Generic Virus Thread

[nick76]

12 minutes ago, El Zen said:

Brilliant contribution.

Well I gave my argument on this thread. I never generally think I come here to change peoples mind but to give my opinion and learn from others, learn from new pieces of information etc and I go away more informed but sometimes some things are bizarre and so when i point out massive holes in that argument then you think it may change but when doesn’t, it’s bizarre.

Edited December 22, 2021 by nick76

[El Zen]

Well, I’m out. Call it whatever you want and merry xmas

[nick76]

Just now, El Zen said:

Well, I’m out. Call it whatever you want and merry xmas

Merry Xmas

[chrisp65]

1 hour ago, trekka said:

So, Wales protective measures.  You can be fined £60 for going into the office (with your company fined £1000 too) but they are relying on "guidance for the way that people behave in their own private lives".  It is completely mad. 

I can still go to the pub, but I’m not allowed in the office, we might police the border again looking to issue spot fines.

I think this is Drakeford’s pitch for independence.

[sidcow]

1 hour ago, bickster said:

Stuff is still expensive, it just has built in obsolescence now and the manufacturers make it so that many stuffs are expensive to repair

Show me the TV rental showroom.

[Mozzavfc]

15 minutes ago, chrisp65 said:

I can still go to the pub, but I’m not allowed in the office, we might police the border again looking to issue spot fines.

I think this is Drakeford’s pitch for independence.

Next up will be widen the Severn into a proper moat and take out the bridges

[Rodders]

Not sure why it's either / or? 

I think it's perfectly fair to raise the fact that young people have missed out on some incredibly important formative experiences, and I'm not just on talking about one of things like freshers, but that entire experience at Uni is very different. Students coming in now, often don't even meet their fellow students until well into the academic year, sometimes not even seeing them, there is a social cost that shouldn't be minimised.

I think many people could relate to periods, whether it's a college or uni or elsewhere, or just generally being young and **** around,  or travelling where you learn to come out of your shell and develop confidence and long lasting friendships. I have a small core of friends, that's just me I know but others are similar I presume, all but one of them are from my university days.  I try and think how different my life would have been in an epidemic. Maybe bonds would be even tighter? maybe not - I'd have had to have met them. 

Ranking degrees of suffering is just weird. Ok, those who die objectively have it worse, obviously, ffs,  and yes, there are social problems, domestic violence, which are very serious etc, but just because kids have netflix does not compensate for that window for social-skill development. I think it is a shit old time for them. 

[sidcow]

I think the one thing we can all agree on is that there is **** all money left to compensate ANYONE.

We're more likely to be going through many many more years of Austerity now than be giving anyone handouts.

[hippo]

2 minutes ago, sidcow said:

I think the one thing we can all agree on is that there is **** all money left to compensate ANYONE.

We're more likely to be going through many many more years of Austerity now than be giving anyone handouts.

You might to read up on the uk distribution of wealth stats. The money is there - its just in the wrong place. 

[chrisp65]

2 minutes ago, sidcow said:

I think the one thing we can all agree on is that there is **** all money left to compensate ANYONE.

We're more likely to be going through many many more years of Austerity now than be giving anyone handouts.

Austerity is just the posh word for class war.

 

[fightoffyour]

55 minutes ago, El Zen said:

Well, I’m out. Call it whatever you want and merry xmas

Out of isolation, or out of Christmas?

[sidcow]

My son missed out on his first legal pints, didn't set foot in a nightclub till he was 19.

His driving lessons and tests were pushed back 18 month, only just passed his test also age 19.

He did get a graduation party but MOST kids his age didn't.

He was definitely affected mentally a lot.

I don't think he should be given any cash though.  

What I strongly feel is a major major problem is housing costs.  This is a major problem for his generation.  The reasons however are long and complex.  I'll probably have to spend a lot of money helping my kids get houses.  I'm hoping whatever inheritance I get from my parents I can put towards this.

Conversely when I get really old I'm going to be completely ****.  There will be a massive glut of old people needing looking after and no money and no people to do it despite paying tax my whole life.  My kids might be better off when they get old as they are a shrinking group.  They may be a big minority of really old people when they get there with loads of spare tax to pay for their care from all the young uns going to work on hoverboards, living in carbon fibre homes and whatnot.

[fightoffyour]

6 minutes ago, sidcow said:

I think the one thing we can all agree on is that there is **** all money left to compensate ANYONE.

We're more likely to be going through many many more years of Austerity now than be giving anyone handouts.

How about just collect £3000 off everyone?

[PaulC]

I do feel great empathy for the young because whilst the elderly have suffered badly because of the pandemic they never went through this when they were young and they also had the benefits of early retirement or many did. The young are not just suffereing now but they will be paying for this for years to come. I'm not young myself but I worry about what the future will be like not just because of the pandemic but climate change too. 

[chrisp65]

1 minute ago, sidcow said:

My son missed out on his first legal pints, didn't set foot in a nightclub till he was 19.

His driving lessons and tests were pushed back 18 month, only just passed his test also age 19.

He did get a graduation party but MOST kids his age didn't.

He was definitely affected mentally a lot.

I don't think he should be given any cash though.  

What I strongly feel is a major major problem is housing costs.  This is a major problem for his generation.  The reasons however are long and complex.  I'll probably have to spend a lot of money helping my kids get houses.  I'm hoping whatever inheritance I get from my parents I can put towards this.

Conversely when I get really old I'm going to be completely ****.  There will be a massive glut of old people needing looking after and no money and no people to do it despite paying tax my whole life.  My kids might be better off when they get old as they are a shrinking group.  They may be a big minority of really old people when they get there with loads of spare tax to pay for their care from all the young uns going to work on hoverboards, living in carbon fibre homes and whatnot.

 

Build more accommodation. Better, safer, more insulated, more efficient accommodation. 

Stop buy to let.

Stop buy to holiday home.

Enforce existing safety regulations on existing landlords.

 

The housing crisis is absolutely not complex. It’s a rigged system which manipulates supply and demand in a way that if it was any other product, the monopolies commission would be involved. If the state started easing the pressure then the corporations that are currently land banking would have to build to salvage any equity in all the land and properties they’ve falsely taken out of circulation. Or, they’d have to quickly sell them to someone that was prepared to create homes.

If we built four new towns, it would stimulate the economy and release the pressure on housing costs. You watch those prices tumble once there are options.

What we do not need, is shared ownership, half a million landlords, 40 year mortgages, short time frame complex grants for means tested improvements

Hoping the value of nan’s house goes up sufficiently and that she dies quickly without recourse to a care home package, so the grandkids will inherit a deposit, is not the dream we should aspire to..

[PaulC]

2 minutes ago, chrisp65 said:

 

Build more accommodation. Better, safer, more insulated, more efficient accommodation. 

Stop buy to let.

Stop buy to holiday home.

Enforce existing safety regulations on existing landlords.

 

The housing crisis is absolutely not complex. It’s a rigged system which manipulates supply and demand in a way that if it was any other product, the monopolies commission would be involved. If the state started easing the pressure then the corporations that are currently land banking would have to build to salvage any equity in all the land and properties they’ve falsely taken out of circulation. Or, they’d have to quickly sell them to someone that was prepared to create homes.

If we built four new towns, it would stimulate the economy and release the pressure on housing costs. You watch those prices tumble once there are options.

What we do not need, is shared ownership, half a million landlords, 40 year mortgages, short time frame complex grants for means tested improvements

Hoping the value of nan’s house goes up sufficiently and that she dies quickly without recourse to a care home package, so the grandkids will inherit a deposit, is not the dream we should aspire to..

Hate the buying to let but shared ownership is a good thing as it lets people who wouldn't otherwise be able to afford it get on the property ladder. 

[CVByrne]

Quote

An early assessment of the Omicron variant in South Africa suggests the risk of severe disease may be lower than with earlier strains of the coronavirus.

The study, which has not yet been peer reviewed, was carried out by South Africa's National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) and found that people diagnosed with Omicron in South Africa between 1 October and and 30 November were 80% less likely to be admitted to hospital than those diagnosed with other variants over the same period.

But the authors stressed that some of the findings may be attributed to higher levels of population immunity caused by vaccinations and past infections, and stressed that further research is needed.

It is estimated that 60-70% of South Africans have had a prior coronavirus infection.

"Compellingly, together our data really suggest a positive story of a reduced severity of Omicron compared to other variants," Professor Cheryl Cohen of the NICD said.

"What is unclear is whether the picture will be similar in countries where there are high levels of vaccination but very low levels of previous infection," she added.

Results of a major study released by Imperial College London last week found that there are no indications that Omicron is milder than the Delta variant, although data on hospitalisations remains very limited and the study has not been peer reviewed.

Covid: All 16 and 17-year-olds set to be offered boosters - BBC News

Time stamp is 15:13 from the BBC news feed.

One hopes the 80%+ Vaccinations and 50%+ boosters has this data translated to what we see in UK

 

[penguin]

No doubt it's been a pretty shit time to be 18 - 25 (Not that it's been great for any age group), but ranking who's making the bigger sacrifices and whether this deserves reparation seems a very slippery slope.

The whole "old hate the young and vice versa" seems massively overstated also.

 

 

 

 

[AndyM3000]

Just now, PaulC said:

I do feel great empathy for the young because whilst the elderly have suffered badly because of the pandemic they never went through this when they were young and they also had the benefits of early retirement or many did. The young are not just suffereing now but they will be paying for this for years to come. I'm not young myself but I worry about what the future will be like not just because of the pandemic but climate change too. 

I came out of education and started working right in time for the financial crash in 2008. We are still paying for that and now have covid on top, not to mention the state of the housing market as sidcow pointed out above. I'm not sure who's more ****, 18-24? 28-35? 65+? Everyone has been hit, we are all losing, some more than others.

The youth will lose a few experiences as has been said, but at least they have time on their side. It might act as more of a motivator for some going forward when this is all over. 

[El Zen]

19 minutes ago, fightoffyour said:

Out of isolation, or out of Christmas?

That is the big question. I’m out of isolation tomorrow, but Zen jr. is still awaiting his PCR result after the first one came back inconclusive. Still don’t know what xmas will be like.