they won't let this go until reminded of consequences..

EU failed state trougher accent, Sheffield 1992

theProle said...

We should be winding everything down starting now (e.g. we should permit groups of up to 6 to meet outside now), and back to complete domestic normality by the end of April*.
We will have jabbed all the over 50s by then, it's debatable if it's worth jabbing the under 50s at-all (if it was any other disease we wouldn't be bothering).

The problem is that the goalposts are currently being moved by the zero covid idots, who will do their fruit when case rates (but not deaths and hospitalisations) go through the roof as we unlock. Schools are particularly problematic for this, it's obvious that they are one of the most powerful drivers of infection, but the vaccine program won't have any effect on the rates amoungst kids.

I suspect in reality we'll be lucky if the current spineless leadership lets us out of tier 3 before the end of April, particularly as the case rates will be being well revved up by the schools by then.
Its difficult to express how angry it makes me, hearing politicians talking about case rates, when the only number that matters is the hospitalisation rate, and that should be rapidly divorced from the case rate by the vaccines.

*the only thing we really don't want now is to import a nasty mutation. We should have mandatory hotel quarantine for all travelers from abroad for at least the next twelve months. But for some reason our government is so enthralled by the travel industry, it will risk wrecking everyone's lives for the sake of bailing out some airlines.

dearieme said...

"polio became a big problem post-war mainly because we ... established pure water supplies."

Surely good water supplies long predated "post-war"?

Anyhoo: I think we should not so much move the goal posts as erect some more. Let young lads go out and play soccer (as my father called it) and touch rugby. Lassies too, in the unlikely event of their being much interested. Hockey and netball, perhaps?

Open air, exercise, and fun with their pals.

To give the police something to do, limit the games to six-a-side and to under-sixteens.

jim said...

@dearieme

Indeed, but pure water led to the problem. Google Polio too clean

Snag was that pre clean water times infants would regularly get polio early on and become immune for life, hardly being affected. We knocked out some of that early immunity through clean water, regular bathing and flush loos. But....

All this worked out after polio was fixed. We will probably find some obscure Covid infection/cure details long after this flap is over.

We all need a bit more sh%t.

lilith said...

We are never coming out of lockdown or getting away from mandatory medical devices and treatment. In years from now you will find me in my shed, completely oblivious to what is happening in the wider world, chewing on some raw liver and hoping that, at the very least, we still have the Queen.

Nick Drew said...

Whose raw liver are you chewing on ..? Jezza didn't come canvassing down your way, did he?

andrew said...


I agree with the general comments on our political leaders quite enjoying ruling by diktat and wanting to carry on doing so.

... so I expect
(a) some big announcements on 'you can now do $something popular...'
(as if we needed to get their approval)
and
(b) some announcements on people who do not get vaccinated are not allowed in public spaces / public transport etc.
This will not be enforced this year but if/when this happens again the ground has been prepared and it will be the media / opposition calling for proper enforcement of rules and who are the govt to deny the popular will...

dearieme said...

When will love in the stationery cupboard be allowed again?

lilith said...

Nick, just some hapless sheep (I hope) or if we are keeping chickens, one belonging to the most irritating one. It's a superfood :) It won't be a man made bio engineered liver, that's f'sure. Try that and it'll be pitchforks and flaming torches.

Anonymous said...

Breaking News
French variant of Corona virus eradicated after surrendering to the vaccine almost immediately.

PushingTheBoundaries said...

Probably A, but i wouldn't bet against the Govt pissing away any advantage they're building right now for the prize of popularity around the local elections.