I’ve got a question about this. How many people have actually been followed, retested etc to work out how long shedding goes on for?
Probably none.
Indiviuals like this represent themselves for testing, I’d expect
>>While getting infected with coronavirus twice is rare, shedding fragments of the virus for months is also uncommon.
Most coronavirus cases stop being infectious about 10 days after developing symptoms, but some people can continue shedding fragments of the virus weeks after they have recovered.<<
This suggests people have been followed, somewhere. But as far as I know, in most places you just do your 14 days and that’s it. Out of quarantine, no further testing unless symptoms.
I’ve got a question about this. How many people have actually been followed, retested etc to work out how long shedding goes on for?
Probably none.
Indiviuals like this represent themselves for testing, I’d expect
>>While getting infected with coronavirus twice is rare, shedding fragments of the virus for months is also uncommon.
Most coronavirus cases stop being infectious about 10 days after developing symptoms, but some people can continue shedding fragments of the virus weeks after they have recovered.<<
This suggests people have been followed, somewhere. But as far as I know, in most places you just do your 14 days and that’s it. Out of quarantine, no further testing unless symptoms.
We’ve all seen the comparison between Victoria, France, and the UK that’s been floating around the Internets for a few days, but check out the per-million numbers!
30/6/20 New Cases:
France 21.2/mil
UK 12.2/mil
Victoria 111.2/mil
17/10/20 New Cases:
France 498.9/mil
UK 237.8/mil
Vic 0.92/mil
We’ve all seen the comparison between Victoria, France, and the UK that’s been floating around the Internets for a few days, but check out the per-million numbers!
30/6/20 New Cases:
France 21.2/mil
UK 12.2/mil
Victoria 111.2/mil
17/10/20 New Cases:
France 498.9/mil
UK 237.8/mil
Vic 0.92/mil
We’re 40mil cases in, with only a couple of mutations identified (AFAIK), and nobody has got it twice, have they?
I saw something in passing this morning about a second time infection.
maybe three?
There have been reports of people testing positive twice, but many could be attributed to ongoing viral shedding weeks after being infected (we’ll get to that later), rather than actually getting infected with a different strain of COVID-19.
Hong Kong reported the first documented re-infection back in August, and the United States recorded its first case of someone catching coronavirus twice last week.
“It is only a handful of cases reported around the world, so it seems to be exceptionally rare, but it does happen,” Professor Sutton said.
“We need to explore the possibility of it happening.”
If this new case in Victoria does turn out to be a re-infection, it could be the first one confirmed in Australia.
Video of the Sunday evening incident shows the woman shouting at passengers and flight attendants alike, “I hope you f***ing die,” before the plane took off. The woman, who is Scottish, was ultimately escorted off the plane by several flight attendants after she refused to wear a mask onboard.
Yi’‘ll need tae git a lee. A’body dies, ye ken that? ilka f**king body dies,” th’ wifie kin be heard telling ither passengers. “if tis corona or nae, a’body dies. A’body dies that’s th’ ainlie thing that’s real.”
Video of the Sunday evening incident shows the woman shouting at passengers and flight attendants alike, “I hope you f***ing die,” before the plane took off. The woman, who is Scottish, was ultimately escorted off the plane by several flight attendants after she refused to wear a mask onboard.
Yi’‘ll need tae git a lee. A’body dies, ye ken that? ilka f**king body dies,” th’ wifie kin be heard telling ither passengers. “if tis corona or nae, a’body dies. A’body dies that’s th’ ainlie thing that’s real.”
Pin her against the wall.
‘Yes, everybody dies, love. Would now be a convenient time for you?’.
No, no, Dan is the Devil incarnate! All the right-thinking people tell us so.
Some independent thinkers take a more Docetic view.
so Authoritarian, Economy Crushing, Freedom Killing, Mental Health Wrecking, Sheeple Herding measures are the gold standard in pandemic response now ¿
Docetic is the opposite of incarnate. In theological terms, particularly with regard to jesus, that he wan’t born nor lived or died in a proper human body but was some sort of divine apparition which convincingly imitated the human form. A sort supernatural hologram if you want a science-fiction analogy. It was a joke about him not being incarnate as the devil in real human form, but just a supernatural apparition of the devil instead.
Some independent thinkers take a more Docetic view.
so Authoritarian, Economy Crushing, Freedom Killing, Mental Health Wrecking, Sheeple Herding measures are the gold standard in pandemic response now ¿
Docetic is the opposite of incarnate. In theological terms, particularly with regard to jesus, that he wan’t born nor lived or died in a proper human body but was some sort of divine apparition which convincingly imitated the human form. A sort supernatural hologram if you want a science-fiction analogy. It was a joke about him not being incarnate as the devil in real human form, but just a supernatural apparition of the devil instead.
fair, we were responding to the general message of the conversational arc but didn’t look up Docetic (despite a passing thought that we should — so we do appreciate the clarification), it was intended to wedge any accusations of a VIC Police State
I was talking to Americans, saying I have two bins: one for rubbish, one for recycling. I don’t use “trash bags”. OMGWHATABOUTFOODWASTE????? Compost, worm farm, dog.
Completely blew their minds. A system like Medicare would disrupt the fabric of existence for them.
I was talking to Americans, saying I have two bins: one for rubbish, one for recycling. I don’t use “trash bags”. OMGWHATABOUTFOODWASTE????? Compost, worm farm, dog.
Completely blew their minds. A system like Medicare would disrupt the fabric of existence for them.
The US has free health insurance for seniors and programs for the very poor. Their main problem is that their system is over-priced, captured by corporate interests and even though they spend twice as much on healthcare 13% of people have no coverage. It’s a real clusterfuck.
Also, what evidence do they have that this kind of thing even works when the cause of an outbreak isn’t claimed to be horny security guards or careless hotel managers lacking military oversight, maybe it only works for that kind of outbreak going into spring, why should anyone do it without evidence it will work in exactly the situation they find themselves in¿
The number of payroll jobs for Australians aged under 20 is rising above pre-coronavirus levels, but jobs for every other age group are on the decline. In the fortnight to October 3, the number of payroll jobs for young Australians increased by 2.8 per cent. However, the number of payroll jobs has fallen for every other age group over the same period, with those over 60 hit the worst.
The number of payroll jobs for Australians aged under 20 is rising above pre-coronavirus levels, but jobs for every other age group are on the decline. In the fortnight to October 3, the number of payroll jobs for young Australians increased by 2.8 per cent. However, the number of payroll jobs has fallen for every other age group over the same period, with those over 60 hit the worst.
I’ve done my bit by retiring, I’m leaving it to the young ones.
The number of payroll jobs for Australians aged under 20 is rising above pre-coronavirus levels, but jobs for every other age group are on the decline. In the fortnight to October 3, the number of payroll jobs for young Australians increased by 2.8 per cent. However, the number of payroll jobs has fallen for every other age group over the same period, with those over 60 hit the worst.
Hardly surprising is it?
I guess the older workers over 55 are less likely to turn to petty crime, drugs and unsocial behaviour on public transport as a result of being unemployed.
The number of payroll jobs for Australians aged under 20 is rising above pre-coronavirus levels, but jobs for every other age group are on the decline. In the fortnight to October 3, the number of payroll jobs for young Australians increased by 2.8 per cent. However, the number of payroll jobs has fallen for every other age group over the same period, with those over 60 hit the worst.
Hardly surprising is it?
I guess the older workers over 55 are less likely to turn to petty crime, drugs and unsocial behaviour on public transport as a result of being unemployed.
The number of payroll jobs for Australians aged under 20 is rising above pre-coronavirus levels, but jobs for every other age group are on the decline. In the fortnight to October 3, the number of payroll jobs for young Australians increased by 2.8 per cent. However, the number of payroll jobs has fallen for every other age group over the same period, with those over 60 hit the worst.
Hardly surprising is it?
I guess the older workers over 55 are less likely to turn to petty crime, drugs and unsocial behaviour on public transport as a result of being unemployed.
The number of payroll jobs for Australians aged under 20 is rising above pre-coronavirus levels, but jobs for every other age group are on the decline. In the fortnight to October 3, the number of payroll jobs for young Australians increased by 2.8 per cent. However, the number of payroll jobs has fallen for every other age group over the same period, with those over 60 hit the worst.
Hardly surprising is it?
I guess the older workers over 55 are less likely to turn to petty crime, drugs and unsocial behaviour on public transport as a result of being unemployed.
I guess the older workers over 55 are less likely to turn to petty crime, drugs and unsocial behaviour on public transport as a result of being unemployed.
hold my beer
Sit down old man. You are too tired for that…
True, that and the fact that I’m actually rather busy at the moment.
I guess the older workers over 55 are less likely to turn to petty crime, drugs and unsocial behaviour on public transport as a result of being unemployed.
hold my beer
Sit down old man. You are too tired for that…
This.
This Buffy needs to turn up more often. She seems like fun.
The number of payroll jobs for Australians aged under 20 is rising above pre-coronavirus levels, but jobs for every other age group are on the decline. In the fortnight to October 3, the number of payroll jobs for young Australians increased by 2.8 per cent. However, the number of payroll jobs has fallen for every other age group over the same period, with those over 60 hit the worst.
Hardly surprising is it?
I guess the older workers over 55 are less likely to turn to petty crime, drugs and unsocial behaviour on public transport as a result of being unemployed.
Antibodies may actually help coronavirus invade cells in some cases, study suggests
Antibodies are produced by the immune system to fight foreign invaders like the coronavirus, but a new study in CHINA suggests they could make the infection worse in some cases.
Fudan University in Shanghai found that some of the 222 patients in their study had specific antibodies that could actually help the coronavirus invade their immune cells. They were present in 8 per cent of those with mild symptoms, and 76 per cent of those who had recovered from severe illness.
LONDON: British researchers on Tuesday (Oct 20) said they hope to expose healthy volunteers to the virus that causes COVID-19 in a groundbreaking study to discover the amount needed for people to become infected.
They aim to recruit volunteers between the ages of 18 and 30 with no underlying health conditions such as heart disease, diabetes or obesity.
“In this initial phase, the aim will be to discover the smallest amount of virus it takes to cause a person to develop COVID-19,” Imperial College said in a statement.
This type of research, known as a human challenge study, is used infrequently because some consider the risk involved in infecting otherwise healthy individuals to be unethical.
But researchers racing to combat COVID-19 say that risk is warranted because such studies have the potential to quickly identify the most effective vaccines and help control a disease that has killed more than 1.1 million people worldwide.
Elsewhere in the world, those with SARS-CoV-1 experience recognised that the risk would never have been warranted and vaccine pipe dreams were unnecessary if only people had got their shit together in the first place, and controlled the disease far earlier, without telling everyone to let it rip and get flocked.
According to the radio news, a ship off Sunshine Coast is under investigation because a crew member tested positive to a strain of COVID not previously seen in Australia. No one will be allowed off the ship until Qld Health have given the all-clear.
According to the radio news, a ship off Sunshine Coast is under investigation because a crew member tested positive to a strain of COVID not previously seen in Australia. No one will be allowed off the ship until Qld Health have given the all-clear.
LONDON: British researchers on Tuesday (Oct 20) said they hope to expose healthy volunteers to the virus that causes COVID-19 in a groundbreaking study to discover the amount needed for people to become infected.
They aim to recruit volunteers between the ages of 18 and 30 with no underlying health conditions such as heart disease, diabetes or obesity.
“In this initial phase, the aim will be to discover the smallest amount of virus it takes to cause a person to develop COVID-19,” Imperial College said in a statement.
This type of research, known as a human challenge study, is used infrequently because some consider the risk involved in infecting otherwise healthy individuals to be unethical.
But researchers racing to combat COVID-19 say that risk is warranted because such studies have the potential to quickly identify the most effective vaccines and help control a disease that has killed more than 1.1 million people worldwide.
Elsewhere in the world, those with SARS-CoV-1 experience recognised that the risk would never have been warranted and vaccine pipe dreams were unnecessary if only people had got their shit together in the first place, and controlled the disease far earlier, without telling everyone to let it rip and get flocked.
anyway, we draw your attention to this part here
the aim will be to discover the smallest amount of virus it takes to cause a person to develop COVID-19,” Imperial College said
the claim is that “such studies have the potential to quickly identify the most effective vaccines” but we put it to you that there is another reason that Imperialists might want to discover the smallest amount of virus it takes to cause a reasonably-high-mortality and significantly-high-morbidity infectious disease
LONDON: British researchers on Tuesday (Oct 20) said they hope to expose healthy volunteers to the virus that causes COVID-19 in a groundbreaking study to discover the amount needed for people to become infected.
They aim to recruit volunteers between the ages of 18 and 30 with no underlying health conditions such as heart disease, diabetes or obesity.
“In this initial phase, the aim will be to discover the smallest amount of virus it takes to cause a person to develop COVID-19,” Imperial College said in a statement.
This type of research, known as a human challenge study, is used infrequently because some consider the risk involved in infecting otherwise healthy individuals to be unethical.
But researchers racing to combat COVID-19 say that risk is warranted because such studies have the potential to quickly identify the most effective vaccines and help control a disease that has killed more than 1.1 million people worldwide.
Elsewhere in the world, those with SARS-CoV-1 experience recognised that the risk would never have been warranted and vaccine pipe dreams were unnecessary if only people had got their shit together in the first place, and controlled the disease far earlier, without telling everyone to let it rip and get flocked.
anyway, we draw your attention to this part here
the aim will be to discover the smallest amount of virus it takes to cause a person to develop COVID-19,” Imperial College said
the claim is that “such studies have the potential to quickly identify the most effective vaccines” but we put it to you that there is another reason that Imperialists might want to discover the smallest amount of virus it takes to cause a reasonably-high-mortality and significantly-high-morbidity infectious disease
LONDON: British researchers on Tuesday (Oct 20) said they hope to expose healthy volunteers to the virus that causes COVID-19 in a groundbreaking study to discover the amount needed for people to become infected.
They aim to recruit volunteers between the ages of 18 and 30 with no underlying health conditions such as heart disease, diabetes or obesity.
“In this initial phase, the aim will be to discover the smallest amount of virus it takes to cause a person to develop COVID-19,” Imperial College said in a statement.
This type of research, known as a human challenge study, is used infrequently because some consider the risk involved in infecting otherwise healthy individuals to be unethical.
But researchers racing to combat COVID-19 say that risk is warranted because such studies have the potential to quickly identify the most effective vaccines and help control a disease that has killed more than 1.1 million people worldwide.
Elsewhere in the world, those with SARS-CoV-1 experience recognised that the risk would never have been warranted and vaccine pipe dreams were unnecessary if only people had got their shit together in the first place, and controlled the disease far earlier, without telling everyone to let it rip and get flocked.
anyway, we draw your attention to this part here
the aim will be to discover the smallest amount of virus it takes to cause a person to develop COVID-19,” Imperial College said
the claim is that “such studies have the potential to quickly identify the most effective vaccines” but we put it to you that there is another reason that Imperialists might want to discover the smallest amount of virus it takes to cause a reasonably-high-mortality and significantly-high-morbidity infectious disease
now we wonder what that might be
> the aim will be to discover the smallest amount of virus it takes to cause a person to develop COVID-19.
Good. I totally approve. That was in fact a necessary prerequisite to wearing masks. You can not evaluate mask effectiveness without this information.
But use a different coronavirus. The others just give you a bad cold.
Actual Experts Are Not Surprised That Difference In COVID-19 Illness Between Females And Males Might Also Reflect Difference In Other Immune-Mediated (Like Autoimmune) Diseases Between Females And Males
(and apparently ‘Man’Flu’ is probably legit’)
(and apparently humans around the world are similar, and exceptionalism is bullshit, what a damn surprise)
By mid-October, the coronavirus had killed almost 17,000 more American men than women, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For every 10 women claimed by the disease in the United States, 12 men have died, found an analysis by Global Health 50/50, a U.K.-based initiative to advance gender equality in health care.
Women generally have stronger immune systems, thanks to sex hormones, as well as chromosomes packed with immune-related genes. About 60 genes on the X chromosome are involved in immune function, Johns Hopkins University microbiologist Sabra Klein told The Washington Post in April. People with two X chromosomes can benefit from the double helping of some of those genes.
“The kinds of differences that we’re seeing and outcomes in covid-19 are not unexpected. They’re not exceptional,” Hawkes said. If there’s surprise, it only demonstrates the widespread underestimation of the differences in men and women that persist even among physicians, she said.
Women are less susceptible to infectious diseases than men, but are more often prone to autoimmune diseases.
Women are healthier and live longer than men. They are less susceptible to infectious diseases (1), but on the other hand 80% of individuals with autoimmune diseases are women. These diseases affect 5–10% of the population, are often chronic, and represent a considerable burden on healthcare budgets (2, 3).
Most autoimmune diseases are far more prevalent among women than among men. Women account for 80–95% of patients with primary Sjögren’s syndrome, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), primary biliary cirrhosis, autoimmune thyroid disease and systemic sclerosis, and about 60% of arthritis and multiple sclerosis patients are women. Some autoimmune diseases, like ankylosing spondylitis, are more common among men (4) (Table 1).
Autoimmune diseases affect ∼8% of the population, 78% of whom are women. The reason for the high prevalence in women is unclear. Women are known to respond to infection, vaccination, and trauma with increased antibody production and a more T helper (Th)2-predominant immune response, whereas a Th1 response and inflammation are usually more severe in men.
Why are autoimmune diseases more common in female than male ?
It is said that autoimmune diseases are about 90% more common in female than male. E.g, female:male ratios in Autoimmune Diseases: Hashimoto’s thyroiditis 10:1, Systemic lupus erythematosus 9:1,Sjogren’s syndrome 9:1, Antiphospholipid syndrome-secondary 9:1 etc. What is the actual reason behind it?
Totally untrue. China has been startlingly honest throughout the whole episode. Russia and Israel ditto.
The worst liars have been the UK, Brazil, Mexico. France and the USA are well up there among the liars.
Or to put it another way. It’s all the liars that fared worst for number of deaths and economic failure.
Or to put it yet another way, the countries where the government has no clue as to what its individuals are doing, and no interest, all fared worst.
Which should be obvious anyway.
Give it 10 minutes before Prime Minister Of The Church Of Australia covers this in some body fluid like saliva
’We are just looking for consistency’: Hillsong continues push for eased restrictions
By Mary Ward
Hillsong pastor Brian Houston has continued his push for eased restrictions on places of worship in NSW, telling 2GB’s Ben Fordham it did not make sense that he could only have 100 people at a service as 40,000 gather for the NRL grand final.
Hillsong’s auditorium in north-west Sydney can seat 4000. But in NSW churches are capped at 100 attendees, regardless of their size.
“We are just looking for consistency: whether the room is big like that or a tiny chapel that can only seat 100, the rule is exactly the same,” Mr Houston said.
Hillsong pastor Brian HoustonCredit:Janie Barrett
The megachurch pastor said he did not believe interactions between people in a place of worship were higher risk than those between supporters at a football game, noting people get “pretty close and pretty excited” while barracking for a team.
This weekend, ANZ Stadium will host 40,000 spectators for the NRL grand final.
“People shouting and high-fiving: it’s just the inconsistency of it,” Mr Houston said.
Mr Houston said Hillsong had moved its services online during the pandemic. He said it was “too soon” for it to pack out its churches the way it used to, but he believed capacity limits could be increased with social distancing in place.
“With mental health being such a big deal, and obviously it’s becoming a bigger deal for some people … I still think there’s that real need for people to be in the building.”
Give it 10 minutes before Prime Minister Of The Church Of Australia covers this in some body fluid like saliva
’We are just looking for consistency’: Hillsong continues push for eased restrictions
By Mary Ward
Hillsong pastor Brian Houston has continued his push for eased restrictions on places of worship in NSW, telling 2GB’s Ben Fordham it did not make sense that he could only have 100 people at a service as 40,000 gather for the NRL grand final.
Hillsong’s auditorium in north-west Sydney can seat 4000. But in NSW churches are capped at 100 attendees, regardless of their size.
“We are just looking for consistency: whether the room is big like that or a tiny chapel that can only seat 100, the rule is exactly the same,” Mr Houston said.
Hillsong pastor Brian HoustonCredit:Janie Barrett
The megachurch pastor said he did not believe interactions between people in a place of worship were higher risk than those between supporters at a football game, noting people get “pretty close and pretty excited” while barracking for a team.
This weekend, ANZ Stadium will host 40,000 spectators for the NRL grand final.
“People shouting and high-fiving: it’s just the inconsistency of it,” Mr Houston said.
Mr Houston said Hillsong had moved its services online during the pandemic. He said it was “too soon” for it to pack out its churches the way it used to, but he believed capacity limits could be increased with social distancing in place.
“With mental health being such a big deal, and obviously it’s becoming a bigger deal for some people … I still think there’s that real need for people to be in the building.”
The AFL wanted the Gabba to host 40k supporters for the grand final but the govt stood firm at 30k.
He has a point though, why can other places (eg shops) have a maximum based on floor size but churches can’t?
In fact, churches are also based on their ceiling height and windows open. Local Catholic Church has an allowance of 82 for funeral services indoors while outdoors it is 100.
The AFL wanted the Gabba to host 40k supporters for the grand final but the govt stood firm at 30k.
He has a point though, why can other places (eg shops) have a maximum based on floor size but churches can’t?
In fact, churches are also based on their ceiling height and windows open. Local Catholic Church has an allowance of 82 for funeral services indoors while outdoors it is 100.
In Queensland, churches’ max attendance is based in floor size
The AFL wanted the Gabba to host 40k supporters for the grand final but the govt stood firm at 30k.
He has a point though, why can other places (eg shops) have a maximum based on floor size but churches can’t?
In fact, churches are also based on their ceiling height and windows open. Local Catholic Church has an allowance of 82 for funeral services indoors while outdoors it is 100.
I’m not sure about funeral services here. I know the church round the corner requires pre-booking for Sunday services, you can’t just rock up. Not sure about the other church I drive past all the time. They’ve just got their normal “We don’t change the gospel, the gospel changes us” BS out the front.
The AFL wanted the Gabba to host 40k supporters for the grand final but the govt stood firm at 30k.
He has a point though, why can other places (eg shops) have a maximum based on floor size but churches can’t?
In fact, churches are also based on their ceiling height and windows open. Local Catholic Church has an allowance of 82 for funeral services indoors while outdoors it is 100.
I’m not sure about funeral services here. I know the church round the corner requires pre-booking for Sunday services, you can’t just rock up. Not sure about the other church I drive past all the time. They’ve just got their normal “We don’t change the gospel, the gospel changes us” BS out the front.
I’d think that in the eyes of regulators, that funeral services deserve more liberty than mass gatherings for hillsinging.
The AFL wanted the Gabba to host 40k supporters for the grand final but the govt stood firm at 30k.
He has a point though, why can other places (eg shops) have a maximum based on floor size but churches can’t?
In fact, churches are also based on their ceiling height and windows open. Local Catholic Church has an allowance of 82 for funeral services indoors while outdoors it is 100.
In Queensland, churches’ max attendance is based in floor size
Well there you go.
Someone I know is in a choir and they were allowed to sing as soon as restrictions were eased. I think their choir size is about 40ish.
Unfortunately, we’re now getting tot he stage where governments are starting to wonder just how many layers of Swiss cheese a given number of lives are worth.
Now they’re saying the ship off the Sunny Coast has links with a strain not previously seen in NZ, not Australia as the radio were saying this morning.
Trucking tycoon Lindsay Fox has broken ranks with Victorian business leader to confess he admires Premier Daniel Andrews’ “balls” to implement the harsh Melbourne lockdown.
The former truck driver turned transport magnate confessed he didn’t always agree with the approach or all of the restrictions.
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‘He has balls’: Dan’s unlikely supporter
by Lauren McMah
21st Oct 2020 5:31 AM | Updated: 9:49 AM
Trucking tycoon Lindsay Fox has broken ranks with Victorian business leader to confess he admires Premier Daniel Andrews’ “balls” to implement the harsh Melbourne lockdown.
The former truck driver turned transport magnate confessed he didn’t always agree with the approach or all of the restrictions.
MORESTORIES Queensland’s epic ‘Super Bowl’ campaignShip off Coast may have ‘never before seen’ COVID strain LNP reveals ‘largest ever’ tourism marketing campaignVictoria records one new virus caseShow More
But he said it was time for politicians to “stop throwing stones” and accept that Mr Andrews had demonstrated leadership during the pandemic.
“To the Premier’s credit, he’s had the balls to stay through the problem that started, and he’s carried it through,” Mr Fox told ABC radio.
Mr Fox said he supported a slow and steady move out of lockdown.
“Some tough decisions have got to be made and he has been tough enough to make them. I haven’t agreed with them, but they have had to be made because we are coming out of it now.
“We have a common enemy and they don’t seem to realise this. We have to unite and do things that are constructive and beneficial so when we come out of it we have some additional friends to support this marvellous country we live in.”
Mr Fox’s comments come after the bosses of seven of Australia’s biggest companies have pleaded with Mr Andrews to let Victorians return to work in order to “urgently” kickstart the state’s languishing economy.
The open letter, sent to the Victorian Premier late on Wednesday, was signed by the heads Wesfarmers, Coca-Cola Amatil, BHP, the Commonwealth Bank, Orica, Newcrest Mining and Incitec Pivot.
In it, they praised medical staff and emergency services workers and thanked Victorians for their “resilience and ingenuity” during the COVID-19 pandemic.
They also congratulated Mr Andrews for getting the state’s deadly second wave under control, but warned harsh lockdown measures were taking a dark toll.
“The current situation is not sustainable,” the CEOs wrote in the letter.
“Victorians are hurting badly, personally and economically. Medical experts have warned of the devastating effects the restrictions are having on health and mental wellbeing.”
Trucking tycoon Lindsay Fox has broken ranks with Victorian business leader to confess he admires Premier Daniel Andrews’ “balls” to implement the harsh Melbourne lockdown.
The former truck driver turned transport magnate confessed he didn’t always agree with the approach or all of the restrictions.
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NEWS
‘He has balls’: Dan’s unlikely supporter
by Lauren McMah
21st Oct 2020 5:31 AM | Updated: 9:49 AM
Trucking tycoon Lindsay Fox has broken ranks with Victorian business leader to confess he admires Premier Daniel Andrews’ “balls” to implement the harsh Melbourne lockdown.
The former truck driver turned transport magnate confessed he didn’t always agree with the approach or all of the restrictions.
MORESTORIES Queensland’s epic ‘Super Bowl’ campaignShip off Coast may have ‘never before seen’ COVID strain LNP reveals ‘largest ever’ tourism marketing campaignVictoria records one new virus caseShow More
But he said it was time for politicians to “stop throwing stones” and accept that Mr Andrews had demonstrated leadership during the pandemic.
“To the Premier’s credit, he’s had the balls to stay through the problem that started, and he’s carried it through,” Mr Fox told ABC radio.
Mr Fox said he supported a slow and steady move out of lockdown.
“Some tough decisions have got to be made and he has been tough enough to make them. I haven’t agreed with them, but they have had to be made because we are coming out of it now.
“We have a common enemy and they don’t seem to realise this. We have to unite and do things that are constructive and beneficial so when we come out of it we have some additional friends to support this marvellous country we live in.”
Mr Fox’s comments come after the bosses of seven of Australia’s biggest companies have pleaded with Mr Andrews to let Victorians return to work in order to “urgently” kickstart the state’s languishing economy.
The open letter, sent to the Victorian Premier late on Wednesday, was signed by the heads Wesfarmers, Coca-Cola Amatil, BHP, the Commonwealth Bank, Orica, Newcrest Mining and Incitec Pivot.
In it, they praised medical staff and emergency services workers and thanked Victorians for their “resilience and ingenuity” during the COVID-19 pandemic.
They also congratulated Mr Andrews for getting the state’s deadly second wave under control, but warned harsh lockdown measures were taking a dark toll.
“The current situation is not sustainable,” the CEOs wrote in the letter.
“Victorians are hurting badly, personally and economically. Medical experts have warned of the devastating effects the restrictions are having on health and mental wellbeing.”
Right but surely this is dog whistling to the militant feminists out there, they were behind the VIC.GOV but now it’s about balls the Economy Must Grow crowd have found their laddiesladies allies.
Trucking tycoon Lindsay Fox has broken ranks with Victorian business leader to confess he admires Premier Daniel Andrews’ “balls” to implement the harsh Melbourne lockdown.
The former truck driver turned transport magnate confessed he didn’t always agree with the approach or all of the restrictions.
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NEWS
‘He has balls’: Dan’s unlikely supporter
by Lauren McMah
21st Oct 2020 5:31 AM | Updated: 9:49 AM
Trucking tycoon Lindsay Fox has broken ranks with Victorian business leader to confess he admires Premier Daniel Andrews’ “balls” to implement the harsh Melbourne lockdown.
The former truck driver turned transport magnate confessed he didn’t always agree with the approach or all of the restrictions.
MORESTORIES Queensland’s epic ‘Super Bowl’ campaignShip off Coast may have ‘never before seen’ COVID strain LNP reveals ‘largest ever’ tourism marketing campaignVictoria records one new virus caseShow More
But he said it was time for politicians to “stop throwing stones” and accept that Mr Andrews had demonstrated leadership during the pandemic.
“To the Premier’s credit, he’s had the balls to stay through the problem that started, and he’s carried it through,” Mr Fox told ABC radio.
Mr Fox said he supported a slow and steady move out of lockdown.
“Some tough decisions have got to be made and he has been tough enough to make them. I haven’t agreed with them, but they have had to be made because we are coming out of it now.
“We have a common enemy and they don’t seem to realise this. We have to unite and do things that are constructive and beneficial so when we come out of it we have some additional friends to support this marvellous country we live in.”
Mr Fox’s comments come after the bosses of seven of Australia’s biggest companies have pleaded with Mr Andrews to let Victorians return to work in order to “urgently” kickstart the state’s languishing economy.
The open letter, sent to the Victorian Premier late on Wednesday, was signed by the heads Wesfarmers, Coca-Cola Amatil, BHP, the Commonwealth Bank, Orica, Newcrest Mining and Incitec Pivot.
In it, they praised medical staff and emergency services workers and thanked Victorians for their “resilience and ingenuity” during the COVID-19 pandemic.
They also congratulated Mr Andrews for getting the state’s deadly second wave under control, but warned harsh lockdown measures were taking a dark toll.
“The current situation is not sustainable,” the CEOs wrote in the letter.
“Victorians are hurting badly, personally and economically. Medical experts have warned of the devastating effects the restrictions are having on health and mental wellbeing.”
Trucking tycoon Lindsay Fox has broken ranks with Victorian business leader to confess he admires Premier Daniel Andrews’ “balls” to implement the harsh Melbourne lockdown.
The former truck driver turned transport magnate confessed he didn’t always agree with the approach or all of the restrictions.
Subscribe
Login
JUSTINNEWSSPORTSCLASSIFIEDS
20-29°CClearing shower
MACKAY
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NEWSLocal NewsJust InLetters to the EditorOpinionQueenslandNationalWorldOff BeatBusinessPhotoVideosSPORTLocal SportNational SportHorse RacingFeaturesOpinionNRLAFLSoccerCricketNetballGolfLIFESTYLEEntertainmentHealthSmarter ShoppingEducationParentingHey MummaHome & StyleEasy EatingGardeningOutdoor LivingTravelFashionDatingToday’s PuzzleHoroscopesCOMMUNITYCommunity NewsYour StoryWeddingsPetsLocal HistoryWHAT’S ONEventsCompetitionsGuidesTourismJOBSJobs NewsTraining & EducationLocal Job ListingsPost your Job AdMOTORINGMotoring NewsRoad TestFuture ModelsLocal Motoring ListingsPost your Motoring AdOBITUARIESREAL ESTATEReal Estate NewsLocal Real Estate ListingsPost your Real Estate AdCLASSIFIEDSReal EstateMotoringJobsBuy & SellNoticesTrades & ServicesHealth & BeautyPersonalsBusinesses for SalePost an AdAPN NETWORK
Subscribe Post An Ad
NEWS
‘He has balls’: Dan’s unlikely supporter
by Lauren McMah
21st Oct 2020 5:31 AM | Updated: 9:49 AM
Trucking tycoon Lindsay Fox has broken ranks with Victorian business leader to confess he admires Premier Daniel Andrews’ “balls” to implement the harsh Melbourne lockdown.
The former truck driver turned transport magnate confessed he didn’t always agree with the approach or all of the restrictions.
MORESTORIES Queensland’s epic ‘Super Bowl’ campaignShip off Coast may have ‘never before seen’ COVID strain LNP reveals ‘largest ever’ tourism marketing campaignVictoria records one new virus caseShow More
But he said it was time for politicians to “stop throwing stones” and accept that Mr Andrews had demonstrated leadership during the pandemic.
“To the Premier’s credit, he’s had the balls to stay through the problem that started, and he’s carried it through,” Mr Fox told ABC radio.
Mr Fox said he supported a slow and steady move out of lockdown.
“Some tough decisions have got to be made and he has been tough enough to make them. I haven’t agreed with them, but they have had to be made because we are coming out of it now.
“We have a common enemy and they don’t seem to realise this. We have to unite and do things that are constructive and beneficial so when we come out of it we have some additional friends to support this marvellous country we live in.”
Mr Fox’s comments come after the bosses of seven of Australia’s biggest companies have pleaded with Mr Andrews to let Victorians return to work in order to “urgently” kickstart the state’s languishing economy.
The open letter, sent to the Victorian Premier late on Wednesday, was signed by the heads Wesfarmers, Coca-Cola Amatil, BHP, the Commonwealth Bank, Orica, Newcrest Mining and Incitec Pivot.
In it, they praised medical staff and emergency services workers and thanked Victorians for their “resilience and ingenuity” during the COVID-19 pandemic.
They also congratulated Mr Andrews for getting the state’s deadly second wave under control, but warned harsh lockdown measures were taking a dark toll.
“The current situation is not sustainable,” the CEOs wrote in the letter.
“Victorians are hurting badly, personally and economically. Medical experts have warned of the devastating effects the restrictions are having on health and mental wellbeing.”
And they have now dropped to 16th on the table for deaths per million. Other countries have been overtaking them recently. They were at 12th not very long ago. (You have to put the deaths per million column in order, I think the link comes up with the countries in alphabetical order)
And they have now dropped to 16th on the table for deaths per million. Other countries have been overtaking them recently. They were at 12th not very long ago. (You have to put the deaths per million column in order, I think the link comes up with the countries in alphabetical order)
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
Yep in Worldometers you can put anything in order by clicking the column head.
We Did The Mathematics For You So You Don’t Have To
GREY — Actual Australian Population Estimate RED — Area-Matched Conventional Death Rate GREEN — Zero-Age-Matched COVID-19 Rate BLUE — Zero-Age-Matched Combined Rate
But barely as day passes where I don’t have some dill telling me that Sweden just ignored it and it went away because not really that serious.
It just went away except that they are getting 4000 new cases a week…
And a big chunk of old folk died, too.
Well, old folk, i ask you…
Anyway, didn’t Swedes used to put their old folks on boats and then set the boats on fire? Or set them adrift on ice floes? Or cover them with barbecue sauce and leave them for the wolves? Or something.
Anyway, don’t say anything about the Swedes. They’re the almost-nearly-perfect people, who get everything right. Nope, you can’t point fingers at them Swedes.
It just went away except that they are getting 4000 new cases a week…
And a big chunk of old folk died, too.
Well, old folk, i ask you…
Anyway, didn’t Swedes used to put their old folks on boats and then set the boats on fire? Or set them adrift on ice floes? Or cover them with barbecue sauce and leave them for the wolves? Or something.
Anyway, don’t say anything about the Swedes. They’re the almost-nearly-perfect people, who get everything right. Nope, you can’t point fingers at them Swedes.
We Did The Mathematics For You So You Don’t Have To
GREY — Actual Australian Population Estimate RED — Area-Matched Conventional Death Rate GREEN — Zero-Age-Matched COVID-19 Rate BLUE — Zero-Age-Matched Combined Rate
Anyway, didn’t Swedes used to put their old folks on boats and then set the boats on fire? Or set them adrift on ice floes? Or cover them with barbecue sauce and leave them for the wolves? Or something.
Anyway, don’t say anything about the Swedes. They’re the almost-nearly-perfect people, who get everything right. Nope, you can’t point fingers at them Swedes.
Indeed. ‘Blessed are the Scandinavians’ was a common trope in the social sciences when I were a lad. Guess they mucked that up, too.
This morning I was lucky enough to score some free ciabatta rolls and pumpkin seed panini from Mini Me’s school. The supermarket donates day old bread to the school to help with the chaplain’s brekky. There were tables filled with all types of bread: loaves, bread rolls of all kinds eg hot dog, burger, lunch rolls etc and every other bread product that the supermarket bakery bakes.
So for breakfast I am having cheese and tomato on ciabatta rolls which have been de-staled in the air fryer.
We Did The Mathematics For You So You Don’t Have To
GREY — Actual Australian Population Estimate RED — Area-Matched Conventional Death Rate GREEN — Zero-Age-Matched COVID-19 Rate BLUE — Zero-Age-Matched Combined Rate
Please explain. The axes are unlabelled.
truth, the labels correspond to the information described — population (in capita) and age (in years)
we look at the Australian population structure from one year to the next, obtaining an estimate of the baseline death rate
we confirm that our estimate of death rate is good by calibrating to reported annual risk of death
we apply the baseline death rate, year on year, to obtain a “natural” population curve
we obtain a COVID-19 death rate from best* available information to date (*: which isn’t very good)
we apply the COVID-19 death rate, year on year, to obtain a COVID-19-only population curve (in which all usual deaths are REPLACED with COVID-19 deaths)
— note that already, this is a lower population above age 65, and curiously, matches the actual population in that range
we also apply a combined death rate (actually by survival rate, assuming independent causes of death with overlap) and demonstrate significant population deficits even beyond age 40 (if not 30)
the areal difference between red and blue turns out to be close to the expected 2500000 deaths we would encounter if we Let It Rip Like Italy Ripped
We Did The Mathematics For You So You Don’t Have To
GREY — Actual Australian Population Estimate RED — Area-Matched Conventional Death Rate GREEN — Zero-Age-Matched COVID-19 Rate BLUE — Zero-Age-Matched Combined Rate
Please explain. The axes are unlabelled.
truth, the labels correspond to the information described — population (in capita) and age (in years)
we look at the Australian population structure from one year to the next, obtaining an estimate of the baseline death rate
we confirm that our estimate of death rate is good by calibrating to reported annual risk of death
we apply the baseline death rate, year on year, to obtain a “natural” population curve
we obtain a COVID-19 death rate from best* available information to date (*: which isn’t very good)
we apply the COVID-19 death rate, year on year, to obtain a COVID-19-only population curve (in which all usual deaths are REPLACED with COVID-19 deaths)
— note that already, this is a lower population above age 65, and curiously, matches the actual population in that range
we also apply a combined death rate (actually by survival rate, assuming independent causes of death with overlap) and demonstrate significant population deficits even beyond age 40 (if not 30)
the areal difference between red and blue turns out to be close to the expected 2500000 deaths we would encounter if we Let It Rip Like Italy Ripped
Washington state tells BNO News it’s investigating 120 suspected cases of COVID-19 reinfection. All have at least 3 months between both episodes, but more research is needed to confirm or rule out reinfection
It’s been about 9 months, but only 6 or 7 for most places.
They used to say, “oh, reinfection, slightly mutated strains, all that shit, that’s just rare and exceptional”.
Well, it’s only been 6 months. Remember how you get a tetanus booster every 5 to 10 YEARS? The fact that you get any reinfections at all within 6 months is, well …
437441 new cases were recorded yesterday, a record high number.
1225 deaths were recorded in the USA, the highest daily count since August.
When will it end….she says…
When people grow up and realise they need to take a bit of individual responsibility to solve the problem.
—
Europe’s coronavirus second wave is in full swing with 20 countries on the continent, including the UK, Italy and Switzerland, reporting record numbers of COVID-19 infections.
The records are following a worrying trend in Europe which is forcing governments to reintroduce restrictions on social interaction and hospitality services throughout the continent.
But the capacity of hospitals to handle a wave of COVID-19 patients, as well as people suffering from cancer, heart disease and other serious conditions, is still vulnerable.
Dutch health authorities said if the number of COVID patients in hospital wards continues to grow, three quarters of regular care may have to be scrapped by the end of November, and there were similar warnings from Czech authorities.
On Wednesday authorities in Lombardy, the Italian region at the centre of the first wave of the pandemic, ordered the reopening of special temporary intensive care units set up in Milan and Bergamo that were shut down as case numbers receded.
Authorities in Ireland, where the five-day case average has tripled since the start of October, said there were no longer enough officials to keep the system working.
437441 new cases were recorded yesterday, a record high number.
1225 deaths were recorded in the USA, the highest daily count since August.
When will it end….she says…
When people grow up and realise they need to take a bit of individual responsibility to solve the problem.
—
Europe’s coronavirus second wave is in full swing with 20 countries on the continent, including the UK, Italy and Switzerland, reporting record numbers of COVID-19 infections.
The records are following a worrying trend in Europe which is forcing governments to reintroduce restrictions on social interaction and hospitality services throughout the continent.
But the capacity of hospitals to handle a wave of COVID-19 patients, as well as people suffering from cancer, heart disease and other serious conditions, is still vulnerable.
Dutch health authorities said if the number of COVID patients in hospital wards continues to grow, three quarters of regular care may have to be scrapped by the end of November, and there were similar warnings from Czech authorities.
On Wednesday authorities in Lombardy, the Italian region at the centre of the first wave of the pandemic, ordered the reopening of special temporary intensive care units set up in Milan and Bergamo that were shut down as case numbers receded.
Authorities in Ireland, where the five-day case average has tripled since the start of October, said there were no longer enough officials to keep the system working.
437441 new cases were recorded yesterday, a record high number.
1225 deaths were recorded in the USA, the highest daily count since August.
When will it end….she says…
When people grow up and realise they need to take a bit of individual responsibility to solve the problem.
—
Europe’s coronavirus second wave is in full swing with 20 countries on the continent, including the UK, Italy and Switzerland, reporting record numbers of COVID-19 infections.
The records are following a worrying trend in Europe which is forcing governments to reintroduce restrictions on social interaction and hospitality services throughout the continent.
But the capacity of hospitals to handle a wave of COVID-19 patients, as well as people suffering from cancer, heart disease and other serious conditions, is still vulnerable.
Dutch health authorities said if the number of COVID patients in hospital wards continues to grow, three quarters of regular care may have to be scrapped by the end of November, and there were similar warnings from Czech authorities.
On Wednesday authorities in Lombardy, the Italian region at the centre of the first wave of the pandemic, ordered the reopening of special temporary intensive care units set up in Milan and Bergamo that were shut down as case numbers receded.
Authorities in Ireland, where the five-day case average has tripled since the start of October, said there were no longer enough officials to keep the system working.
I personally believe the Govt of Australia should be focussed on funding cardiac screening post Covid as the next wave of illness will no doubt be in this direction as a direct consequence of Covid. Some people may need to be on cardiac preventitives now and not know it.
When people grow up and realise they need to take a bit of individual responsibility to solve the problem.
—
Europe’s coronavirus second wave is in full swing with 20 countries on the continent, including the UK, Italy and Switzerland, reporting record numbers of COVID-19 infections.
The records are following a worrying trend in Europe which is forcing governments to reintroduce restrictions on social interaction and hospitality services throughout the continent.
But the capacity of hospitals to handle a wave of COVID-19 patients, as well as people suffering from cancer, heart disease and other serious conditions, is still vulnerable.
Dutch health authorities said if the number of COVID patients in hospital wards continues to grow, three quarters of regular care may have to be scrapped by the end of November, and there were similar warnings from Czech authorities.
On Wednesday authorities in Lombardy, the Italian region at the centre of the first wave of the pandemic, ordered the reopening of special temporary intensive care units set up in Milan and Bergamo that were shut down as case numbers receded.
Authorities in Ireland, where the five-day case average has tripled since the start of October, said there were no longer enough officials to keep the system working.
It’s all slowly turning to shit in Europe.
Germany is the one place where they’ve kept a lid basically on
When people grow up and realise they need to take a bit of individual responsibility to solve the problem.
—
Europe’s coronavirus second wave is in full swing with 20 countries on the continent, including the UK, Italy and Switzerland, reporting record numbers of COVID-19 infections.
The records are following a worrying trend in Europe which is forcing governments to reintroduce restrictions on social interaction and hospitality services throughout the continent.
But the capacity of hospitals to handle a wave of COVID-19 patients, as well as people suffering from cancer, heart disease and other serious conditions, is still vulnerable.
Dutch health authorities said if the number of COVID patients in hospital wards continues to grow, three quarters of regular care may have to be scrapped by the end of November, and there were similar warnings from Czech authorities.
On Wednesday authorities in Lombardy, the Italian region at the centre of the first wave of the pandemic, ordered the reopening of special temporary intensive care units set up in Milan and Bergamo that were shut down as case numbers receded.
Authorities in Ireland, where the five-day case average has tripled since the start of October, said there were no longer enough officials to keep the system working.
It’s all slowly turning to shit in Europe.
Germany is the one place where they’ve kept a lid basically on
They had >10k cases yesterday. I think the lid may have come off.
Controlling the pandemic
Should covid be left to spread among the young and healthy?
Two petitions by scientists clash on the matter
Science & technology
Oct 21st 2020
AS NEWWAVES of covid-19 sweep the world, lockdowns are back in fashion. This time, though, they are a harder sell. They certainly save lives. But it is now clear that the lost jobs, the disruption to education and medical services, and the harm to mental health that they cause all exact tolls of their own—and these are paid not just in misery, but in deaths. Systems of “test and trace”, intended to stop those exposed to the virus from passing it on, seem to have worked in some places, but not in others.
In the absence of a vaccine, or of effective drug treatments, the question of how much longer this can go on for is thus being asked more insistently. And on October 4th a trio of public-health experts from Harvard, Oxford and Stanford universities put out a petition calling on governments to change course in a radical way.
The Great Barrington Declaration, named after the town in Massachusetts where it was signed, proposes that the contagion be allowed to spread freely among younger and healthier people while measures are taken to protect the most vulnerable from infection. This approach rests on the concept of “herd immunity”, whereby the disease would stop spreading when a sufficient share of the population had become immune as a result of infection.
Thesis
That is a controversial idea. And on October 14th another group of health experts published a rebuttal in the Lancet, calling the declaration “a dangerous fallacy unsupported by scientific evidence”. Their letter has a grand title, too: the John Snow Memorandum, named after an Englishman who established the principles of epidemiology in the 1850s. It urges governments to do whatever it takes to suppress the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes the illness. In particular, it calls for continuing restrictions until governments fix their systems to test, trace and isolate infected people. Online, the duelling petitions have each gathered thousands of signatures from scientists around the world.
The Great Barrington proposal is a risky one. Any judgment about whether natural infection can create herd immunity to SARS-CoV-2 is premature. It has not yet been established whether infected people develop durable immunity against reinfection—and if so, how common that immunity might be. Few cases of reinfection have yet been confirmed conclusively. (This is done by establishing that the genomes of the virus particles found the first and second times around are indeed different, meaning the second infection cannot be a continuation of the first.) Lots of reinfections could, though, be happening undetected. About 80% of those infected with SARS-CoV-2 have mild symptoms, or none at all. The vast majority of these mild cases are not getting tested, even in countries with ample testing capacity.
The ideal study to settle this uncertainty would involve retesting frequently a large cohort of people known to have been infected in the past, to see how many become infected again. But identifying those who have had mild or symptom-free infection is hard. Tests that look for antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in big surveillance studies often fail to detect those antibodies in mild cases. Some studies have found that antibodies in these patients wane over time. But whether that equates to waning immunity is still unknown.
If the immune response to SARS-CoV-2 is anything like that to the other six coronaviruses which infect human beings, letting it spread would eventually slow transmission down—for a period. The question is how long that period would be. Four of the six cause symptoms described as “the common cold” (though other types of viruses cause colds as well). Infection with these confers protection that typically lasts for less than a year. The other two human coronaviruses, SARS and MERS, cause serious illness. Immunity to these is estimated to last for several years. If protection in the case of SARS-CoV-2 is short-lived or not particularly strong, the virus will keep surging in recurrent epidemic waves, much as happens each winter with other respiratory bugs. If it is longer-lived, the Great Barrington argument is more plausible.
Antithesis
The authors of the John Snow memorandum argue, though, that deaths and disability under the Great Barrington plan would be huge, even if the herd-immunity gamble is on the money. The share of the population which would need to be infected depends on how easily SARS-CoV-2 spreads. In its simplest form, the herd immunity threshold as a fraction of the population is 1-(1/R), where R is the average number of people who catch the virus from an infected person. With no social distancing, the R values for Europe are in the range of 3-4, meaning that herd immunity would kick in when two-thirds to three-quarters of people have been infected (see chart 1). This formula, though, assumes everyone has the same chance of infection, which is not the case in reality. If chances of infection vary, then the threshold is lower than the formula suggests. And this may matter. Young people, for example, have more contacts than oldsters, and are thus more likely to pick the virus up. Some models which assume plausible variety in contact rates have concluded that the herd-immunity threshold in western Europe could therefore be as low as 43%.
It is also possible that this threshold has been lowered by pre-existing immunity conferred by past infections with cold-causing coronaviruses. That sort of protection would come from memory T-cells, another part of the immune system’s armamentarium. Unlike antibodies, which are custom-made to attack a given pathogen, T-cells are less picky in recognising and going after a harmful invader. Several studies of blood samples taken before SARS-CoV-2 emerged have found T-cells that put up a robust reaction to that virus in 20-50% of cases. This is an exciting result. But it is not yet known whether people with such T-cells will have less severe covid-19 disease, or none at all, if they are exposed to SARS-CoV-2 in real life. An outbreak of covid-19 on a French aircraft-carrier did not come to a halt until 70% of the crew had become infected, which suggests that cross-protection from common-cold infections may just be a nice theory.
All this means that if SARS-CoV-2 is left on the loose perhaps half or more of people will become infected over the course of six months. The Great Barrington proposal is that, as this happens, countries must double down on protecting the most vulnerable. Identifying who these vulnerable people are is not a foolproof task, but knowledge about the worst combinations of risk factors is getting better. A paper published in the BMJ on October 20th describes a covid-19 risk calculator that predicts an individual’s probability of hospitalisation and death, using data on 6m people in Britain. Validation of this algorithm on 2m others showed that the 5% of people predicted to be at greatest risk by the calculator accounted for 75% of the covid-19 deaths.
But awareness of such risk scores or simpler markers of high risk (old age, obesity and diabetes in particular) is all too often of little use in practice. Most people cannot change their lives in ways that eliminate their risk of infection, particularly when there are lots of infections all around. Those who care for them, or live in the same home, would get infected at some point—and unwittingly pass the virus on. Though most deaths from covid-19 are among the elderly, many adults in younger age groups are at high risk. At the peak of the covid-19 epidemic in England and Wales deaths among people aged 45 to 64 years were 80% higher than usual (see chart 2) despite a lockdown and official advice to the most vulnerable to “shield” from the virus by not leaving their homes at all.
Although the vast majority of people do not get seriously ill if covid strikes, as many as 5% of those who develop symptoms may remain unwell for at least eight weeks (a condition known as “long covid”). Some of them have not recovered after six months, and there are fears that they may never get back to normal. Even if less than 1% of the infected end up in this unlucky group, for a country the size of Britain that would be hundreds of thousands of people with lifelong disability. Another big unknown is whether there are any hidden health consequences of the virus that may show up in the future. Some studies have found subtle heart changes following mild covid-19. It may not be clear for years whether these lead to serious heart problems for some people, or do not matter at all.
Synthesis?
The Great Barrington plan, then, is a high-risk, high-reward proposition. The John Snow one, by contrast, would minimise covid deaths in the short term, but lives lost in the long-term, because of lockdowns and other disruptions, might end up being more numerous. Over time, as governments fix the test and trace systems that are needed to replace the broader restrictions, the motivation for the Great Barrington course of action will become less potent.
With luck, this whole debate will be rendered irrelevant by the invention of a vaccine or the development of suitable drugs to treat covid. The results of several efficacy trials of vaccines, and tests on promising pharmaceuticals, are expected in the coming weeks. If covid-19 is less deadly and some herd immunity comes from a vaccine, the paths charted by the two petitions will, eventually, come together.
Lauren M. Rossen, a senior health statistician at the National Center for Health Statistics and lead author of Tuesday’s report, said the death rate in the young-adult age group “was trending up before the pandemic.” But it’s still not clear why excess deaths for 25- to 44-year-olds rose so quickly. The unexpectedly high mortality rates for adults in the prime of their lives, from 25 to 65, has been a source of ongoing concern for public health experts and others in recent years, especially since a spike in deaths from drugs, alcohol and suicide was recognized. While the virus continues to prey mainly on older people and, disproportionately, African Americans and Latinos, the rate of excess mortality among 25- to 44-year-olds was less expected. Among 45- to 64-year-olds the increase was 14.4 percent, and among 65- to 74-year-olds it was 24.1 percent.
According to the CDC, 5,707 people in the 25-to-44-year-old age group have succumbed to covid-19 since the beginning of the pandemic in the United States.
Controlling the pandemic
Should covid be left to spread among the young and healthy?
Two petitions by scientists clash on the matter
Science & technology
Oct 21st 2020
AS NEWWAVES of covid-19 sweep the world, lockdowns are back in fashion. This time, though, they are a harder sell. They certainly save lives. But it is now clear that the lost jobs, the disruption to education and medical services, and the harm to mental health that they cause all exact tolls of their own—and these are paid not just in misery, but in deaths. Systems of “test and trace”, intended to stop those exposed to the virus from passing it on, seem to have worked in some places, but not in others.
In the absence of a vaccine, or of effective drug treatments, the question of how much longer this can go on for is thus being asked more insistently. And on October 4th a trio of public-health experts from Harvard, Oxford and Stanford universities put out a petition calling on governments to change course in a radical way.
The Great Barrington Declaration, named after the town in Massachusetts where it was signed, proposes that the contagion be allowed to spread freely among younger and healthier people while measures are taken to protect the most vulnerable from infection. This approach rests on the concept of “herd immunity”, whereby the disease would stop spreading when a sufficient share of the population had become immune as a result of infection.
Thesis
That is a controversial idea. And on October 14th another group of health experts published a rebuttal in the Lancet, calling the declaration “a dangerous fallacy unsupported by scientific evidence”. Their letter has a grand title, too: the John Snow Memorandum, named after an Englishman who established the principles of epidemiology in the 1850s. It urges governments to do whatever it takes to suppress the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes the illness. In particular, it calls for continuing restrictions until governments fix their systems to test, trace and isolate infected people. Online, the duelling petitions have each gathered thousands of signatures from scientists around the world.
The Great Barrington proposal is a risky one. Any judgment about whether natural infection can create herd immunity to SARS-CoV-2 is premature. It has not yet been established whether infected people develop durable immunity against reinfection—and if so, how common that immunity might be. Few cases of reinfection have yet been confirmed conclusively. (This is done by establishing that the genomes of the virus particles found the first and second times around are indeed different, meaning the second infection cannot be a continuation of the first.) Lots of reinfections could, though, be happening undetected. About 80% of those infected with SARS-CoV-2 have mild symptoms, or none at all. The vast majority of these mild cases are not getting tested, even in countries with ample testing capacity.
The ideal study to settle this uncertainty would involve retesting frequently a large cohort of people known to have been infected in the past, to see how many become infected again. But identifying those who have had mild or symptom-free infection is hard. Tests that look for antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in big surveillance studies often fail to detect those antibodies in mild cases. Some studies have found that antibodies in these patients wane over time. But whether that equates to waning immunity is still unknown.
If the immune response to SARS-CoV-2 is anything like that to the other six coronaviruses which infect human beings, letting it spread would eventually slow transmission down—for a period. The question is how long that period would be. Four of the six cause symptoms described as “the common cold” (though other types of viruses cause colds as well). Infection with these confers protection that typically lasts for less than a year. The other two human coronaviruses, SARS and MERS, cause serious illness. Immunity to these is estimated to last for several years. If protection in the case of SARS-CoV-2 is short-lived or not particularly strong, the virus will keep surging in recurrent epidemic waves, much as happens each winter with other respiratory bugs. If it is longer-lived, the Great Barrington argument is more plausible.
Antithesis
The authors of the John Snow memorandum argue, though, that deaths and disability under the Great Barrington plan would be huge, even if the herd-immunity gamble is on the money. The share of the population which would need to be infected depends on how easily SARS-CoV-2 spreads. In its simplest form, the herd immunity threshold as a fraction of the population is 1-(1/R), where R is the average number of people who catch the virus from an infected person. With no social distancing, the R values for Europe are in the range of 3-4, meaning that herd immunity would kick in when two-thirds to three-quarters of people have been infected (see chart 1). This formula, though, assumes everyone has the same chance of infection, which is not the case in reality. If chances of infection vary, then the threshold is lower than the formula suggests. And this may matter. Young people, for example, have more contacts than oldsters, and are thus more likely to pick the virus up. Some models which assume plausible variety in contact rates have concluded that the herd-immunity threshold in western Europe could therefore be as low as 43%.
It is also possible that this threshold has been lowered by pre-existing immunity conferred by past infections with cold-causing coronaviruses. That sort of protection would come from memory T-cells, another part of the immune system’s armamentarium. Unlike antibodies, which are custom-made to attack a given pathogen, T-cells are less picky in recognising and going after a harmful invader. Several studies of blood samples taken before SARS-CoV-2 emerged have found T-cells that put up a robust reaction to that virus in 20-50% of cases. This is an exciting result. But it is not yet known whether people with such T-cells will have less severe covid-19 disease, or none at all, if they are exposed to SARS-CoV-2 in real life. An outbreak of covid-19 on a French aircraft-carrier did not come to a halt until 70% of the crew had become infected, which suggests that cross-protection from common-cold infections may just be a nice theory.
All this means that if SARS-CoV-2 is left on the loose perhaps half or more of people will become infected over the course of six months. The Great Barrington proposal is that, as this happens, countries must double down on protecting the most vulnerable. Identifying who these vulnerable people are is not a foolproof task, but knowledge about the worst combinations of risk factors is getting better. A paper published in the BMJ on October 20th describes a covid-19 risk calculator that predicts an individual’s probability of hospitalisation and death, using data on 6m people in Britain. Validation of this algorithm on 2m others showed that the 5% of people predicted to be at greatest risk by the calculator accounted for 75% of the covid-19 deaths.
But awareness of such risk scores or simpler markers of high risk (old age, obesity and diabetes in particular) is all too often of little use in practice. Most people cannot change their lives in ways that eliminate their risk of infection, particularly when there are lots of infections all around. Those who care for them, or live in the same home, would get infected at some point—and unwittingly pass the virus on. Though most deaths from covid-19 are among the elderly, many adults in younger age groups are at high risk. At the peak of the covid-19 epidemic in England and Wales deaths among people aged 45 to 64 years were 80% higher than usual (see chart 2) despite a lockdown and official advice to the most vulnerable to “shield” from the virus by not leaving their homes at all.
Although the vast majority of people do not get seriously ill if covid strikes, as many as 5% of those who develop symptoms may remain unwell for at least eight weeks (a condition known as “long covid”). Some of them have not recovered after six months, and there are fears that they may never get back to normal. Even if less than 1% of the infected end up in this unlucky group, for a country the size of Britain that would be hundreds of thousands of people with lifelong disability. Another big unknown is whether there are any hidden health consequences of the virus that may show up in the future. Some studies have found subtle heart changes following mild covid-19. It may not be clear for years whether these lead to serious heart problems for some people, or do not matter at all.
Synthesis?
The Great Barrington plan, then, is a high-risk, high-reward proposition. The John Snow one, by contrast, would minimise covid deaths in the short term, but lives lost in the long-term, because of lockdowns and other disruptions, might end up being more numerous. Over time, as governments fix the test and trace systems that are needed to replace the broader restrictions, the motivation for the Great Barrington course of action will become less potent.
With luck, this whole debate will be rendered irrelevant by the invention of a vaccine or the development of suitable drugs to treat covid. The results of several efficacy trials of vaccines, and tests on promising pharmaceuticals, are expected in the coming weeks. If covid-19 is less deadly and some herd immunity comes from a vaccine, the paths charted by the two petitions will, eventually, come together.
“Taiwan’s National Health Research Institutes established dedicated respiratory nursing homes with thousands of ventilators and increased intensive care capacity to 10,000 beds. It never needed them after it stopped travellers from China in January, ordered mandatory quarantines for those who had come home or locals who had symptoms and tracked them through their phones, reducing their reliance on police or security enforcement.
If a phone turned off, the owner would be greeted by a knock at the door by health authorities. They used the public’s digital lean to establish a contact-tracing system that avoided the need for harsh economic restrictions.”
Different members of the family were receiving instructions from different case managers, but Professor Cheng said, in future, single case managers should be assigned to families to avoid mixed messages.
Different members of the family were receiving instructions from different case managers, but Professor Cheng said, in future, single case managers should be assigned to families to avoid mixed messages.
“Taiwan’s National Health Research Institutes established dedicated respiratory nursing homes with thousands of ventilators and increased intensive care capacity to 10,000 beds. It never needed them after it stopped travellers from China in January, ordered mandatory quarantines for those who had come home or locals who had symptoms and tracked them through their phones, reducing their reliance on police or security enforcement.
If a phone turned off, the owner would be greeted by a knock at the door by health authorities. They used the public’s digital lean to establish a contact-tracing system that avoided the need for harsh economic restrictions.”
Different members of the family were receiving instructions from different case managers, but Professor Cheng said, in future, single case managers should be assigned to families to avoid mixed messages.
Just reading this, they seem to be “high achievers” who pushed themselves normally. Remember when we had “burnout” in such people? Sometimes triggered by a viral infection. I think that is what they now call post viral fatigue, but knowing some high achievers, this fits the bill.
Different members of the family were receiving instructions from different case managers, but Professor Cheng said, in future, single case managers should be assigned to families to avoid mixed messages.
HAGACE.
HAGACE
What is this undefined initialisation?
It’s an expression of frustration and bewilderment at the poverty of quality and integrity of community education coming from the Victorian Health authorities. I made it up a few weeks ago. Health Are Garbage At Community Education.
It’s an expression of frustration and bewilderment at the poverty of quality and integrity of community education coming from the Victorian Health authorities. I made it up a few weeks ago. Health Are Garbage At Community Education.
Hydroxychloroquine is back in the spotlight this week as we look at a new push by Liberal backbenchers Craig Kelly and George Christensen to lift a ban on the drug being prescribed as a COVID-19 treatment.
We’ve also drawn on the work of international fact checkers who looked into the backgrounds of the authors and signatories of a declaration calling for an end to lockdowns, and share some handy resources for do-it-yourself fact-checking.”
Early on the received wisdom from the WHO was that masks don’t really work, then they changed their tune and said masks really do work and now nearly everyone in Europe seems to be wearing a mask but they don’t seem to be working.
Australia implemented international border restrictions early in the course of the pandemic in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19. From 28 March 2020 all returning travelers have been required to undertake 14 days of quarantine in a designated facility. Since then, some 130,000 international and domestic travelers have been quarantined slowing the spread of COVID-19 in Australia.
The review has examined quarantine systems and processes in all States and Territories except Victoria, met with relevant agencies and reviewed hotel quarantine arrangements and witnessed passenger arrivals. A model of good practice in an end to end quarantine system, together with the role of coordination of decision making, risk mitigation, community safety and patient care has been described.
Hotel quarantine is difficult to endure, particularly for vulnerable people. It is an expensive resource and requires a highly specialised workforce to support the system including clinical, welfare and security services in order to mitigate risk and discharge duty of care obligations. Infection prevention and control processes need to be tightly managed. Clear communication and decision making across agencies must be defined – including clear lines of accountability and risk ownership. Clinical and mental health support needs to be integrated within the system and should not rely on guests needing to reach out. Guests also need access to clear communication channels before they travel and timely review and appeals mechanisms.
States and Territories can improve hotel quarantine practices by adopting best practice. End to end assurance is necessary to ensure standards are maintained. With six months of quarantine experience and the likelihood that hotel quarantine will remain in place for some time, Australia’s one size fits all approach should be reconsidered to take account of greater knowledge of the virus, different prevalence in countries of origin of travelers, an understanding of how to incorporate risk-based approaches in system design and different models of quarantine made possible by new testing and monitoring arrangements. This will be essential to place quarantining arrangements on a more sustainable footing into the medium term.
This is important as pressure to increase travel to and from Australia is growing. Existing models of quarantine are unlikely to be able to expand significantly above current levels and new approaches that manage risk are needed. An ability to add scale through surge capacity should be considered.
In this context the review recommends:
States and Territories should embed end-to-end assurance mechanisms and look to continuously improve hotel quarantine to ensure that it is delivered consistent with good practice.
Information on the quarantine system should be easy to access by travelers in order to ensure their understanding of quarantine and to better psychologically prepare them for the experience. This should be provided across relevant Commonwealth/State and Territory websites.
People in quarantine should have access to timely decision making and review processes, and complaints mechanisms including pathways for escalation.
Options for new models of quarantine should be developed for consideration by National Cabinet including a risk assessment of these options and an analysis of traveler suitability.
National Cabinet should consider exempting low risk cohorts, such as travelers from New Zealand, from mandatory quarantine.
The Australian Government should consider a national facility for quarantine to be used for emergency situations, emergency evacuations or urgent scalability.
When Singapore faced a second wave of coronavirus in April, it ordered a “circuit-breaker” — an eight-week lockdown for all citizens. Of course, that’s easier to order in a city-state where the Government has significant power, and its five million residents are known for complying with authorities.
It’s a different scenario in a country the size of the US, with the population of some states similar to that of countries. While some experts say forcing Americans back into their homes is the only option, others say it is legally challenging and culturally impossible.
When Singapore faced a second wave of coronavirus in April, it ordered a “circuit-breaker” — an eight-week lockdown for all citizens. Of course, that’s easier in a place where the community cares about their old people, where people care about their own health, and where people care about the lives of each other.
State Opposition Leader Michael O’Brien says the Premier has “broken Victorians’ hearts”
Another virus spreader
They just dont get it.
With 0 cases it should not be long before reopening
Hopefully with no new outbreaks
.
these fuckers need to explain how turning around when you see danger, and saying “just hold up a mo’, let’s get a measure of this danger before we proceed”, is “paralysis”
‘The Spirit of Tasmania’ is resuming operations for:
-Tasmanian residents returning to Tasmania;
-Essential Travellers to Tasmania;
-Freight operators;
-Passengers travelling to the mainland from Tasmania; and
-Passengers from low-risk jurisdictions (South Australia, Western Australia, the Northern Territory, Queensland and the ACT)
It is a pattern repeating all over the world I’m afraid. Apart from a few countries that never got the first wave under control in the place and got a second on top of it.
It is a pattern repeating all over the world I’m afraid. Apart from a few countries that never got the first wave under control in the place and got a second on top of it.
Curiously however, in many European countries experiencing a big second wave the death toll is far lower than what was experienced in the first.
It is a pattern repeating all over the world I’m afraid. Apart from a few countries that never got the first wave under control in the place and got a second on top of it.
Curiously however, in many European countries experiencing a big second wave the death toll is far lower than what was experienced in the first.
It is a pattern repeating all over the world I’m afraid. Apart from a few countries that never got the first wave under control in the place and got a second on top of it.
Curiously however, in many European countries experiencing a big second wave the death toll is far lower than what was experienced in the first.
That is interesting, I wonder why that is.
Dunno. Maybe all the wrinklies died in the first wave.
Heard on the radio today that deaths in Qld, from the flue this year is like in single figures compared with over 200 last year. That’s all the report said.
Now since we’ve only had like ~10 deaths from Covid we are way ahead.
Heard on the radio today that deaths in Qld, from the flue this year is like in single figures compared with over 200 last year. That’s all the report said.
Now since we’ve only had like ~10 deaths from Covid we are way ahead.
I’m surprised there is that many chimney accidents in Queensland per annum.
It is a pattern repeating all over the world I’m afraid. Apart from a few countries that never got the first wave under control in the place and got a second on top of it.
Curiously however, in many European countries experiencing a big second wave the death toll is far lower than what was experienced in the first.
We know now what therapeutic techniques work now. Apparently having patients on their stomach is one.
It is a pattern repeating all over the world I’m afraid. Apart from a few countries that never got the first wave under control in the place and got a second on top of it.
Curiously however, in many European countries experiencing a big second wave the death toll is far lower than what was experienced in the first.
We know now what therapeutic techniques work now. Apparently having patients on their stomach is one.
It is a pattern repeating all over the world I’m afraid. Apart from a few countries that never got the first wave under control in the place and got a second on top of it.
Curiously however, in many European countries experiencing a big second wave the death toll is far lower than what was experienced in the first.
We know now what therapeutic techniques work now. Apparently having patients on their stomach is one.
soldiers march on their stomachs. which is really weird.
Australia’s coronavirus epicenter records no new cases as the US and Western Europe struggle to contain the pandemic
Melbourne, the city at the epicenter of Australia’s coronavirus epidemic, will move out of lockdown this week after the Victoria state health department on Sunday reported no new cases and no deaths due to the virus for the first time in more than four months.
Announcing the relaxation of restrictions at a news conference on Monday, Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews said starting on Tuesday at 11:59 p.m., Melbourne residents will be allowed to leave their homes and most businesses in the state can reopen with restrictions on the number of people.
“With 0 cases and so much testing, we are able to say that now is the time to open up. Now is the time to congratulate every single Victorian who has stayed the course,” Andrews said.
The remarkable milestone of no new cases comes just months after Andrews declared a “state of disaster” to stem an outbreak that saw as many as 725 people in the state test positive for the virus in a single day.
The steep decline in cases has allowed the government to lift major social distancing measures that have been in place for weeks.
As cases began skyrocketing this summer, Andrews put in place the type of strict anti-epidemic measures that governments in Western Europe and the United States have been hesitant to enact out of fear of damaging the economy and trampling on civil liberties.
From a public health standpoint, Andrews’ decision appeared to have worked. While cases in Europe continue to skyrocket to record-breaking levels and US President Donald Trump’s chief of staff said the United States “will not be able to contain the pandemic,” Victoria appears to have done just that.
East Asian governments including those in China, South Korea and Taiwan have not needed to put in place such restrictions because early efforts to contain the virus focused on testing and contact tracing, combined with the readiness of their respective populations to wear masks and follow social distancing guidelines, which helped keep the pandemic in check.
(CNN)A stunning White House claim that the US cannot control the fast-worsening pandemic is overshadowing President Donald Trump’s frantic last-ditch bid to turn around his reelection race with Democrat Joe Biden with eight days to go.
The comments by White House chief of staff Mark Meadows on CNN on Sunday alarmed medical experts who argue that letting the coronavirus rage unchecked is akin to a policy of herd immunity that will cost many thousands of lives. But with daily new infections hitting record levels, Trump spent the weekend in a campaign blitz in which he openly flouted steps like masking and social distancing that could slow the spread of the disease and moaned that all the media talks about is “Covid, Covid, Covid.”
“We are not going to control the pandemic,” Meadows told CNN’s Jake Tapper on “State of the Union” Sunday, arguing that “proper mitigation factors” like therapies and vaccines should be the priority.
East Asian governments including those in China, South Korea and Taiwan have not needed to put in place such restrictions because early efforts to contain the virus focused on testing and contact tracing, combined with the readiness of their respective populations to wear masks and follow social distancing guidelines, which helped keep the pandemic in check.
I don’t know about South Korea but both China and Taiwan use electronic monitoring using smart-phones to keep track of your activities in case you possibly need to be contacted for contact tracing. And this is far more invasive than out Covid- tracing app that seems to not be fit for purpose. I don’t know if western liberal democracies would tolerate such surveillance.
But then Vietnam and Thailand are also doing very well without such intrusions so it’s a bit of a conundrum.
And it is such an unnecessary, stupid, badly orchestrated fucked. It’s the can’t organise a fuck in a brothel type of fucked. And he will still get so many votes..
And it is such an unnecessary, stupid, badly orchestrated fucked. It’s the can’t organise a fuck in a brothel type of fucked. And he will still get so many votes..
Daft people.
Yeah. But the same thing is going on in parts of Europe too. They won’t go back to lock downs even though the second wave is already far bigger than the first. I don’t know how France and the UK are going to get it back under control. I don’t read French so I’m not sure of what their problems are, but the UK situation has been badly mismanaged by the Tories. They still don’t have an effective track and trace system, plus their 3-tier restriction scheme measures are inadequate to actually control the spread of the disease according to their own scientific advisors. They are going to get the double-whammy in a couple months time when brexit takes affect too. But the poms will just moan about it and do nothing. Their trouble is that they are not violent and riotous enough.
And it is such an unnecessary, stupid, badly orchestrated fucked. It’s the can’t organise a fuck in a brothel type of fucked. And he will still get so many votes..
Daft people.
Yeah. But the same thing is going on in parts of Europe too. They won’t go back to lock downs even though the second wave is already far bigger than the first. I don’t know how France and the UK are going to get it back under control. I don’t read French so I’m not sure of what their problems are, but the UK situation has been badly mismanaged by the Tories. They still don’t have an effective track and trace system, plus their 3-tier restriction scheme measures are inadequate to actually control the spread of the disease according to their own scientific advisors. They are going to get the double-whammy in a couple months time when brexit takes affect too. But the poms will just moan about it and do nothing. Their trouble is that they are not violent and riotous enough.
My friend Noni, hubby and kids are in a small village in the north of France. they have tickets to come home just after Christmas. It must see like a long time from now.
Dr Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious disease expert, said the country is still experiencing its first wave of coronavirus infections, as cases surge in dozens of states.
I have a vague recollection of reading some years ago about some sort of positioning to help breathing when you’ve got a stuffy nose. I think it was head over the edge of the bed or something, it might have been on stomach, head down. If you can clear the stuffy nose, you can get more air into the lungs, which would give you more access to oxygen in a compromised lung.
Dr Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious disease expert, said the country is still experiencing its first wave of coronavirus infections, as cases surge in dozens of states.
Dr Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious disease expert, said the country is still experiencing its first wave of coronavirus infections, as cases surge in dozens of states.
See, it works. Unlike most of the world the USA is not in a second wave of infection!!!!
The person who gave a talk at Skepticon about pandemics (it was a good wideranging talk) said he thought Australia is still first wave.
Ah yes, and another Interesting Thing that I learnt from that speaker. Quarantine. The 40 days was probably a biblical based decision. But fortunately, as it was first instituted in that form for the Black Plague, the incubation time for Yersinia pestis is up to 38 days. So it was serendipitously just right. It did cross my mind that other societies which shunned the unwell did in fact institute a type of quarantine. But the fortuitousness of the 40 days was interesting.
Dr Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious disease expert, said the country is still experiencing its first wave of coronavirus infections, as cases surge in dozens of states.
See, it works. Unlike most of the world the USA is not in a second wave of infection!!!!
The person who gave a talk at Skepticon about pandemics (it was a good wideranging talk) said he thought Australia is still first wave.
Ah yes, and another Interesting Thing that I learnt from that speaker. Quarantine. The 40 days was probably a biblical based decision. But fortunately, as it was first instituted in that form for the Black Plague, the incubation time for Yersinia pestis is up to 38 days. So it was serendipitously just right. It did cross my mind that other societies which shunned the unwell did in fact institute a type of quarantine. But the fortuitousness of the 40 days was interesting.
Dr Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious disease expert, said the country is still experiencing its first wave of coronavirus infections, as cases surge in dozens of states.
See, it works. Unlike most of the world the USA is not in a second wave of infection!!!!
The person who gave a talk at Skepticon about pandemics (it was a good wideranging talk) said he thought Australia is still first wave.
Ah yes, and another Interesting Thing that I learnt from that speaker. Quarantine. The 40 days was probably a biblical based decision. But fortunately, as it was first instituted in that form for the Black Plague, the incubation time for Yersinia pestis is up to 38 days. So it was serendipitously just right. It did cross my mind that other societies which shunned the unwell did in fact institute a type of quarantine. But the fortuitousness of the 40 days was interesting.
Could be a coincidence?
could be that other cultures that didn’t know how to count above 37 died out from plague
Dr Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious disease expert, said the country is still experiencing its first wave of coronavirus infections, as cases surge in dozens of states.
See, it works. Unlike most of the world the USA is not in a second wave of infection!!!!
The person who gave a talk at Skepticon about pandemics (it was a good wideranging talk) said he thought Australia is still first wave.
Ah yes, and another Interesting Thing that I learnt from that speaker. Quarantine. The 40 days was probably a biblical based decision. But fortunately, as it was first instituted in that form for the Black Plague, the incubation time for Yersinia pestis is up to 38 days. So it was serendipitously just right. It did cross my mind that other societies which shunned the unwell did in fact institute a type of quarantine. But the fortuitousness of the 40 days was interesting.
Could be a coincidence?
I think my use of words like serendipitous and fortuitous kind of covered that…
The person who gave a talk at Skepticon about pandemics (it was a good wideranging talk) said he thought Australia is still first wave.
Ah yes, and another Interesting Thing that I learnt from that speaker. Quarantine. The 40 days was probably a biblical based decision. But fortunately, as it was first instituted in that form for the Black Plague, the incubation time for Yersinia pestis is up to 38 days. So it was serendipitously just right. It did cross my mind that other societies which shunned the unwell did in fact institute a type of quarantine. But the fortuitousness of the 40 days was interesting.
Could be a coincidence?
I think my use of words like serendipitous and fortuitous kind of covered that…
Well, it’s happened. Someone I know had died of Covid-19. She was my half brother’s mother’s brother’s wife. My half brother’s aunt. She was in the Czech Republic and I’m guessing that she was in her late sixties. It’s bad over there.
Well, it’s happened. Someone I know had died of Covid-19. She was my half brother’s mother’s brother’s wife. My half brother’s aunt. She was in the Czech Republic and I’m guessing that she was in her late sixties. It’s bad over there.
Well, it’s happened. Someone I know had died of Covid-19. She was my half brother’s mother’s brother’s wife. My half brother’s aunt. She was in the Czech Republic and I’m guessing that she was in her late sixties. It’s bad over there.
Well, it’s happened. Someone I know had died of Covid-19. She was my half brother’s mother’s brother’s wife. My half brother’s aunt. She was in the Czech Republic and I’m guessing that she was in her late sixties. It’s bad over there.
Well, it’s happened. Someone I know had died of Covid-19. She was my half brother’s mother’s brother’s wife. My half brother’s aunt. She was in the Czech Republic and I’m guessing that she was in her late sixties. It’s bad over there.
Did you really know her?
No. I’d never met her nor her husband, but they and their children were the subject of many family conversations while I was growing up. FWIW, my half brother, his mother and my father all moved to the Czech Republic in the mid ’90’s so I’d heard very little about them since.
No, I can’t let it pass…I don’t know who most of those people are…
Sam Newman, ???, ???, Andrew Bolt, Rowan Dean, some pollie who’s name I can’ recall, ???, Steve Price, Neil Mitchell, Joe Hildebrand, Jeff Kennett, Alan Jones, ???, Rita Pahini, Tim Wilson, Peta Credlin
No, I can’t let it pass…I don’t know who most of those people are…
Sam Newman, ???, ???, Andrew Bolt, Rowan Dean, some pollie who’s name I can’ recall, ???, Steve Price, Neil Mitchell, Joe Hildebrand, Jeff Kennett, Alan Jones, ???, Rita Pahini, Tim Wilson, Peta Credlin
No, I can’t let it pass…I don’t know who most of those people are…
Sam Newman, ???, ???, Andrew Bolt, Rowan Dean, some pollie who’s name I can’ recall, ???, Steve Price, Neil Mitchell, Joe Hildebrand, Jeff Kennett, Alan Jones, ???, Rita Pahini, Tim Wilson, Peta Credlin
The ones I recognized were Bolt, Hildebrand the younger (he is so like his father they look the same), Peta Credlin.
No, I can’t let it pass…I don’t know who most of those people are…
Sam Newman, ???, ???, Andrew Bolt, Rowan Dean, some pollie who’s name I can’ recall, ???, Steve Price, Neil Mitchell, Joe Hildebrand, Jeff Kennett, Alan Jones, ???, Rita Pahini, Tim Wilson, Peta Credlin
No, I can’t let it pass…I don’t know who most of those people are…
Sam Newman, ???, ???, Andrew Bolt, Rowan Dean, some pollie who’s name I can’ recall, ???, Steve Price, Neil Mitchell, Joe Hildebrand, Jeff Kennett, Alan Jones, ???, Rita Pahini, Tim Wilson, Peta Credlin
No, I can’t let it pass…I don’t know who most of those people are…
Sam Newman, ???, ???, Andrew Bolt, Rowan Dean, some pollie who’s name I can’ recall, ???, Steve Price, Neil Mitchell, Joe Hildebrand, Jeff Kennett, Alan Jones, ???, Rita Pahini, Tim Wilson, Peta Credlin
No, I can’t let it pass…I don’t know who most of those people are…
Sam Newman, ???, ???, Andrew Bolt, Rowan Dean, some pollie who’s name I can’ recall, ???, Steve Price, Neil Mitchell, Joe Hildebrand, Jeff Kennett, Alan Jones, ???, Rita Pahini, Tim Wilson, Peta Credlin
so apart from being a collection of deuterostomal blastopores captioned by hostile language, what is the underlying message of the graphic
vic is open(ish) so the wind is out of their sails, Hahahaha s’if, they may keep their powder dry for another time so we shouldn’t count our chickens just yet.
so apart from being a collection of deuterostomal blastopores captioned by hostile language, what is the underlying message of the graphic
vic is open(ish) so the wind is out of their sails, Hahahaha s’if, they may keep their powder dry for another time so we shouldn’t count our chickens just yet.
A total of 20 new confirmed and 161 new asymptomatic cases were reported across mainland China on Sunday, the National Health Commission said in a statement.
… we thought asymptomatic was about 20%, not 89%, are they lying again …
No, I can’t let it pass…I don’t know who most of those people are…
Sam Newman, ???, ???, Andrew Bolt, Rowan Dean, some pollie who’s name I can’ recall, ???, Steve Price, Neil Mitchell, Joe Hildebrand, Jeff Kennett, Alan Jones, ???, Rita Pahini, Tim Wilson, Peta Credlin
The ones I recognized were Bolt, Hildebrand the younger (he is so like his father they look the same), Peta Credlin.
so apart from being a collection of deuterostomal blastopores captioned by hostile language, what is the underlying message of the graphic
vic is open(ish) so the wind is out of their sails, Hahahaha s’if, they may keep their powder dry for another time so we shouldn’t count our chickens just yet.
No matter what you say, you’re gonna be criticised.
They’ve all been very critical of Dan Andrews.
that the lock down measures worked.
thanks
well enough that some other places around the world were going to copy the model weren’t they
haven’t seen much more news about that (well duh, wegeddit, Rupie and all) but how’s that going
Sam Newman, ???, ???, Andrew Bolt, Rowan Dean, some pollie who’s name I can’ recall, ???, Steve Price, Neil Mitchell, Joe Hildebrand, Jeff Kennett, Alan Jones, ???, Rita Pahini, Tim Wilson, Peta Credlin
The ones I recognized were Bolt, Hildebrand the younger (he is so like his father they look the same), Peta Credlin.
Wasn’t Kennett your Premier for quite a while?
Oh yes, I did get him too. I prefer not to know about him. I probably blanked him out.
Here, we engineer the D614G mutation in the USA-WA1/2020 strain and characterize its effect. D614G enhances replication on human lung epithelial cells and primary human airway tissues through an improved infectivity of virions. Hamsters infected with the G614 variant produced higher infectious titers in the nasal washes and trachea, but not lungs, confirming clinical evidence that the D614G mutation enhances viral loads in the upper respiratory tract of COVID-19 patients and may increases transmission.
Read article for slightly happier bits of news as well.
Here, we engineer the D614G mutation in the USA-WA1/2020 strain and characterize its effect. D614G enhances replication on human lung epithelial cells and primary human airway tissues through an improved infectivity of virions. Hamsters infected with the G614 variant produced higher infectious titers in the nasal washes and trachea, but not lungs, confirming clinical evidence that the D614G mutation enhances viral loads in the upper respiratory tract of COVID-19 patients and may increases transmission.
Read article for slightly happier bits of news as well.
But were they scientists engineering the virus, or engineers sciencing the virus?
Panicked Johnson orders new lockdown, second wave on course to kill 85,000
By Bevan Shields
November 1, 2020 — 7.03am
London: Prime Minister Boris Johnson has ordered a sweeping national lockdown after being told the second wave striking England is more severe than the government’s worst-case scenario forecasts and could collapse the health system
Panicked Johnson orders new lockdown, second wave on course to kill 85,000
By Bevan Shields
November 1, 2020 — 7.03am
London: Prime Minister Boris Johnson has ordered a sweeping national lockdown after being told the second wave striking England is more severe than the government’s worst-case scenario forecasts and could collapse the health system
Panicked Johnson orders new lockdown, second wave on course to kill 85,000
By Bevan Shields
November 1, 2020 — 7.03am
London: Prime Minister Boris Johnson has ordered a sweeping national lockdown after being told the second wave striking England is more severe than the government’s worst-case scenario forecasts and could collapse the health system
What if I told you that it is possible to admire the way in which Dan Andrews and his team have suppressed Victoria’s second wave, whilst also being upset over the failures in hotel quarantine that lead to it in the first place?
The two feelings aren’t mutually exclusive.
There were mistakes made in hotel quarantine. These mistakes resulted in the virus escaping the confines of one quarantine hotel and eventually triggering the second wave. Nobody is denying that at all. The Premier has acknowledged these failures, and has acknowledged the importance of learning lessons from them by setting up an independent inquiry.
But what is galling is the fact that the biased media portrays the failures in Victoria’s quarantine hotels as being a uniquely Victorian problem that must solely be attributed to our big bad Labour State government.
The fact is that the failures seen in Victoria’s hotel quarantine were also seen in the NSW hotel quarantine program.
The Independent Inquiry heard that private security firms were recruited at the request of Victoria Police.
But so too did NSW Police request the involvement of private security firms. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security guards were sleeping on the job.
But so too in NSW were 12 security guards stood down for sleeping and making TikTok videos while on the job. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security firms subcontracted out hotel quarantine jobs to other companies.
But in NSW so too did NSW firms get exposed and penalised for similarly illegally subcontracting out their work in quarantine hotels. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security guards were working across different quarantine hotels and hence increasing the risk of cross-infecting sites.
But in NSW so too did security guards work across different quarantine hotels. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security guards contracted the virus from within hotel quarantine from a night duty manager and then spread it out into the community.
But in NSW so too did two security guards contract the virus from within quarantine hotels. One of whom knowingly continued to travel, work and shop in the community after testing positive. 👉🏽 LINK
It’s is only down to pure luck and a better contact tracing program that identical failings in NSW quarantine didn’t trigger the type of second wave that we saw here in Victoria.
While we await the results of the Independent Inquiry, let’s not forget that Hotel Quarantine was set up because returned travellers couldn’t be trusted to isolate safely at home.
Let’s not forget that the entire program was set up in two days, while travellers were en route back to Australia, without any precedent to guide what was a uniquely challenging situation.
Let’s not forget that personal accountability matters too. That those who knowingly worked when unwell, those who refused to isolate while waiting for tests, those who didn’t respect the restrictions in place with illegal gatherings, those who didn’t follow infectious disease protocols…their personal choices have nothing to do with the Victorian government but these choices contributed to the second waves spread too.
Accountability matters. But so too does fairness.
Do I wish the second wave never happened? Of course. It’s caused immeasurable pain to a lot of vulnerable Victorians. Over 800 people died. It’s decimated businesses and had a psychological impact that I saw all to often in my medical practice.
But the second wave did happen. And there absolutely needs to be accountability when the Independent Inquiry delivers its findings later in the year.
In the meantime I can also acknowledge that Dan Andrews and the Victorian Government have done an amazing job in dealing with the second wave. Doing so, while constantly being criticised every step of the way by a rabidly biased press and an agitating political opposition, is a task that none of us would ever want or envy.
Giving credit where credit is due has nothing to do with politics.
It has everything to do with being a fair human being.
What if I told you that it is possible to admire the way in which Dan Andrews and his team have suppressed Victoria’s second wave, whilst also being upset over the failures in hotel quarantine that lead to it in the first place?
The two feelings aren’t mutually exclusive.
There were mistakes made in hotel quarantine. These mistakes resulted in the virus escaping the confines of one quarantine hotel and eventually triggering the second wave. Nobody is denying that at all. The Premier has acknowledged these failures, and has acknowledged the importance of learning lessons from them by setting up an independent inquiry.
But what is galling is the fact that the biased media portrays the failures in Victoria’s quarantine hotels as being a uniquely Victorian problem that must solely be attributed to our big bad Labour State government.
The fact is that the failures seen in Victoria’s hotel quarantine were also seen in the NSW hotel quarantine program.
The Independent Inquiry heard that private security firms were recruited at the request of Victoria Police.
But so too did NSW Police request the involvement of private security firms. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security guards were sleeping on the job.
But so too in NSW were 12 security guards stood down for sleeping and making TikTok videos while on the job. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security firms subcontracted out hotel quarantine jobs to other companies.
But in NSW so too did NSW firms get exposed and penalised for similarly illegally subcontracting out their work in quarantine hotels. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security guards were working across different quarantine hotels and hence increasing the risk of cross-infecting sites.
But in NSW so too did security guards work across different quarantine hotels. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security guards contracted the virus from within hotel quarantine from a night duty manager and then spread it out into the community.
But in NSW so too did two security guards contract the virus from within quarantine hotels. One of whom knowingly continued to travel, work and shop in the community after testing positive. 👉🏽 LINK
It’s is only down to pure luck and a better contact tracing program that identical failings in NSW quarantine didn’t trigger the type of second wave that we saw here in Victoria.
While we await the results of the Independent Inquiry, let’s not forget that Hotel Quarantine was set up because returned travellers couldn’t be trusted to isolate safely at home.
Let’s not forget that the entire program was set up in two days, while travellers were en route back to Australia, without any precedent to guide what was a uniquely challenging situation.
Let’s not forget that personal accountability matters too. That those who knowingly worked when unwell, those who refused to isolate while waiting for tests, those who didn’t respect the restrictions in place with illegal gatherings, those who didn’t follow infectious disease protocols…their personal choices have nothing to do with the Victorian government but these choices contributed to the second waves spread too.
Accountability matters. But so too does fairness.
Do I wish the second wave never happened? Of course. It’s caused immeasurable pain to a lot of vulnerable Victorians. Over 800 people died. It’s decimated businesses and had a psychological impact that I saw all to often in my medical practice.
But the second wave did happen. And there absolutely needs to be accountability when the Independent Inquiry delivers its findings later in the year.
In the meantime I can also acknowledge that Dan Andrews and the Victorian Government have done an amazing job in dealing with the second wave. Doing so, while constantly being criticised every step of the way by a rabidly biased press and an agitating political opposition, is a task that none of us would ever want or envy.
Giving credit where credit is due has nothing to do with politics.
It has everything to do with being a fair human being.
What if I told you that it is possible to admire the way in which Dan Andrews and his team have suppressed Victoria’s second wave, whilst also being upset over the failures in hotel quarantine that lead to it in the first place?
The two feelings aren’t mutually exclusive.
There were mistakes made in hotel quarantine. These mistakes resulted in the virus escaping the confines of one quarantine hotel and eventually triggering the second wave. Nobody is denying that at all. The Premier has acknowledged these failures, and has acknowledged the importance of learning lessons from them by setting up an independent inquiry.
But what is galling is the fact that the biased media portrays the failures in Victoria’s quarantine hotels as being a uniquely Victorian problem that must solely be attributed to our big bad Labour State government.
The fact is that the failures seen in Victoria’s hotel quarantine were also seen in the NSW hotel quarantine program.
The Independent Inquiry heard that private security firms were recruited at the request of Victoria Police.
But so too did NSW Police request the involvement of private security firms. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security guards were sleeping on the job.
But so too in NSW were 12 security guards stood down for sleeping and making TikTok videos while on the job. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security firms subcontracted out hotel quarantine jobs to other companies.
But in NSW so too did NSW firms get exposed and penalised for similarly illegally subcontracting out their work in quarantine hotels. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security guards were working across different quarantine hotels and hence increasing the risk of cross-infecting sites.
But in NSW so too did security guards work across different quarantine hotels. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security guards contracted the virus from within hotel quarantine from a night duty manager and then spread it out into the community.
But in NSW so too did two security guards contract the virus from within quarantine hotels. One of whom knowingly continued to travel, work and shop in the community after testing positive. 👉🏽 LINK
It’s is only down to pure luck and a better contact tracing program that identical failings in NSW quarantine didn’t trigger the type of second wave that we saw here in Victoria.
While we await the results of the Independent Inquiry, let’s not forget that Hotel Quarantine was set up because returned travellers couldn’t be trusted to isolate safely at home.
Let’s not forget that the entire program was set up in two days, while travellers were en route back to Australia, without any precedent to guide what was a uniquely challenging situation.
Let’s not forget that personal accountability matters too. That those who knowingly worked when unwell, those who refused to isolate while waiting for tests, those who didn’t respect the restrictions in place with illegal gatherings, those who didn’t follow infectious disease protocols…their personal choices have nothing to do with the Victorian government but these choices contributed to the second waves spread too.
Accountability matters. But so too does fairness.
Do I wish the second wave never happened? Of course. It’s caused immeasurable pain to a lot of vulnerable Victorians. Over 800 people died. It’s decimated businesses and had a psychological impact that I saw all to often in my medical practice.
But the second wave did happen. And there absolutely needs to be accountability when the Independent Inquiry delivers its findings later in the year.
In the meantime I can also acknowledge that Dan Andrews and the Victorian Government have done an amazing job in dealing with the second wave. Doing so, while constantly being criticised every step of the way by a rabidly biased press and an agitating political opposition, is a task that none of us would ever want or envy.
Giving credit where credit is due has nothing to do with politics.
It has everything to do with being a fair human being.
What if I told you that it is possible to admire the way in which Dan Andrews and his team have suppressed Victoria’s second wave, whilst also being upset over the failures in hotel quarantine that lead to it in the first place?
The two feelings aren’t mutually exclusive.
There were mistakes made in hotel quarantine. These mistakes resulted in the virus escaping the confines of one quarantine hotel and eventually triggering the second wave. Nobody is denying that at all. The Premier has acknowledged these failures, and has acknowledged the importance of learning lessons from them by setting up an independent inquiry.
But what is galling is the fact that the biased media portrays the failures in Victoria’s quarantine hotels as being a uniquely Victorian problem that must solely be attributed to our big bad Labour State government.
The fact is that the failures seen in Victoria’s hotel quarantine were also seen in the NSW hotel quarantine program.
The Independent Inquiry heard that private security firms were recruited at the request of Victoria Police.
But so too did NSW Police request the involvement of private security firms. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security guards were sleeping on the job.
But so too in NSW were 12 security guards stood down for sleeping and making TikTok videos while on the job. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security firms subcontracted out hotel quarantine jobs to other companies.
But in NSW so too did NSW firms get exposed and penalised for similarly illegally subcontracting out their work in quarantine hotels. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security guards were working across different quarantine hotels and hence increasing the risk of cross-infecting sites.
But in NSW so too did security guards work across different quarantine hotels. 👉🏽 LINK
The Independent Inquiry heard that security guards contracted the virus from within hotel quarantine from a night duty manager and then spread it out into the community.
But in NSW so too did two security guards contract the virus from within quarantine hotels. One of whom knowingly continued to travel, work and shop in the community after testing positive. 👉🏽 LINK
It’s is only down to pure luck and a better contact tracing program that identical failings in NSW quarantine didn’t trigger the type of second wave that we saw here in Victoria.
While we await the results of the Independent Inquiry, let’s not forget that Hotel Quarantine was set up because returned travellers couldn’t be trusted to isolate safely at home.
Let’s not forget that the entire program was set up in two days, while travellers were en route back to Australia, without any precedent to guide what was a uniquely challenging situation.
Let’s not forget that personal accountability matters too. That those who knowingly worked when unwell, those who refused to isolate while waiting for tests, those who didn’t respect the restrictions in place with illegal gatherings, those who didn’t follow infectious disease protocols…their personal choices have nothing to do with the Victorian government but these choices contributed to the second waves spread too.
Accountability matters. But so too does fairness.
Do I wish the second wave never happened? Of course. It’s caused immeasurable pain to a lot of vulnerable Victorians. Over 800 people died. It’s decimated businesses and had a psychological impact that I saw all to often in my medical practice.
But the second wave did happen. And there absolutely needs to be accountability when the Independent Inquiry delivers its findings later in the year.
In the meantime I can also acknowledge that Dan Andrews and the Victorian Government have done an amazing job in dealing with the second wave. Doing so, while constantly being criticised every step of the way by a rabidly biased press and an agitating political opposition, is a task that none of us would ever want or envy.
Giving credit where credit is due has nothing to do with politics.
It has everything to do with being a fair human being.
- Sara
Well written.
Who is Sara?
obviously some communist
but ostensibly some doctor
Apparently so.
I discovered this by the power of Bing, Facebook, and reading the top of the page.
In the meantime I can also acknowledge that Dan Andrews and the Victorian Government have done an amazing job in dealing with the second wave. Doing so, while constantly being criticised every step of the way by a rabidly biased press and an agitating political opposition, is a task that none of us would ever want or envy.
Giving credit where credit is due has nothing to do with politics.
It has everything to do with being a fair human being.
Panicked Johnson orders new lockdown, second wave on course to kill 85,000
By Bevan Shields
November 1, 2020 — 7.03am
London: Prime Minister Boris Johnson has ordered a sweeping national lockdown after being told the second wave striking England is more severe than the government’s worst-case scenario forecasts and could collapse the health system
