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Post by johnhurtdoctor on Mar 8, 2021 6:56:08 GMT
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Post by johnhurtdoctor on Mar 11, 2021 17:14:39 GMT
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Post by johnhurtdoctor on Mar 13, 2021 12:30:47 GMT
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Post by Chakoteya on Mar 13, 2021 17:27:07 GMT
You post these things as if they are a big Shock! Horror! surprise.
Given Bozo and Govo's attitude on the run up to the end of transition - do nothing to get ready it'll all turn out fine - there are no surprises here at all for those of us who sat down and actually thought through the details of what we were walking away from by not wanting to pay our club membership fees anymore. And they're not going to the NHS either, as "promised", are they?
You can't cancel your gym subscription and expect to still walk into the building and do your usual workout. Or - you can't give up your golf club membership and expect to still be allowed to use the subsidised members-only bar and restaurant.
(Snerk, snerk, snerk, told you so.)
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Post by johnhurtdoctor on Mar 15, 2021 12:08:36 GMT
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lidar2
Castellan
You know, now that you mention it, I actually do rather like Attack of the Cybermen ...
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Post by lidar2 on Mar 16, 2021 16:34:17 GMT
You post these things as if they are a big Shock! Horror! surprise. Given Bozo and Govo's attitude on the run up to the end of transition - do nothing to get ready it'll all turn out fine - there are no surprises here at all for those of us who sat down and actually thought through the details of what we were walking away from by not wanting to pay our club membership fees anymore. And they're not going to the NHS either, as "promised", are they? You can't cancel your gym subscription and expect to still walk into the building and do your usual workout. Or - you can't give up your golf club membership and expect to still be allowed to use the subsidised members-only bar and restaurant. (Snerk, snerk, snerk, told you so.) I think the problem is the so-called transition period was not a transition period at all. It was a negotiation period. Business and everyone else could only start transitioning once the negotiations were concluded and they knew what they were transitioning to. So we basically had a 2 week transition period - with Christmas and New Year in the middle of it.
We tend to get bogged down in the argument of principle - was brexit a good or bad idea [hands up I am as guilty as anyone of this] and sometimes overlook the question of whether brexit itself was competently executed by the government. And I would hope that all sensible people of goodwill - Leaver and Remainer alike - would find it difficult to avoid the conclusion that it was very incompetently executed by both May and Johnston from 2016 to 2020. I think they went into a negotiation without really knowing what they wanted other than a few slogans, then when they did decide they failed to appreciate/admit that they were after contradictory things which could never be achieved, they misjudged the strength of the UK and the EU's relative positions, they employed a divide and conquer strategy to the EU27 that failed miserably and they burned up whatever goodwill might have existed on the other side by some of their antics. I personally don't think brexit was ever going to be good for the UK, but it ended up being worse than it needed to be.
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Post by johnhurtdoctor on Mar 24, 2021 7:29:34 GMT
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Post by number13 on Mar 24, 2021 15:24:26 GMT
Well, we're not going off our collective trolley like some former friends across the Channel...
Latest news: "authorities" find millions of AZ vaccines in Italy headed for The Evil Empire (or the UK as it used to be known.) They are seized, the Rebellion (or the EU as it used to be known) is in triumph!
But... the vaccines were heading either for Belgium or Covax, one or the other, possibly both, but not The Evil Empire at all!!
I don't know why they're bothering. 'It doesn't work for people over X, under X, born at full moon or descended from monkeys* so we will only give it to non-simian descendants, born away from full moon and aged exactly X years old. But it's dangerous anyway so we're banning it this week, for a bit, just to show we mean it and even though it's actually safe.'
After the last few weeks they have done their very best to ruin public trust in the AZ vaccine and according to surveys, have succeeded amazingly well in the EU, but not here where people clearly have more sense. So who 'over there' will still want the doses that weren't heading here anyway?
Frankly JHD, if the EU presses ahead with its vaccine export ban against the UK (and no matter how they dress it up, it will be a ban against the UK primarily) where the vast majority DO want to be vaccinated, then any organised "Festival of Brexit" events will be eclipsed by the anti-EU outrage of those under 50, majority Remain-voting demographics who can't have their jabs in time for the summer simply because EU Says No.
And when that happens I await all the usual media suspects explaining how it's Boris and the Tories fault really. How dare the UK get something right at last? We should know our place and not upset our betters.
(I've been saving that up for a few days, could everyone tell? I cannot believe I voted to stay in that club. Or to be more precise, I can't believe the club in which I voted to stay is behaving like this.)
* Pedantic biological note: I know, we're descended from apes and anthropoids, not monkeys. I didn't want to go introducing any actual science into the post when none of the row has been about science imo...
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Post by tuigirl on Mar 24, 2021 17:34:21 GMT
Well, we're not going off our collective trolley like some former friends across the Channel...
Latest news: "authorities" find millions of AZ vaccines in Italy headed for The Evil Empire (or the UK as it used to be known.) They are seized, the Rebellion (or the EU as it used to be known) is in triumph!
But... the vaccines were heading either for Belgium or Covax, one or the other, possibly both, but not The Evil Empire at all!!
I don't know why they're bothering. 'It doesn't work for people over X, under X, born at full moon or descended from monkeys* so we will only give it to non-simian descendants, born away from full moon and aged exactly X years old. But it's dangerous anyway so we're banning it this week, for a bit, just to show we mean it and even though it's actually safe.'
After the last few weeks they have done their very best to ruin public trust in the AZ vaccine and according to surveys, have succeeded amazingly well in the EU, but not here where people clearly have more sense. So who 'over there' will still want the doses that weren't heading here anyway?
Frankly JHD, if the EU presses ahead with its vaccine export ban against the UK (and no matter how they dress it up, it will be a ban against the UK primarily) where the vast majority DO want to be vaccinated, then any organised "Festival of Brexit" events will be eclipsed by the anti-EU outrage of those under 50, majority Remain-voting demographics who can't have their jabs in time for the summer simply because EU Says No.
And when that happens I await all the usual media suspects explaining how it's Boris and the Tories fault really. How dare the UK get something right at last? We should know our place and not upset our betters.
(I've been saving that up for a few days, could everyone tell? I cannot believe I voted to stay in that club. Or to be more precise, I can't believe the club in which I voted to stay is behaving like this.)
* Pedantic biological note: I know, we're descended from apes and anthropoids, not monkeys. I didn't want to go introducing any actual science into the post when none of the row has been about science imo... You cannot believe how frustrating the whole sad affair is for someone who actually has some sense and wants that b... vaccine. And any semblance of normal life. I am so mentally exhausted and morally frustrated there are no words.
At the rate my government is going a predict severe violence by May. And it has already started. We had been under permanent lockdown since December and there is no end in sight. I have no idea how I am going to cope mentally, I am already struggling.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Mar 24, 2021 19:24:10 GMT
You cannot believe how frustrating the whole sad affair is for someone who actually has some sense and wants that b... vaccine. And any semblance of normal life. I am so mentally exhausted and morally frustrated there are no words.
At the rate my government is going a predict severe violence by May. And it has already started. We had been under permanent lockdown since December and there is no end in sight. I have no idea how I am going to cope mentally, I am already struggling.
For what it's worth, my friend, you have my very best wishes.
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Post by number13 on Mar 24, 2021 19:58:22 GMT
You cannot believe how frustrating the whole sad affair is for someone who actually has some sense and wants that b... vaccine. And any semblance of normal life. I am so mentally exhausted and morally frustrated there are no words.
At the rate my government is going a predict severe violence by May. And it has already started. We had been under permanent lockdown since December and there is no end in sight. I have no idea how I am going to cope mentally, I am already struggling.
For what it's worth, my friend, you have my very best wishes. Seconded. We have friends and relatives not all in the best of health in different countries who also haven't a clue when they will get the vaccine, any vaccine. And like you, they are ready to get vaccinated as soon as possible.
Until at least Europe and North America are vaccinated and the major travel routes can reopen there won't be any real 'normal' for any of us. With friends 'down under' I'd add Australia and New Zealand too; although they're having a more or less normal life domestically by staying nationally isolated, nobody wants to live 'with the drawbridge up' for any longer than necessary.
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Post by johnhurtdoctor on Mar 24, 2021 20:14:08 GMT
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Post by tuigirl on Mar 24, 2021 22:47:32 GMT
For what it's worth, my friend, you have my very best wishes. Seconded. We have friends and relatives not all in the best of health in different countries who also haven't a clue when they will get the vaccine, any vaccine. And like you, they are ready to get vaccinated as soon as possible.
Until at least Europe and North America are vaccinated and the major travel routes can reopen there won't be any real 'normal' for any of us. With friends 'down under' I'd add Australia and New Zealand too; although they're having a more or less normal life domestically by staying nationally isolated, nobody wants to live 'with the drawbridge up' for any longer than necessary.
Problem is, until the WHOLE world is vaccinated, the virus stays around and will mutate and will create new and interesting ways to kick our bottoms. This is why nationalism and this whole vaccine piracy that is so popular at the moment for certain governments is completely out of order and counter productive. What is the Western World going to do? Vaccinate everybody and then close all the borders until everybody in the developing countries drops dead? Because that is an option. Only if there is a new mutant that somehow does manage to cross borders (and be sure, they will), we are back to square one. This is a true test for the whole of humanity. And from where I stand, we are failing. Big time.
Yes, the virus will eventually over the next decades adapt to it's new host (us humans), that is what all parasites do (to ensure their survival, nobody benefits from killing their food source).
But until then, this is going to stay around and pose a threat.
Creating viable breeding grounds in developing countries with a lot of weak and defenseless victims will create a whole host of new hungry mutants.
Just look at Brazil.
You are totally right. Normal life is a long way away. And those draw bridges are there to stay for the moment. Issue is, like they found out during sieges in the middle ages- situations like these can also become deadly traps.
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Post by doctorkernow on Mar 24, 2021 23:01:41 GMT
Hello again, Tuigirl.
I totally agree with your analysis. I hope everything sorts itself out. I quite understand your frustration and mental weariness with the behaviour of some of our elected class. This is a global pandemic. We have an invisible enemy, (sorry couldn't resist it) that does not care about political borders. Let's hope some cooperation is forthcoming and everyone works to get everyone vaaccinated rich or poor. Take care Tuigirl and best wishes.
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Post by number13 on Mar 25, 2021 0:26:10 GMT
Seconded. We have friends and relatives not all in the best of health in different countries who also haven't a clue when they will get the vaccine, any vaccine. And like you, they are ready to get vaccinated as soon as possible.
Until at least Europe and North America are vaccinated and the major travel routes can reopen there won't be any real 'normal' for any of us. With friends 'down under' I'd add Australia and New Zealand too; although they're having a more or less normal life domestically by staying nationally isolated, nobody wants to live 'with the drawbridge up' for any longer than necessary.
Problem is, until the WHOLE world is vaccinated, the virus stays around and will mutate and will create new and interesting ways to kick our bottoms. This is why nationalism and this whole vaccine piracy that is so popular at the moment for certain governments is completely out of order and counter productive. What is the Western World going to do? Vaccinate everybody and then close all the borders until everybody in the developing countries drops dead? Because that is an option. Only if there is a new mutant that somehow does manage to cross borders (and be sure, they will), we are back to square one. This is a true test for the whole of humanity. And from where I stand, we are failing. Big time.
Yes, the virus will eventually over the next decades adapt to it's new host (us humans), that is what all parasites do (to ensure their survival, nobody benefits from killing their food source).
But until then, this is going to stay around and pose a threat.
Creating viable breeding grounds in developing countries with a lot of weak and defenseless victims will create a whole host of new hungry mutants.
Just look at Brazil.
You are totally right. Normal life is a long way away. And those draw bridges are there to stay for the moment. Issue is, like they found out during sieges in the middle ages- situations like these can also become deadly traps.
Perfectly true. There were concerns raised today in Parliament about the number of (essential) travellers from France, lorry drivers etc. and the potential risks of new variants. All of us need 'the neighbours' to be vaccinated too as a starting point, we can limit wider movement if we have to for a while but we can't be cut off from our closest connections.
I wasn't even imagining global vaccination as a 'thing' yet, given where we are right now, but you're right, it's essential medically as well as morally. And it will be a huge challenge. So I suppose Europe and North America and India etc. start 'at home', and distribute outwards, keeping travel restrictions where needed?
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Post by number13 on Mar 27, 2021 0:00:33 GMT
Latest news from the alternate universe:
"France accuses UK of 'blackmail' over vaccine exports." That's right, the country which has been among the leaders in calling for a blockade on exports of (paid for by us) vaccines TO the UK FROM the EU, now accuses the UK of 'blackmail'.
This is getting very strange indeed. Perhaps in French the word 'blackmail' means something different?
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Post by tuigirl on Mar 27, 2021 9:25:52 GMT
Latest news from the alternate universe:
"France accuses UK of 'blackmail' over vaccine exports." That's right, the country which has been among the leaders in calling for a blockade on exports of (paid for by us) vaccines TO the UK FROM the EU, now accuses the UK of 'blackmail'.
This is getting very strange indeed. Perhaps in French the word 'blackmail' means something different?
This is not "strange", it has a name. "Piracy". Just call it by it's name.
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Post by johnhurtdoctor on Mar 27, 2021 12:34:49 GMT
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Post by tuigirl on Mar 27, 2021 13:10:25 GMT
Nooooo! Their cheeses are amazing! And I just found a shop who supplies me with their amazing cheddar! It is expensive, yes, but that is one of the guilty pleasures I have left right now.
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Post by johnhurtdoctor on Mar 27, 2021 14:14:04 GMT
Nooooo! Their cheeses are amazing! And I just found a shop who supplies me with their amazing cheddar! It is expensive, yes, but that is one of the guilty pleasures I have left right now.
Sorry. Isn't there any good domestic cheeses?
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