Coronavirus (Covid19) Corner

[Whyperion]

Supposedly in Glasgow half the 10,000 Sunday vaccine slots had not been taken up/no-shows. while the vaccine can stay in the fridge its still a bit annoying for the NHS staff etc at these centres. Maybe they forgot bus routes are different on a Sunday ?

Meanwhile Youtube is serving up 'news' site videos questioning the was the virus created in Whuan ( oddly some of the vids 7 to 3 days old which indicates a pre-prepped one ready for the more widespread news that has been picked up over the weekend - or Vids released initially to a subscriber/patron etc base first). As I suggested over a year ago the paperwork research published in China indicated this was the kind of virus research they were working on (two main papers from the two main institutes), though USA was doing similar at the same time. More wild theories that if not an accidental release it was deliberate , possibly planned by USA for medical co's to make money ( not something that I find credible at the time of release - that a Plan for something in the future - is not easy to rule it out due to evidence unclarity either way,).

We're back to the effectiveness statistics of One Dose / Two Dose AZ / Pfizer vacciness vs (lets say Indian Variant). News sources seem to be confusing absolute effectiveness compared with relative to other strains so its difficult. Loosely One Dose 50percent/66percent you wont get symptoms, 66percent ish you wont get into hospital and 90percent you wont die, Two Dose add 16percent all round - except death its about 95percent.


Flu - It may have been noted with the low death covid numbers in the four countries of the UK, that is other things being given as death causes, aside from Cancer we have Heart Disease , Dementia (how can you acutally die of dementia ?) , and Flu. Now I still think that now and in the past without a definite scientific blood test that they are recorded interchangeably , and often in our homes too . There is some world-wide thought that with the lab concentration on Covid we are missing the likely Flu variants for the coming winter, and have not prepped vaccines (of any kind). this might be the next pandemic if any social immunity has been lost through isolation this year. (and if there has been isloation how come Flu is such a significant cause of the death numbers of the last 4to5 weeks ?)


Cummings Revelations and Govt Response. That which has been dripped to the media seems little more than we knew, or guessed , already. I dont know if never mind govt out of its depth (and lab would have been too), or some of the higher Scientists were not aware of all the results - problem when scientists become adminstrators of a system - they can run the status quo, but something off-beam and the suggested responses are all reasonable - depending what they have been reading and correctly interpreting, and crucially communicating to decision makers.

[Stanley]

"I wonder what the new NI DUP leader, Edwin Poots, thinks about viruses, pandemics and vaccines?"
Good question Peter. He seems to have a blinkered view on most things.

[plaques]

Cummings Revelations and Govt Response. That which has been dripped to the media seems little more than we knew, or guessed , already. I dont know if never mind govt out of its depth (and lab would have been too), or some of the higher Scientists were not aware of all the results - problem when scientists become adminstrators of a system - they can run the status quo, but something off-beam and the suggested responses are all reasonable - depending what they have been reading and correctly interpreting, and crucially communicating to decision makers.

Phew!!
I suspect Cummings is right. The first consideration with this government is.. and what if we do nothing? lets hang on a while and see what happens. Not an unreasonable approach when most political decisions take years to unwind but in the year of the virus two weeks is two weeks too late. The latest one is the Indian variant, no problems we've got it covered. Just make sure you have both doses of the vaccine and you should live to see another day. Not that you couldn't become ill but you shouldn't die. Oh and by the way as Kev has pointed out don't leave your house or go where's there's people. That's a comforting thought isn't it?

[Big Kev]

Screenshot_20210524-133454_Metal Pro.jpg

[Whyperion]

Simple confusion. It is not illegal to go to <insert country> Spain. The guidance is that you are advised not to go to <insert country> Spain. And on anyone returning from <insert country> Spain you have to go through a test and isolation process. I see no problem with the government. It's rather than permitting an exception within legislation, to have no legislation but suggest behaviour.

[PanBiker]

At the end of the day it's all about the blame game. All throughout the various so called "lockdowns" there has only ever been advice. Never any direct action such as a police or army instilled curfew or road blocks to stop folk moving about where they shouldn't. This has been planned so that no one can blame the government as they have given the advice and it's down to the plebs to take heed and do as they are asked.

Most folk comply but you always have a fair proportion that will take no notice at all. These folk who flout the rules should get some harsh penalties for endangering the public good so to speak. We are an island and it should have been relatively easy to close the borders from international travel and there are only so many roads in and out of most towns if you need to deny access. I know lots of folk would cry about 1984, big brother and police state and all that kind of nonsense but we are fighting a common enemy and unfortunately that enemy is invisible. Drastic threat needs drastic measures in reply.

[Stanley]

Kev, I think the reason may be that they don't know themselves what to do. They want to pander to the forces looking for 'freedom' on June 21 but at the same time are being briefed on the realities of the Indian Variant and not letting anyone know what it means. Serves them right for trying to control everything. They should have made all local authorities party to the data and let them help make the decisions.

[Whyperion]

So where now ?

Aside from the unsurprising thing that the areas of UK with a high Indian population has an Indian variant spreading in those family areas, given their return from (necessary or otherwise) India, one would have indeed thought that 'common sense' would suggest not to visit those areas and likewises persons from there not to visit other areas , that government advice (clearly communicated or otherwise) should be needed at a minimum, or government edict seems beyond a comprehension that the media seems to hype up, that 'Bank Holiday Plans are being disappointed - blaming the Government rather than the disease and indeed their own actions. Of course the lack of financial support from the government to isolate with symptoms and tests appears notable.


The headline that https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-c ... e-57234741 the first man to get covid-19 vaccine (Dec 2020) has died of an 'Unrelated Illness' needs a bit of scientific follow up , given presumably a second dose in March, this is only 8 weeks off and the death has been ascribed to a Stroke. While statistically this might not be impossible, and we dont know if vaccine protection was helpful for extending life for 4 months, but given something happening in the AZ vaccine that has an indication that blood clots and similar toward a stroke appear occurring pttentially with a causation that should not be dismissed. Is it something in the immune responses (T-cells or other antibody build up), is bringing up, is it something in the carrier compound being used , or something in the (deactivated) protein/s chosen that generate a change in the blood function (again moderated by the Type/s of blood and age ).

[Whyperion]

Hounslow might have a high indian population, but I suspect case numbers are driven by working at Heathrow.

Cummings did humility in the way he does, apologizing for not knowing everything. Noting that the Cabinet Office took Covid-19 as a Swine Flu situation (not unreasonable , given the virus research programmes of the UK had been cut - by whom exactly, and when). Cummins has accused Hancoc of lying on 15-20 occasions, can he actually give those specific misdirections made.

[Tripps]

Cummins has accused Hancock of lying on 15-20 occasions, can he actually give those specific misdirections made.

He did so live, and he was asked to give more examples by a Committee member, Greg Clark from memory. I think he agreed to write to them with examples. I think Hansard will be well viewed tonight.

[Whyperion]

Did I note this bit of reported research (via CNN) https://www.williamhaseltine.com/a-muta ... dable-foe/ I wonder if the main changes noted are the same as the other main variations - more spreadable (by hiding longer) and harder to shift ( immune avoiding)

[Whyperion]

BBC Reports this morning
"German scientists believe they’ve found the cause of rare blood-clotting incidents of people who’ve had the AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson vaccinations. The study hasn’t been peer-reviewed yet but the researchers say vaccines that use cold viruses ( adenovirus vectors ) to deliver the dose send part of it into cell nuclei where instructions for making Covid proteins can be misread. Those new proteins could trigger a blood clot, they say."

Which is sort of what I suspected, I also feel this is one of the things the covid virus also does. Further question is why are these only sometimes occuring and not always, when does the body know when its being given a malfunction instruction and either eliminates it , or ignores it ?

[Stanley]

I think you are right David. You'll note that there is a distinct lack of denials in the parties accused. I feel that lots of what Cummings says is true, I'll certainly buy Hancock lying about care home transfers.

[PanBiker]

I don't think Hancock has a leg to stand on. We watched the entire sorry story unfold day after day on the news. In fact it was a feature of the news for some time as the care homes were crying out for help. Not a lot of wriggle room in my book, I suppose he can always claim that it was all fake news and a plot by the far left.

[Whyperion]

I was wrong, Cummings had been misquoted (by me - or my source) It was Hancock had done 15-20 things , including lying , that would justify getting him out.

Is Hancock re-writing history?
""My recollection of events is that I committed to delivering that testing for people going from hospital into care homes when we could do it," he told a Downing Street press conference yesterday."
"I then went away and built the testing capacity… and then delivered on the commitment that I made."


Stupid question, if people are in hospital, with scientific facilties on site or shared with others, what 'Capacity' needs to be built (using the £15bill test and trace?), or are hospitals incapable generally of identifying what viruses their patients may have with confidence and accuracy ?

I think it was Johnson that said the "Ring of Steel" around care homes
Hancock has said recently the NHS (not care homes as such), did not run out of PPE (was this because they were told not to use PPE of certain types in certain places and re-use(maybe is practical with safeguards) PPE. So to me that is technically not having enough PPE. I didnt run out of toilet paper in the panic buying - but some of the daily newspapers got a second life.

[Stanley]

One place where there does seem to be an element of agreement between the experts is that it would be crackers to go ahead with June 21 general relaxation while the Indian variant is so active. At the very least we should wait until we have accurate data. The dinosaurs are still shouting for the end of lockdown immediately. They have not learned from the past.

[plaques]

The dinosaurs are still shouting for the end of lockdown immediately. They have not learned from the past.

Don't Dinosaurs lay eggs therefore no grandmas to worry about.
If there is another lockdown the plan will be not to tell anybody about it. The plan if you can call it a plan appears to be based on body counts and whether the NHS hospitals get full to overflowing that it becomes an embarrassment even to those trying to shut it down. Boris's advice to use common sense runs contrary to why the majority of voters in 2016 thought Brexit was a good idea. Can't have it both ways.

[Tripps]

Despite being from the Daily Mail which makes it automatically suspect in the eyes of some -this is worth a look. I don't understand most of it.

Origin of Covid 19?

PS
"set to be published in the Quarterly Review of Biophysics Discovery" so a 'scoop' and not peer reviewed yet. More will emerge I'm sure. President Trump may have something to say.

[Big Kev]

Youngest offspring (32) has just had the Moderna vaccine.

[PanBiker]

There is anew one shot J&J one which is due to become available I believe. It may have potential as an annual booster much like the flu jab.

[Big Kev]

Despite being from the Daily Mail which makes it automatically suspect in the eyes of some -this is worth a look. I don't understand most of it.

Origin of Covid 19?

The fact it's from the Daily Mail is stopping me from even opening it

[Big Kev]

The media are reporting a lot of doubt over June 21st for removing all restrictions. As the government have stated, on numerous occasions, easing restrictions will be driven by 'data not dates'.
Scientists are only looking at only delaying by a couple of weeks, this would line up with the goal of having all the adult population vaccinated by July.
After all these months I can't see a couple of weeks longer impacting the sensible amongst us.
2 weeks of not being able to 'lick your neighbours' or another 12 weeks lockdown? No contest really...

[plaques]

The media is using a lot of comparative figures implying the risk is miniscule compared to the numbers vaccinated. Typically... 6 deaths,, 26 million vaccinated. Result, carry on as though its all over. What we are not seeing is the modelling charts of possible future outcomes. Reasonable people will always be cautious and even more will be more understanding if they were given the full facts. Unfortunately what we are seeing is more mushroom management.

[Stanley]

Listening to the latest news, the pressures are being applied to stick to the promise of opening but the warnings from the experts about a third wave get stronger.
Like you Kev, it seems to me to be a no-brainer but who can tell?
And as Ken points out, no one is telling us anything.....

[Stanley]

See THIS BBC report on the increasing evidence of a third wave and the possible delaying of the end of lockdown. I know it's damaging for business but another wave and a further lockdown could be even worse. We know what happens if you ease up too soon.