It's amusing to think about but not going to happen.
Sheffield are going down clearly. The Gunners are not finishing below West Brom. Which leaves only one spot left to fall down but there's half a dozen clubs who could take that.
Tbh they are fortunate. 14 points from 14 games has seen teams in the bottom 3 before. And, of course it is 38 point season form. But, as you say, there are some dreadfully off the pace teams. Although I don't expect Big Sam's WBA to end up as one.
If we're going into Tier 4 England-wide (which I will support - although I also think schools should close), then it needs to apply for many weeks/months without changes being made to it.
Yes we need something like this announced NOW - and to stay in place confirmed until 28 Feb including the school closures as it is the schools which have mainly driven the increase in Q4.
Who the f*ck is getting on a plane at this point ? The only people I know who have flown recently really didn't want to fly but it was neccessary for their work. But that's not the majority of flyers right now, particularly over christmas when contracts pretty much all go into a de facto pause. Just who are these would be flyers ?
You obviously didn't hear the Simon Calder one hour phone in on R5L this lunchtime... Highlights included recommending cheap flights to the Canaries. Spain closed to UK this afternoon.
That man needs taking off thr airwaves...he is a one man vritual coronavirus super spreader!
A friend of mine is away in Barbados. She appears to be having a lovely time! I’m rather jealous!
I went to Barbados last year and didn't really enjoy it. This has convinced me that I'm an incurable grouch, because if I can't have a good time at a tropical resort then it's not the setting but the subject of the experiment which is causing the problem.
Actually, I rarely enjoy holidays. They are expensive, require planning, and while I get to see new places I lose the convenience of home. I can't work 52 weeks a year for my whole life, so I ask you:
What are good holidays for people who don't really like holidaying?
A friend of mine is away in Barbados. She appears to be having a lovely time! I’m rather jealous!
I went to Barbados last year and didn't really enjoy it. This has convinced me that I'm an incurable grouch, because if I can't have a good time at a tropical resort then it's not the setting but the subject of the experiment which is causing the problem.
Actually, I rarely enjoy holidays. They are expensive, require planning, and while I get to see new places I lose the convenience of home. I can't work 52 weeks a year for my whole life, so I ask you:
What are good holidays for people who don't really like holidaying?
Unplanned ones. Just throw some things in your car, and drive off into the UK or Europe, go with the weather, or where the fancy takes you, you can always find places to stay.
The WHO also advises against lockdowns and in favour of convincing people to avoid social interactions instead.
But what do they recommend when folk aren't convinced? Of all the mistakes, London and the SE (except Kent) in Tier 2 not 3 with rising rates, whilst the North stayed in 3, despite falling rates, looks an egregious one.
A Sinn Fein politician wants and looks forward to a united Ireland by peaceful means, acknowledges the troubles but emphasises those days are in the past. It seems uncontroversial and certainly unsurprising.
If we're going into Tier 4 England-wide (which I will support - although I also think schools should close), then it needs to apply for many weeks/months without changes being made to it.
No. I live somewhere which is currently stuck in tier 3 with barely a handful of cases, and a steady downward trajectory since it was shoved into tier 2 before the November lockdown. Why should we suffer just because Londoners insist on breaking all the rules whilst living jammed up against each other in hideously insanitary conditions?
A friend of mine is away in Barbados. She appears to be having a lovely time! I’m rather jealous!
I went to Barbados last year and didn't really enjoy it. This has convinced me that I'm an incurable grouch, because if I can't have a good time at a tropical resort then it's not the setting but the subject of the experiment which is causing the problem.
Actually, I rarely enjoy holidays. They are expensive, require planning, and while I get to see new places I lose the convenience of home. I can't work 52 weeks a year for my whole life, so I ask you:
What are good holidays for people who don't really like holidaying?
Unplanned ones. Just throw some things in your car, and drive off into the UK or Europe, go with the weather, or where the fancy takes you, you can always find places to stay.
1. If you're going with someone, see what they like and enjoy their enjoyment. 2. If you're going on your own, think about what you really find convenient at home and look for somewhere that offers it too. A city break in a comfortable hotel with good wifi, perhaps? You can wander around a bit for the novelty, don't need to worry about getting food, and then relax in the room with your laptop when you've wandered enough for the day. That's my idea of a good time if I'm on my own - no interest in beaches or jungles.
A friend of mine is away in Barbados. She appears to be having a lovely time! I’m rather jealous!
I went to Barbados last year and didn't really enjoy it. This has convinced me that I'm an incurable grouch, because if I can't have a good time at a tropical resort then it's not the setting but the subject of the experiment which is causing the problem.
Actually, I rarely enjoy holidays. They are expensive, require planning, and while I get to see new places I lose the convenience of home. I can't work 52 weeks a year for my whole life, so I ask you:
What are good holidays for people who don't really like holidaying?
In a normal year, I use about half my holidays doing youth camps for teenagers, and the other half as footplate crew at a steam railway. I would recommend both as much more fun and rewarding than any sort of conventional holiday.
A friend of mine is away in Barbados. She appears to be having a lovely time! I’m rather jealous!
I went to Barbados last year and didn't really enjoy it. This has convinced me that I'm an incurable grouch, because if I can't have a good time at a tropical resort then it's not the setting but the subject of the experiment which is causing the problem.
Actually, I rarely enjoy holidays. They are expensive, require planning, and while I get to see new places I lose the convenience of home. I can't work 52 weeks a year for my whole life, so I ask you:
What are good holidays for people who don't really like holidaying?
A friend of mine is away in Barbados. She appears to be having a lovely time! I’m rather jealous!
I went to Barbados last year and didn't really enjoy it. This has convinced me that I'm an incurable grouch, because if I can't have a good time at a tropical resort then it's not the setting but the subject of the experiment which is causing the problem.
Actually, I rarely enjoy holidays. They are expensive, require planning, and while I get to see new places I lose the convenience of home. I can't work 52 weeks a year for my whole life, so I ask you:
What are good holidays for people who don't really like holidaying?
As well as visiting new places, it's nice to visit the same place (including accomodation) several years in a row. Try it!
I presume all his gaffs are being summarily demolished now ?
Actually I quite like The Donald's three storey Louis XV penthouse flat in Trump Tower. I was heartbroken to read that tenants and retailers were being put off by having to navigate past the Secret Service armed guards outside.
A friend of mine is away in Barbados. She appears to be having a lovely time! I’m rather jealous!
I went to Barbados last year and didn't really enjoy it. This has convinced me that I'm an incurable grouch, because if I can't have a good time at a tropical resort then it's not the setting but the subject of the experiment which is causing the problem.
Actually, I rarely enjoy holidays. They are expensive, require planning, and while I get to see new places I lose the convenience of home. I can't work 52 weeks a year for my whole life, so I ask you:
What are good holidays for people who don't really like holidaying?
Unplanned ones. Just throw some things in your car, and drive off into the UK or Europe, go with the weather, or where the fancy takes you, you can always find places to stay.
Yeah, my best holidays (admitedly short ones) are deciding the day before I would go away for a long weekend, Helps to have the time booked off work, but I never tend to make plans for my holidays. The most adventurous ones are getting on a plane with just a small suitcase.
A friend of mine is away in Barbados. She appears to be having a lovely time! I’m rather jealous!
I went to Barbados last year and didn't really enjoy it. This has convinced me that I'm an incurable grouch, because if I can't have a good time at a tropical resort then it's not the setting but the subject of the experiment which is causing the problem.
Actually, I rarely enjoy holidays. They are expensive, require planning, and while I get to see new places I lose the convenience of home. I can't work 52 weeks a year for my whole life, so I ask you:
What are good holidays for people who don't really like holidaying?
A friend of mine is away in Barbados. She appears to be having a lovely time! I’m rather jealous!
I went to Barbados last year and didn't really enjoy it. This has convinced me that I'm an incurable grouch, because if I can't have a good time at a tropical resort then it's not the setting but the subject of the experiment which is causing the problem.
Actually, I rarely enjoy holidays. They are expensive, require planning, and while I get to see new places I lose the convenience of home. I can't work 52 weeks a year for my whole life, so I ask you:
What are good holidays for people who don't really like holidaying?
As well as visiting new places, it's nice to visit the same place (including accomodation) several years in a row. Try it!
A friend of mine is away in Barbados. She appears to be having a lovely time! I’m rather jealous!
I went to Barbados last year and didn't really enjoy it. This has convinced me that I'm an incurable grouch, because if I can't have a good time at a tropical resort then it's not the setting but the subject of the experiment which is causing the problem.
Actually, I rarely enjoy holidays. They are expensive, require planning, and while I get to see new places I lose the convenience of home. I can't work 52 weeks a year for my whole life, so I ask you:
What are good holidays for people who don't really like holidaying?
In a normal year, I use about half my holidays doing youth camps for teenagers, and the other half as footplate crew at a steam railway. I would recommend both as much more fun and rewarding than any sort of conventional holiday.
Sadly, most PBers aren't allowed with 200 meters of children, and so your options aren't available to them.
Who the f*ck is getting on a plane at this point ? The only people I know who have flown recently really didn't want to fly but it was neccessary for their work. But that's not the majority of flyers right now, particularly over christmas when contracts pretty much all go into a de facto pause. Just who are these would be flyers ?
You obviously didn't hear the Simon Calder one hour phone in on R5L this lunchtime... Highlights included recommending cheap flights to the Canaries. Spain closed to UK this afternoon.
Irresponsible pandemic journalism part 94 - although possibly marginally better than trying to get the panic buying going, as Sky were doing yesterday morning. They appear todally blind to the fact that their editorial choices affect behaviours in ways that increase spread of the virus.
This damn thing doesn’t go away if people keep moving around and meeting other people. Everyone needs to stay put and keep themselves to themselves for a while, Christmas or no Christmas.
What is the time line for 70+ being vaccinated? Because once that happens how do you justify lockdowns which will be largely predicated on combating case numbers and (largely mild) illness, but not deaths?
And did the Times’ “reasonable worse case scenario” model the impact of vaccines?
It’s easier to be up at 6am when you’re four time zones ahead
Or eight hours behind.
A couple of years ago I worked with a supplier based in Las Vegas. Sadly, after the initial meeting we had to work remotely, and scheduling calls with 12 hours’ time difference and different work weeks was a nightmare. Inevitably we ended up talking at 7:30 or 8:00, whether that was AM or PM - one of us always complained about the early alarm call, and the other about being kept from the pub.
This damn thing doesn’t go away if people keep moving around and meeting other people. Everyone needs to stay put and keep themselves to themselves for a while, Christmas or no Christmas.
True, although there's a limit to what's realistically achievable. There aren't enough home delivery slots for most people to avoid regular trips to the supermarket, and the greater part of the working age population can't do their jobs from home. If I could get all my groceries reliably delivered and my employer were willing to grant me unpaid leave until the vaccination programme is well advanced then I would keep well away from everyone except my husband, who's a shielder - but I don't have the option.
What is the time line for 70+ being vaccinated? Because once that happens how do you justify lockdowns which will be largely predicated on combating case numbers and (largely mild) illness, but not deaths?
And did the Times’ “reasonable worse case scenario” model the impact of vaccines?
Lockdowns are in response to hospitalisations, to prevent the NHS being overwhelmed.
This damn thing doesn’t go away if people keep moving around and meeting other people. Everyone needs to stay put and keep themselves to themselves for a while, Christmas or no Christmas.
True, although there's a limit to what's realistically achievable. There aren't enough home delivery slots for most people to avoid regular trips to the supermarket, and the greater part of the working age population can't do their jobs from home. If I could get all my groceries reliably delivered and my employer were willing to grant me unpaid leave until the vaccination programme is well advanced then I would keep well away from everyone except my husband, who's a shielder - but I don't have the option.
Indeed. I have no friends or social life but do visit the supermarket once a week and can't help noticing there are lots of people who work there. Well-off white collar workers (there's a term from the past) are overrepresented on pb.
But places of worship remain open even in tier 4 (kudos to those who predicted the inevitable demise of the three tier system). Has no-one warned the government there may be a surge in church attendances this week?
What is the time line for 70+ being vaccinated? Because once that happens how do you justify lockdowns which will be largely predicated on combating case numbers and (largely mild) illness, but not deaths?
And did the Times’ “reasonable worse case scenario” model the impact of vaccines?
Lockdowns are in response to hospitalisations, to prevent the NHS being overwhelmed.
Yes, and that's why we're going to be stuck with lockdowns for a long time to come. It shouldn't take too long to get round the care homes and the over 80s, at which point the per capita death rate should drop considerably (though whether the absolute numbers do will also depend crucially on whether the novel strain, Christmas and other factors cause the case load to keep increasingly rapidly.) However, these groups are only a small fraction of the population and, even if those in the lower priority segments for vaccination are less likely to die, they'll still include an awful lot of moderately or severely ill patients who end up in hospital. And a moderately ill middle-aged person takes up one bed in the same fashion as a ninety-year-old at death's door.
The bottom line is that I think we're going to be locked up at least until the bulk of the first phase of the JCVI scheme have been vaccinated twice, i.e. the health and care workers, care home residents, the shielders, the rest of the clinically vulnerable and the entire general population over 60. There's unlikely to be any easing until ministers are reasonably confident that the hospitals can cope with the resultant increase in patient numbers, and even then it'll be gradual. Assuming that the vaccination programme is prosecuted with great efficiency, ideally accompanied by a warm, dry Spring, then we might get whatever's left of the hospitality sector back around the middle of 2021.
Way too many people take a totally binary approach to all this. There’s many real-world shades of grey between “Go home and stay home” and “Party like it’s 1999”.
It’s easier to be up at 6am when you’re four time zones ahead
Or eight hours behind.
A couple of years ago I worked with a supplier based in Las Vegas. Sadly, after the initial meeting we had to work remotely, and scheduling calls with 12 hours’ time difference and different work weeks was a nightmare. Inevitably we ended up talking at 7:30 or 8:00, whether that was AM or PM - one of us always complained about the early alarm call, and the other about being kept from the pub.
My younger son lives a similar life. Represents an American company in the Asia Pacific area, lives in Thailand.
Way too many people take a totally binary approach to all this. There’s many real-world shades of grey between “Go home and stay home” and “Party like it’s 1999”.
‘Everyone else should stay home while I flee to the country’ seems quite a popular line. Walking the streets round here, you can play London-Borough-Resident-Parking-Permit bingo right now.
A friend of mine is away in Barbados. She appears to be having a lovely time! I’m rather jealous!
I went to Barbados last year and didn't really enjoy it. This has convinced me that I'm an incurable grouch, because if I can't have a good time at a tropical resort then it's not the setting but the subject of the experiment which is causing the problem.
Actually, I rarely enjoy holidays. They are expensive, require planning, and while I get to see new places I lose the convenience of home. I can't work 52 weeks a year for my whole life, so I ask you:
What are good holidays for people who don't really like holidaying?
Unplanned ones. Just throw some things in your car, and drive off into the UK or Europe, go with the weather, or where the fancy takes you, you can always find places to stay.
Yeah, my best holidays (admitedly short ones) are deciding the day before I would go away for a long weekend, Helps to have the time booked off work, but I never tend to make plans for my holidays. The most adventurous ones are getting on a plane with just a small suitcase.
One of the trips that I remember very fondly from my youth started by going down to Victoria Coach Station and asking for a ticket to wherever the next coach out went to!
This damn thing doesn’t go away if people keep moving around and meeting other people. Everyone needs to stay put and keep themselves to themselves for a while, Christmas or no Christmas.
True, although there's a limit to what's realistically achievable. There aren't enough home delivery slots for most people to avoid regular trips to the supermarket, and the greater part of the working age population can't do their jobs from home. If I could get all my groceries reliably delivered and my employer were willing to grant me unpaid leave until the vaccination programme is well advanced then I would keep well away from everyone except my husband, who's a shielder - but I don't have the option.
Indeed. I have no friends or social life but do visit the supermarket once a week and can't help noticing there are lots of people who work there. Well-off white collar workers (there's a term from the past) are overrepresented on pb.
But places of worship remain open even in tier 4 (kudos to those who predicted the inevitable demise of the three tier system). Has no-one warned the government there may be a surge in church attendances this week?
They know, and that's why they've let them stay open. How much worse would the bad headlines about "Cancelling Christmas" have been if they'd mandated the padlocking of churches? Another case where their public health messaging about keeping households apart has butted heads with unfavourable media optics, and lost (and it's also why I remain highly sceptical about these reports that they're considering relenting on the schools and keeping them shut in January: it would be the right thing to do, but I'll believe it when I see it.)
What hope have you got when people behave like that? The ‘carry on as normal’ message of WW2 is somewhat misplaced in this crisis but then if life starts with strictly, is filled with the masked singer and finished off with other intellectual diamonds then when do you get to watch the news. A blank TV screen for 48 hours due to virus limitations could possibly bring the message home but I doubt it.
A Sinn Fein politician wants and looks forward to a united Ireland by peaceful means, acknowledges the troubles but emphasises those days are in the past. It seems uncontroversial and certainly unsurprising.
Either her Gaelic isn't very good, or Google Translate isn't!
Have a bit of credulity - that’s almost certainly a fake picture imo. From a previous year or something. It’s not credible that there isn’t single person wearing a mask. Even round their chin or something.
EDIT: apparently it’s from the Daily Mail so maybe it is. I still find it very difficult to believe they haven’t been duped.
A Sinn Fein politician wants and looks forward to a united Ireland by peaceful means, acknowledges the troubles but emphasises those days are in the past. It seems uncontroversial and certainly unsurprising.
Either her Gaelic isn't very good, or Google Translate isn't!
Both are probably true. Irish is taught in schools but no-one speaks it, so there is not much of a corpus for Google Translate to learn from. Ireland is no Israel, where Hebrew was successfully resurrected.
A Sinn Fein politician wants and looks forward to a united Ireland by peaceful means, acknowledges the troubles but emphasises those days are in the past. It seems uncontroversial and certainly unsurprising.
Either her Gaelic isn't very good, or Google Translate isn't!
Both are probably true. Irish is taught in schools but no-one speaks it, so there is not much of a corpus for Google Translate to learn from. Ireland is no Israel, where Hebrew was successfully resurrected.
Ireland (most of it anyway) is independent but it's language doesn't appear to be doing so well. There's little prospect of Welsh independence but the language seems to be coming back. Scots Gaelic is on it's last legs, apparently.
Have a bit of credulity - that’s almost certainly a fake picture imo. From a previous year or something. It’s not credible that there isn’t single person wearing a mask. Even round their chin or something.
EDIT: apparently it’s from the Daily Mail so maybe it is. I still find it very difficult to believe they haven’t been duped.
Have a bit of credulity - that’s almost certainly a fake picture imo. From a previous year or something. It’s not credible that there isn’t single person wearing a mask. Even round their chin or something.
EDIT: apparently it’s from the Daily Mail so maybe it is. I still find it very difficult to believe they haven’t been duped.
I agree. On any High Street, let alone one as busy as that at least 1/3 of people would be wearing masks now. I can't see a single one.
Way too many people take a totally binary approach to all this. There’s many real-world shades of grey between “Go home and stay home” and “Party like it’s 1999”.
But it's cuz the old people, innit, stoppin' us 'avin' a life.....
Have a bit of credulity - that’s almost certainly a fake picture imo. From a previous year or something. It’s not credible that there isn’t single person wearing a mask. Even round their chin or something.
EDIT: apparently it’s from the Daily Mail so maybe it is. I still find it very difficult to believe they haven’t been duped.
I agree. On any High Street, let alone one as busy as that at least 1/3 of people would be wearing masks now. I can't see a single one.
It actually looks to be authentic if you read this Daily Mail story, which contains direct quotes from the police:
A Sinn Fein politician wants and looks forward to a united Ireland by peaceful means, acknowledges the troubles but emphasises those days are in the past. It seems uncontroversial and certainly unsurprising.
Either her Gaelic isn't very good, or Google Translate isn't!
Both are probably true. Irish is taught in schools but no-one speaks it, so there is not much of a corpus for Google Translate to learn from. Ireland is no Israel, where Hebrew was successfully resurrected.
Ireland (most of it anyway) is independent but it's language doesn't appear to be doing so well. There's little prospect of Welsh independence but the language seems to be coming back. Scots Gaelic is on it's last legs, apparently.
Hmmm.
Largely because Welsh is the touchstone of Welsh identity, and was the first language of nearly all the ordinary people of Wales until the early twentieth century. Scottish and Irish Gaelic were never important to the people in the same way partly because there were so many distinct dialects (eg Deeside Gaelic, Roscommon Irish) and as a result from a very early stage English was the common language of communication for people from different areas. It was also the basis for some of those dialects, eg Scots and Ulster Scots, for which there is no real equivalent in Wales.
Have a bit of credulity - that’s almost certainly a fake picture imo. From a previous year or something. It’s not credible that there isn’t single person wearing a mask. Even round their chin or something.
EDIT: apparently it’s from the Daily Mail so maybe it is. I still find it very difficult to believe they haven’t been duped.
No one looks over 20 either.
Reading the Mail story and accompanying photos, it looks credible. This was part of the post lockdown ‘celebration’.
I wasn’t suggesting that this explains the new variant infections, but just pointing out the timeline is fairly consistent with the recent rapid increase in cases. Stuff like this explains why it takes some time to accumulate sufficient statistical evidence on how infectious it might be.
A Sinn Fein politician wants and looks forward to a united Ireland by peaceful means, acknowledges the troubles but emphasises those days are in the past. It seems uncontroversial and certainly unsurprising.
Either her Gaelic isn't very good, or Google Translate isn't!
Both are probably true. Irish is taught in schools but no-one speaks it, so there is not much of a corpus for Google Translate to learn from. Ireland is no Israel, where Hebrew was successfully resurrected.
Ireland (most of it anyway) is independent but it's language doesn't appear to be doing so well. There's little prospect of Welsh independence but the language seems to be coming back. Scots Gaelic is on it's last legs, apparently.
Hmmm.
Is Cymraeg really breaking out from Welsh Wales? I got the impression in South Wales that it is still confined to the schoolroom and road signs.
A Sinn Fein politician wants and looks forward to a united Ireland by peaceful means, acknowledges the troubles but emphasises those days are in the past. It seems uncontroversial and certainly unsurprising.
Either her Gaelic isn't very good, or Google Translate isn't!
Both are probably true. Irish is taught in schools but no-one speaks it, so there is not much of a corpus for Google Translate to learn from. Ireland is no Israel, where Hebrew was successfully resurrected.
Ireland (most of it anyway) is independent but it's language doesn't appear to be doing so well. There's little prospect of Welsh independence but the language seems to be coming back. Scots Gaelic is on it's last legs, apparently.
A Sinn Fein politician wants and looks forward to a united Ireland by peaceful means, acknowledges the troubles but emphasises those days are in the past. It seems uncontroversial and certainly unsurprising.
Either her Gaelic isn't very good, or Google Translate isn't!
Both are probably true. Irish is taught in schools but no-one speaks it, so there is not much of a corpus for Google Translate to learn from. Ireland is no Israel, where Hebrew was successfully resurrected.
Ireland (most of it anyway) is independent but it's language doesn't appear to be doing so well. There's little prospect of Welsh independence but the language seems to be coming back. Scots Gaelic is on it's last legs, apparently.
Hmmm.
Is Cymraeg really breaking out from Welsh Wales? I got the impression in South Wales that it is still confined to the schoolroom and road signs.
Have a bit of credulity - that’s almost certainly a fake picture imo. From a previous year or something. It’s not credible that there isn’t single person wearing a mask. Even round their chin or something.
EDIT: apparently it’s from the Daily Mail so maybe it is. I still find it very difficult to believe they haven’t been duped.
I agree. On any High Street, let alone one as busy as that at least 1/3 of people would be wearing masks now. I can't see a single one.
A Sinn Fein politician wants and looks forward to a united Ireland by peaceful means, acknowledges the troubles but emphasises those days are in the past. It seems uncontroversial and certainly unsurprising.
Either her Gaelic isn't very good, or Google Translate isn't!
Both are probably true. Irish is taught in schools but no-one speaks it, so there is not much of a corpus for Google Translate to learn from. Ireland is no Israel, where Hebrew was successfully resurrected.
Ireland (most of it anyway) is independent but it's language doesn't appear to be doing so well. There's little prospect of Welsh independence but the language seems to be coming back. Scots Gaelic is on it's last legs, apparently.
Why any parent would want to impede their child's education in this way escapes me completely.
Surely the language teaching lobby has always told us that learning one foreign language helps with others. If true (which tbh I doubt) then French, German and Spanish results should be on the up at those schools.
Have a bit of credulity - that’s almost certainly a fake picture imo. From a previous year or something. It’s not credible that there isn’t single person wearing a mask. Even round their chin or something.
EDIT: apparently it’s from the Daily Mail so maybe it is. I still find it very difficult to believe they haven’t been duped.
I agree. On any High Street, let alone one as busy as that at least 1/3 of people would be wearing masks now. I can't see a single one.
I’ve looked at the full Daily Mail article (which has other pictures with a few people (including police) in masks and it does appear to be legit. Even allowing for the misuse of photographs that can be misleading.
Unbelievable.
I think it shows that those of us who are lockdown sceptics are potentially right - they really shouldn’t be needed - but are making our arguments in the context of a country that isn’t possessed of complete morons. It’s no wonder many of the Asian countries are doing ok without extreme measures.
Does rather call into question whether “mutant COVID” is really the cause of accelerated spread though.
Have a bit of credulity - that’s almost certainly a fake picture imo. From a previous year or something. It’s not credible that there isn’t single person wearing a mask. Even round their chin or something.
EDIT: apparently it’s from the Daily Mail so maybe it is. I still find it very difficult to believe they haven’t been duped.
I agree. On any High Street, let alone one as busy as that at least 1/3 of people would be wearing masks now. I can't see a single one.
It actually looks to be authentic if you read this Daily Mail story, which contains direct quotes from the police:
I hope this comes out right, but I am concerned about Philip Thompson. He seems to spend an inordinate amount of time on Political betting. I dip in and out these days, but he seems to be on the site literally every time I come on, except first thing in the morning. I am pretty sure he is not some kind of group effort but a genuine human, so I can't help wondering whether spending so much time on here is good for him. We frequently joust, so this may seem like point scoring, but it genuinely isn't. I hope he's OK.
A Sinn Fein politician wants and looks forward to a united Ireland by peaceful means, acknowledges the troubles but emphasises those days are in the past. It seems uncontroversial and certainly unsurprising.
Either her Gaelic isn't very good, or Google Translate isn't!
Both are probably true. Irish is taught in schools but no-one speaks it, so there is not much of a corpus for Google Translate to learn from. Ireland is no Israel, where Hebrew was successfully resurrected.
Ireland (most of it anyway) is independent but it's language doesn't appear to be doing so well. There's little prospect of Welsh independence but the language seems to be coming back. Scots Gaelic is on it's last legs, apparently.
Hmmm.
Largely because Welsh is the touchstone of Welsh identity, and was the first language of nearly all the ordinary people of Wales until the early twentieth century. Scottish and Irish Gaelic were never important to the people in the same way partly because there were so many distinct dialects (eg Deeside Gaelic, Roscommon Irish) and as a result from a very early stage English was the common language of communication for people from different areas. It was also the basis for some of those dialects, eg Scots and Ulster Scots, for which there is no real equivalent in Wales.
That is very interesting. Given the geography I am surprised there are not big differences between Welsh in the south of the country and the north, or is it just that the south varieties have largely died out?
I am all for the maintenance of as many languages as possible. I think we lose a bit of ourselves every time a language dies. They are direct connections to our past.
A Sinn Fein politician wants and looks forward to a united Ireland by peaceful means, acknowledges the troubles but emphasises those days are in the past. It seems uncontroversial and certainly unsurprising.
Either her Gaelic isn't very good, or Google Translate isn't!
Both are probably true. Irish is taught in schools but no-one speaks it, so there is not much of a corpus for Google Translate to learn from. Ireland is no Israel, where Hebrew was successfully resurrected.
Ireland (most of it anyway) is independent but it's language doesn't appear to be doing so well. There's little prospect of Welsh independence but the language seems to be coming back. Scots Gaelic is on it's last legs, apparently.
Why any parent would want to impede their child's education in this way escapes me completely.
Surely the language teaching lobby has always told us that learning one foreign language helps with others. If true (which tbh I doubt) then French, German and Spanish results should be on the up at those schools.
There's some research I think which confirms that. I believe teaching of foreign languages in British schools is declining generally, though. Or is it just European languages?
A friend of mine is away in Barbados. She appears to be having a lovely time! I’m rather jealous!
I went to Barbados last year and didn't really enjoy it. This has convinced me that I'm an incurable grouch, because if I can't have a good time at a tropical resort then it's not the setting but the subject of the experiment which is causing the problem.
Actually, I rarely enjoy holidays. They are expensive, require planning, and while I get to see new places I lose the convenience of home. I can't work 52 weeks a year for my whole life, so I ask you:
What are good holidays for people who don't really like holidaying?
Unless you are peak season, not a lot of planning is required. Avoid flying and travel by train. You see much more of a country that way, and getting there becomes a pleasure rather than pain. Stay in cheap hotels as luxury is alienating, and there are always good value places around railway stations to stay and to eat.
Interrail tickets are good, as it is so easy to move on, if you don't like a place, or even the weather.
I don't think the Senate races are quite so essential as we're making out but that might be wishful thinking on my part. I think we are heavily influenced here by recency bias. Trump was confrontational in extremis and Obama was useless at inter-personal negotiation skills.
Prior to those two, Presidents knew how to work with moderates from opposing parties. In Joe Biden we have a guy who knows how to do business with people like Mitch McConnell.
So recency bias is skewing our perspective.
This may be wishful thinking on my part because although I have money on Jon Ossoff I don't think the Dems are going to win the run-offs. I hope I'm wrong.
And in some ways the best thing for America is to show that it's possible to work together. The best result might be if the Dems lose the runoffs and Biden then demonstrates that he can pull the country together. By winning over some moderate Republicans and moderating extremes in his own party he will simultaneously neutralise the Trump nutjobs ahead of 2024.
Have a bit of credulity - that’s almost certainly a fake picture imo. From a previous year or something. It’s not credible that there isn’t single person wearing a mask. Even round their chin or something.
EDIT: apparently it’s from the Daily Mail so maybe it is. I still find it very difficult to believe they haven’t been duped.
I agree. On any High Street, let alone one as busy as that at least 1/3 of people would be wearing masks now. I can't see a single one.
The WHO also advises against lockdowns and in favour of convincing people to avoid social interactions instead.
But what do they recommend when folk aren't convinced? Of all the mistakes, London and the SE (except Kent) in Tier 2 not 3 with rising rates, whilst the North stayed in 3, despite falling rates, looks an egregious one.
They recommend to convince them. To educate them.
Their logic (and Sages in March) is that people tire of lockdowns and start to ignore them, so the lockdowns need to become progressively harder and draconian to have the same impact. - but if someone isn't socialising due to their own choices then they don't tire of it as much and don't mix because they chose not to, which works better.
A Sinn Fein politician wants and looks forward to a united Ireland by peaceful means, acknowledges the troubles but emphasises those days are in the past. It seems uncontroversial and certainly unsurprising.
Either her Gaelic isn't very good, or Google Translate isn't!
Both are probably true. Irish is taught in schools but no-one speaks it, so there is not much of a corpus for Google Translate to learn from. Ireland is no Israel, where Hebrew was successfully resurrected.
Ireland (most of it anyway) is independent but it's language doesn't appear to be doing so well. There's little prospect of Welsh independence but the language seems to be coming back. Scots Gaelic is on it's last legs, apparently.
Why any parent would want to impede their child's education in this way escapes me completely.
Surely the language teaching lobby has always told us that learning one foreign language helps with others. If true (which tbh I doubt) then French, German and Spanish results should be on the up at those schools.
There's some research I think which confirms that. I believe teaching of foreign languages in British schools is declining generally, though. Or is it just European languages?
We don't even teach English in our schools. I went to a grammar school in the 1970s and was never taught English grammar. And if you don't know how your own language works, how on earth are you going to be able to learn other ones?
A Sinn Fein politician wants and looks forward to a united Ireland by peaceful means, acknowledges the troubles but emphasises those days are in the past. It seems uncontroversial and certainly unsurprising.
Either her Gaelic isn't very good, or Google Translate isn't!
Both are probably true. Irish is taught in schools but no-one speaks it, so there is not much of a corpus for Google Translate to learn from. Ireland is no Israel, where Hebrew was successfully resurrected.
Ireland (most of it anyway) is independent but it's language doesn't appear to be doing so well. There's little prospect of Welsh independence but the language seems to be coming back. Scots Gaelic is on it's last legs, apparently.
Hmmm.
Largely because Welsh is the touchstone of Welsh identity, and was the first language of nearly all the ordinary people of Wales until the early twentieth century. Scottish and Irish Gaelic were never important to the people in the same way partly because there were so many distinct dialects (eg Deeside Gaelic, Roscommon Irish) and as a result from a very early stage English was the common language of communication for people from different areas. It was also the basis for some of those dialects, eg Scots and Ulster Scots, for which there is no real equivalent in Wales.
That is very interesting. Given the geography I am surprised there are not big differences between Welsh in the south of the country and the north, or is it just that the south varieties have largely died out?
I am all for the maintenance of as many languages as possible. I think we lose a bit of ourselves every time a language dies. They are direct connections to our past.
There are some differences between the language used in S Wales from that in the North, I understand. The word for grandfather, for example.
Have a bit of credulity - that’s almost certainly a fake picture imo. From a previous year or something. It’s not credible that there isn’t single person wearing a mask. Even round their chin or something.
EDIT: apparently it’s from the Daily Mail so maybe it is. I still find it very difficult to believe they haven’t been duped.
I agree. On any High Street, let alone one as busy as that at least 1/3 of people would be wearing masks now. I can't see a single one.
It actually looks to be authentic if you read this Daily Mail story, which contains direct quotes from the police:
Madness! But hold on, isn't this what we'd see at any school anywhere in the country -- unmasked pupils cheek by jowl? Schools cling to our initial herd immunity approach: that it is all right for children because they don't become ill, and we cannot shut the schools (we were told in March) for fear children would spread the disease to their child-minding grandparents who would become ill and might die.
A Sinn Fein politician wants and looks forward to a united Ireland by peaceful means, acknowledges the troubles but emphasises those days are in the past. It seems uncontroversial and certainly unsurprising.
Either her Gaelic isn't very good, or Google Translate isn't!
Both are probably true. Irish is taught in schools but no-one speaks it, so there is not much of a corpus for Google Translate to learn from. Ireland is no Israel, where Hebrew was successfully resurrected.
Ireland (most of it anyway) is independent but it's language doesn't appear to be doing so well. There's little prospect of Welsh independence but the language seems to be coming back. Scots Gaelic is on it's last legs, apparently.
Why any parent would want to impede their child's education in this way escapes me completely.
Surely the language teaching lobby has always told us that learning one foreign language helps with others. If true (which tbh I doubt) then French, German and Spanish results should be on the up at those schools.
There's some research I think which confirms that. I believe teaching of foreign languages in British schools is declining generally, though. Or is it just European languages?
We don't even teach English in our schools. I went to a grammar school in the 1970s and was never taught English grammar. And if you don't know how your own language works, how on earth are you going to be able to learn other ones?
Were there not complaints when Michael Gove tried to fix that as education secretary?
I hope this comes out right, but I am concerned about Philip Thompson. He seems to spend an inordinate amount of time on Political betting. I dip in and out these days, but he seems to be on the site literally every time I come on, except first thing in the morning. I am pretty sure he is not some kind of group effort but a genuine human, so I can't help wondering whether spending so much time on here is good for him. We frequently joust, so this may seem like point scoring, but it genuinely isn't. I hope he's OK.
How much effort is needed to keep a web page open and scan it every half hour or so, or between calls? I'd imagine that for people in general who are working from home, social media of various types substitutes for chat and gossip at work.
Comments
https://twitter.com/RightWingWatch/status/1341122230026178561?s=20
Apparently they needed a bigger axis as the term exponential growth was massively underwhelming.
Portes being a fool shouldn't be a shock.
https://twitter.com/K_G_Andersen/status/1341105717973946368
https://twitter.com/LozzaFox/status/1341051946296356866?s=20
And, of course it is 38 point season form.
But, as you say, there are some dreadfully off the pace teams. Although I don't expect Big Sam's WBA to end up as one.
Everywhere's closed, it's pissing down and didn't get properly light today.
Other than that OK.
Apart from it being mental as well.
But Fox really stretches my patience to its limits.
https://twitter.com/OrlaithiF_MLA/status/1341127684852764673?s=19
Actually, I rarely enjoy holidays. They are expensive, require planning, and while I get to see new places I lose the convenience of home. I can't work 52 weeks a year for my whole life, so I ask you:
What are good holidays for people who don't really like holidaying?
The Tories are sitting on it again, lockdown now
https://twitter.com/JeremyFarrar/status/1341151013642887173
https://twitter.com/GameOverGreggy/status/1340924660469301248?s=19
In the days we did such a thing.
Of all the mistakes, London and the SE (except Kent) in Tier 2 not 3 with rising rates, whilst the North stayed in 3, despite falling rates, looks an egregious one.
https://twitter.com/andrewfeinberg/status/1341061088729845765?s=21
https://twitter.com/kloeffler/status/1341090970360799237?s=21
A Sinn Fein politician wants and looks forward to a united Ireland by peaceful means, acknowledges the troubles but emphasises those days are in the past. It seems uncontroversial and certainly unsurprising.
2. If you're going on your own, think about what you really find convenient at home and look for somewhere that offers it too. A city break in a comfortable hotel with good wifi, perhaps? You can wander around a bit for the novelty, don't need to worry about getting food, and then relax in the room with your laptop when you've wandered enough for the day. That's my idea of a good time if I'm on my own - no interest in beaches or jungles.
https://twitter.com/toadmeister/status/1341172310280183813
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-55403099
This isn't good enough. This really is something the government can and should be doing.
This damn thing doesn’t go away if people keep moving around and meeting other people. Everyone needs to stay put and keep themselves to themselves for a while, Christmas or no Christmas.
The advice to be proactive not reactive in a pandemic remains excellent.
And did the Times’ “reasonable worse case scenario” model the impact of vaccines?
https://twitter.com/AAMortazavi/status/1340984888640548865
But places of worship remain open even in tier 4 (kudos to those who predicted the inevitable demise of the three tier system). Has no-one warned the government there may be a surge in church attendances this week?
The bottom line is that I think we're going to be locked up at least until the bulk of the first phase of the JCVI scheme have been vaccinated twice, i.e. the health and care workers, care home residents, the shielders, the rest of the clinically vulnerable and the entire general population over 60. There's unlikely to be any easing until ministers are reasonably confident that the hospitals can cope with the resultant increase in patient numbers, and even then it'll be gradual. Assuming that the vaccination programme is prosecuted with great efficiency, ideally accompanied by a warm, dry Spring, then we might get whatever's left of the hospitality sector back around the middle of 2021.
EDIT: apparently it’s from the Daily Mail so maybe it is. I still find it very difficult to believe they haven’t been duped.
Scots Gaelic is on it's last legs, apparently.
Hmmm.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9021981/Hundreds-young-people-try-enter-Harrods-chaotic-scenes-police-make-four-arrests.html
I wasn’t suggesting that this explains the new variant infections, but just pointing out the timeline is fairly consistent with the recent rapid increase in cases. Stuff like this explains why it takes some time to accumulate sufficient statistical evidence on how infectious it might be.
Why any parent would want to impede their child's education in this way escapes me completely.
Unbelievable.
I think it shows that those of us who are lockdown sceptics are potentially right - they really shouldn’t be needed - but are making our arguments in the context of a country that isn’t possessed of complete morons. It’s no wonder many of the Asian countries are doing ok without extreme measures.
Does rather call into question whether “mutant COVID” is really the cause of accelerated spread though.
I am all for the maintenance of as many languages as possible. I think we lose a bit of ourselves every time a language dies. They are direct connections to our past.
Interrail tickets are good, as it is so easy to move on, if you don't like a place, or even the weather.
Prior to those two, Presidents knew how to work with moderates from opposing parties. In Joe Biden we have a guy who knows how to do business with people like Mitch McConnell.
So recency bias is skewing our perspective.
This may be wishful thinking on my part because although I have money on Jon Ossoff I don't think the Dems are going to win the run-offs. I hope I'm wrong.
And in some ways the best thing for America is to show that it's possible to work together. The best result might be if the Dems lose the runoffs and Biden then demonstrates that he can pull the country together. By winning over some moderate Republicans and moderating extremes in his own party he will simultaneously neutralise the Trump nutjobs ahead of 2024.
Their logic (and Sages in March) is that people tire of lockdowns and start to ignore them, so the lockdowns need to become progressively harder and draconian to have the same impact. - but if someone isn't socialising due to their own choices then they don't tire of it as much and don't mix because they chose not to, which works better.