Corona Virus - Should we be worried?

[priest17]

4 minutes ago, jparx said:

One of my team is Italian and she was saying today that Italians are like, I quote, "naughty school children" and don't like following guidelines. She wasn't surprised it has spread there and that they weren't following the hand washing guidelines or self isolation, unlike Brits who she seemed to think were talking it more seriously.

Her words, not mine, but I thought it was interesting.

So we can avoid it getting too nasty if enough of the UK listens to reason.

Suddenly slightly less optimistic for us.

[Garrett_Salas]

Not particularly convinced by the culture argument. Rate in Germany is shooting up and they love their rules. Plus the individual response to Corona virus in the UK only really kicked in once it was in Europe (i.e. Italy).

From the sounds of it, Italian officials were slack on the initial containment.

[stopwn1981]

Keeps following the same pattern. Once a country has a significant amount of cases they see it for what it is and enact draconian measures the likes of which the world quite frankly has never seen.
 

Countries do not do shit like this for no good reason - they usually underplay risk at almost any cost to protect the economy.

Italy just went full blown China!

[AlexOvd]

[stuartbert two hats]

12 minutes ago, squirrelarmy said:

Time for another rare serious post. 
 

A lot of people around the internet are saying our government isn’t doing enough and we should be taking drastic measures such as in Wuhan and Northern Italy. I’m actually wondering what can we do?

Is it even possible for the country to stop all international travel and force everyone to self isolate for two weeks while it all blows over? What happens in two weeks, we may be able to stop the virus temporarily but we still need food to be imported and people need to travel. People will still travel into the country and the virus will flare up again. 
 

China managed to quarantine several regions but they had enough of their country still functional so they could keep those parts of the country supplied with food and the economy ticking over. Italy is quarantining their Northern regions, the southern parts of the country can assist to keep their country moving.

If there was single region in the UK where the virus was spreading and a quarantine of that region was possible I could understand such a move. I have no problem sacrificing Lancashire for the greater good. (Sorry had to squeeze in a little humour 😂)
 

I’d love to know what feasible options we have other than trying to minimise infection on a local scale as much as possible. 

• Not having handshakes and hugs at the end of football. 
• Forcing sport to be "behind closed doors". 
• Aggressively encouraging remote work. 
• Announcing an emergency extension to statutory sick pay so that people on a low income don't risk it when they should be self isolating.
• Banning all gatherings over 1000 people.

You know, there are measures that can be taken.  I'm not going to say they should do any of this, but there are things that can be done.

[dotdash79]

2 minutes ago, stuartbert two hats said:

• Not having handshakes and hugs at the end of football. 
• Forcing sport to be "behind closed doors". 
• Aggressively encouraging remote work. 
• Announcing an emergency extension to statutory sick pay so that people on a low income don't risk it when they should be self isolating.
• Banning all gatherings over 1000 people.

You know, there are measures that can be taken.  I'm not going to say they should do any of this, but there are things that can be done.

• Shutting down schools and colleges
• ensuring any arrivals in the UK self isolate for 14 days

 

[Copperface]

19 minutes ago, Ozanne said:

I was thinking this, when does any of this breach basic human rights too?

Probably, but would be justified under the right to life. That supersedes everything.

[Ayrshire Chris]

Don’t know why the government are waiting ten to fourteen days before telling those with any flu like symptoms to self isolate. They should do this immediately. I suppose the chief medical officer has his reasons. Someone coughing and swallowing lemslips wouldn't be the most popular person in the workplace in today’s climate of fear. 

[Copperface]

3 minutes ago, dotdash79 said:

• ensuring any arrivals in the UK self isolate for 14 days

 

Never quite sure how you ensure self isolation. You can request it but short of incarceration how do you ensure it?

[semmtexx]

10 minutes ago, stuartbert two hats said:

•  Aggressively encouraging remote work. 
• Announcing an emergency extension to statutory sick pay so that people on a low income don't risk it when they should be self isolating.

This is where the gloriously poorly titled 'gig economy' comes crashing down.

Who'd have thought workers rights and crazy ideas like sick pay were reasonable eh?!

Edited March 9, 2020 by semmtexx

[Copperface]

Is your avi Corona inspired?

[Mr.Tease]

2 minutes ago, semmtexx said:

This is where the gloriously poorly titled 'gig economy' comes crashing down.

Yup! 

[dotdash79]

2 minutes ago, Copperface said:

Never quite sure how you ensure self isolation. You can request it but short of incarceration how do you ensure it?

Ask Russia, they are enforcing it by CCTV and if caught you could have 5 years in jail 

[yehbutnobut]

Any ideas on what we self-employed work men & women are supposed to do if we're told to self-isolate? I can’t afford to be off for one day let alone weeks! 

[Mr.Tease]

26 minutes ago, jparx said:

One of my team is Italian and she was saying today that Italians are like, I quote, "naughty school children" and don't like following guidelines. She wasn't surprised it has spread there and that they weren't following the hand washing guidelines or self isolation, unlike Brits who she seemed to think were talking it more seriously.

Her words, not mine, but I thought it was interesting.

People living abroad tend to complain about their country men and women back at their country of origin (there’s a reason they decided to move abroad!)- if you were working in italy, you’d probably be spinning similar tales about British people. Always take such musings with a pinch of salt😉

[H.M.V]

2 minutes ago, yehbutnobut said:

Any ideas on what we self-employed work men & women are supposed to do if we're told to self-isolate? I can’t afford to be off for one day let alone weeks! 

Not really the answer you're looking for but every signature helps. We're self employed as we have a guesthouse. So very worried. 

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/300336

[Mr.Tease]

3 minutes ago, yehbutnobut said:

Any ideas on what we self-employed work men & women are supposed to do if we're told to self-isolate? I can’t afford to be off for one day let alone weeks! 

Exactly, but then again we’re just supposed to live without pensions or basic in work benefits, Or guaranteed income, so I doubt the government will give a shit about what we’re meant to do in this situation.

[Matt42]

6% estimated fatality rate in Italy. The flu is 0.1%

I’m sorry.

China 100% lied about the severity of this disease. 

[squirrelarmy]

Just now, Matt42 said:

6% estimated fatality rate in Italy. The flu is 0.1%

I’m sorry.

China 100% lied about the severity of this disease. 

South Korea which has done the most extensive testing so far of any country has around 0.7% rate. This probably still doesn’t give the full picture as they still haven’t tested everyone who may or may not have the virus. 
 

As more people are tested the rate drops. We still don’t know what the actual rate is. 

[zahidf]

Here’s a crazy idea maybe he should get tested

 

[zahidf]

4 minutes ago, Matt42 said:

6% estimated fatality rate in Italy. The flu is 0.1%

I’m sorry.

China 100% lied about the severity of this disease. 

Dude. What's the point of that sort of post?

[stuartbert two hats]

3 minutes ago, Matt42 said:

6% estimated fatality rate in Italy. The flu is 0.1%

I’m sorry.

China 100% lied about the severity of this disease. 

Or Italy are terrible at testing. South Korea has a mortality rate of 0.6%

[zahidf]

[Matt42]

Just now, zahidf said:

Dude. What's the point of that sort of post?

Oh wait sorry.

Yeah this is nothing absolutely nothing. In fact I reckon this is a democrat plot to ruin trumps presidency!

[dotdash79]

5 minutes ago, Matt42 said:

6% estimated fatality rate in Italy. The flu is 0.1%

I’m sorry.

China 100% lied about the severity of this disease. 

 

1 minute ago, squirrelarmy said:

South Korea which has done the most extensive testing so far of any country has around 0.7% rate. This probably still doesn’t give the full picture as they still haven’t tested everyone who may or may not have the virus. 
 

As more people are tested the rate drops. We still don’t know what the actual rate is. 

Expect it to be in the middle of this about 2%