Are we being deliberately panicked to stop us seeing what is happening

You're welcome.
You're a good sport, by the way.

I dont have o level biology either, pretty much the whole year group failed. There was a very public relationship going on between biology teacher and maths teacher, not sure if there was a causal link.

Their minds met over a half dissected cows eye, I expect.

MissA

MissAdventure

Their minds met over a half dissected cows eye, I expect.

?

The biology lab was our form room for one year - frogs in trays all around, pickled in formaldehyde.

Urgh!
I didn't like all that kind of thing.

the government dare not restrict us legally because there would be revolts and trouble. The only resort is the 'panic' us because then perhaps we will be guided by common sense. The science is real. the numbers of the escalation are real. Doubling up at the speed it does gets stratospheric very fast. It is too risky to wait for further information on how serious Omricon is. To anyone with breathing difficulties or heart complaints...and there are very many indeed it is not worth the risk. And we are responsible to everyone. And to die of covid is not a peaceful easy death. Let's hope there are very few indeed. And thank goodness they have ramped up the boosters.

I have got O level Biology, but when I was at school I did find dissecting things quite repulsive. I think the bull’s eye and the frog were the worst, although the fish and the earthworm weren’t great either. I was okay with the flower though ?

Franbern, I'd assume that anyone who refers to the pandemic in the past tense has really lost the plot. Our faith in the current scientific advice should remain strong, surely, despite what the clowns in government do or say.

Of course we're all fed up with it, very fed up - but it hasn't gone away. We don't yet know how dangerous Omicron may be for the UK population (median age 40.4 years) compared with South Africa (median age 27.6 years) - but I'd hazard a guess that it'll be more serious here, wouldn't you?

Until we have a better idea of how it will pan out (in two or three weeks time) the only sensible response is to be cautious, however inconvenient that is.

MOnica Just been watching the clip with Desmond Swayne and the only word I could use to describe him is "swivel-eyed".

growstuff. I quite agree. He is among the rightwing nuts of the nuttiest variety. But despite that people like that do at times, not often, say something i entirely agree with.

That is the joy of not being among the 'my party can do no wrong, your party are all nasty greedy pigs' fraternity. You are free to agree with someone you normally have no time for when they do say somethng sensible. And in the snippet of his speech I heard I was in agreement with Desmond Snayne. It is highly unlikely to happen again.

OH went to the barber yesterday, there were 3 young men in there furious about Vaccination passports, he didn’t realise vaccine deniers and conspiracy theorists were so bigoted.

They won’t be able to go to Nightclubs or Football match’s over Christmas. I have no sympathy for the idiots at all, this Omicron virus spreads so fast everyone in the nightclub will get infected from one person

Personally, I want to be informed about different variant, so glad we have such wonderful scientist working to ensure we do.

Katie59

OH went to the barber yesterday, there were 3 young men in there furious about Vaccination passports, he didn’t realise vaccine deniers and conspiracy theorists were so bigoted.

They won’t be able to go to Nightclubs or Football match’s over Christmas. I have no sympathy for the idiots at all, this Omicron virus spreads so fast everyone in the nightclub will get infected from one person

I'm furious about vaccine passports and I'm neither a vaccine denier nor a conspiracy theorist. And I'm definitely not a bigot. Or an idiot.

Bea65

Pammie1

What green paper are u referring to.. scary details

@Bea65. If you go to www.gov.uk and search ‘Shaping future support: the health and disability green paper’. The consultation - such as it was - has now closed but there are various links to the green paper itself. Some of the measures are draconian and will push disabled people even further to the fringes of society. A DWP spokesman described the changes as being necessary to ensure that the people who needed the system the most could continue to be supported. That usually means that they’re proposing to means test everything to the bone with thresholds set as low as possible, and unless you’re literally on the bones of your bum, you won’t get any support at all. The Secretary of State for the DWP Therese Coffey, has already said that she doesn’t consider the department to have any duty of care towards disabled people.

Sorry for derailing the thread somewhat, but this is the kind of thing that’s being slipped in under the radar while we’re distracted by Covid issues, and when combined with giving ministers the power to overrule the judiciary, will mean that vulnerable people have little or no recourse to challenge decisions. As you said - scary.

M0nica

*growstuff*. I quite agree. He is among the rightwing nuts of the nuttiest variety. But despite that people like that do at times, not often, say something i entirely agree with.

That is the joy of not being among the 'my party can do no wrong, your party are all nasty greedy pigs' fraternity. You are free to agree with someone you normally have no time for when they do say somethng sensible. And in the snippet of his speech I heard I was in agreement with Desmond Snayne. It is highly unlikely to happen again.

If it's the snippet I saw comparing Covid and road traffic deaths, he's got his facts wrong. He really did seem to have lost it.

I have an A level in Biology but can't remember much other than about the breeding patterns of fruit flies, which is useful I'm surprised the Daily Mail aren't furious with the fruit flies with all those children, their wings and their teeny weeny televisions

their free wings, living off all our hard earned fruit bowls

Sorry to be dim Pammie1, but what changes are being made?

Oldnproud

Pepper59

I am not a scientist but I wondered if the reason for the panic was that they may be concerned a new variant appears from this one. I don't know for sure, it's just a thought. Mind you are South Africa's statistics accurate? It's a country I know nothing about. Perhaps someone in the know could comment. Mind you, if the hospitals become full, especially at this time of year, then that would be a worry. What I don't know is, how dangerous is this Omicrom?

I think that you raise a really important point.

If this highly infectious variant mutates into one that is equally infectious and also has a high death rate, we could really be in the deep stuff!

Apart from the basics I’m not sure how mutations work, but I don’t think mutations mutate into something else do they ? Doesn’t each mutation develop from the original virus ? I’m sure someone will correct me if this is wrong. Incidentally, there’s an online Sky News article quoting Dr Angelique Coetzee. She’s the South African medic asked to scrutinise the UK government's response to the new strain by Westminster's science and technology committee, She hasn’t seen any severe cases of Omicron in SA and concludes that as the UK is much better vaccinated than SA, although we need to be prepared, many of the measures being introduced are unnecessary and she says the UK government is overreacting, potentially causing panic with the knock on effect of the NHS being overwhelmed.

She’s the South African medic asked to scrutinise the UK government's response to the new strain by Westminster's science and technology committee.

Don't think so

growstuff

Sorry to be dim Pammie1, but what changes are being made?

They’re only proposals put forward in a consultation green paper at the moment, but there will be a white paper next year, detailing changes to the benefit system, based on the green paper proposals - in particular to disabled benefits. Changing from disability living allowance DLA) to personal independence payment (PIP) didn’t deliver the savings they were expecting. PIP is an extra cost benefit, not means tested and designed to meet the extra costs of living with a disability. The eligibility criteria are a lot harsher than DLA, but didn’t deliver the savings expected, mainly because the assessment system is deeply flawed and any savings were wiped out by the cost of tribunals to challenge bad decisions.

One of the changes being looked at is eventually rolling all benefits into one - Universal Credit. The green paper proposes starting the ball rolling with merging PIP - a non means tested benefit - with UC, which DOES means test. This would effectively mean that if you don’t qualify for UC, you don’t qualify for PIP, so a huge proportion of current claimants would lose all support, including the loss of Motability vehicles, meaning that there’s a knock on effect for the economy, both in terms of vehicle sales, and the loss of jobs when those disabled people who lose their vehicles can no longer travel to work.

This is just one snippet from the green paper - I originally quoted it on the thread to highlight how things are being sneaked in while we’re all distracted by Covid. Ordinarily disability charities and organisations would be all over it, but considering the devastating effect it would have if passed into law, no one seems to have even noticed. Which is worrying, not only because of the issues involved, but it makes you wonder what else is being eased in under the radar while we all look the other way.

Alegrias1

^She’s the South African medic asked to scrutinise the UK government's response to the new strain by Westminster's science and technology committee.^

Don't think so

Don’t shoot the messenger - this is how she was described by Sky News.

Zoejory

But it's not just the UK who are putting restrictions in place. Most countries are reacting. Countries in Europe have mandatory vaccination.

So I'm not sure how this can be down to our government over reacting.

Thank you.