When will this shit end?

[Crazyfool01]

1 minute ago, jparx said:

In terms of “when will this shit end?” I feel like there won’t be a moment. I can see the govt dropping restrictions but many people (probably myself tbh) following their own personal restrictions. I think there’s going to be a really weird vibe around Easter possibly for a few months.

Yep as posted earlier it’s going to be a slow easing back in for me .... heading towards the massive party in a field in June ... that’s my end point ... if /when we get that  

[steviewevie]

3 minutes ago, zahidf said:

Yeah. Tbh im fine with handwashing and masks on public transport permanently 

when this is over I am never washing my hands again.

[JoeyT]

3 minutes ago, jparx said:

In terms of “when will this shit end?” I feel like there won’t be a moment. I can see the govt dropping restrictions but many people (probably myself tbh) following their own personal restrictions. I think there’s going to be a really weird vibe around Easter possibly for a few months.

You've ruined the image I had in my head of us all running outside to hug our neighbours and have street parties.

[efcfanwirral]

6 minutes ago, zahidf said:

Yeah. Tbh im fine with handwashing and masks on public transport permanently 

Same - if people can avoid unnecessarily catching colds etc it will increase productivity and general wellness which can only be a good thing. People will still catch enough to have a strong immune system but it just wont be as widespread all winter 

My concern though is anyone still wearing a mask will be targets for abuse and attacks and the whole practice will just disappear 

[Ozanne]

12 minutes ago, jparx said:

In terms of “when will this shit end?” I feel like there won’t be a moment. I can see the govt dropping restrictions but many people (probably myself tbh) following their own personal restrictions. I think there’s going to be a really weird vibe around Easter possibly for a few months.

I think they’ll still be restrictions in place till Easter, the government have said as much. They’ll definitely be restrictions in place through till the Spring. 

[jparx]

1 minute ago, Ozanne said:

I think they’ll still be restrictions in place till Easter, the government have said as much. They’ll definitely be restrictions in place through till the Spring. 

Don't the current proposed tiers have an end date of Feb 3rd? I can see new restrictions coming in from Feb through to Easter, maybe tiers again, but them being much less stringent. I think Boris is going to struggle to get anything too severe through parliament at this rate.

[Ozanne]

Just now, jparx said:

Don't the current proposed tiers have an end date of Feb 3rd? I can see new restrictions coming in from Feb through to Easter, maybe tiers again, but them being much less stringent. I think Boris is going to struggle to get anything too severe through parliament at this rate.

They’ll try to renew tiers depending on how they’ve gone. February and March is still winter and some of the toughest times of the year for the NHS so I can’t see them being able to relax restrictions much at that stage. 

[JoeyT]

 

[steviewevie]

5 minutes ago, Ozanne said:

I think they’ll still be restrictions in place till Easter, the government have said as much. They’ll definitely be restrictions in place through till the Spring. 

Furlough ends in March...right? Did they say when in March? If end of March then maybe you're right as easter is early April next year.

[Fuzzy Afro]

17 minutes ago, zahidf said:

Yeah. Tbh im fine with handwashing and masks on public transport permanently 

There’s little chance that mandatory masks on transport will be here long term imo. Although it may transpire that a significant minority of people choose to continue wearing them, either all the time or just when they have a cold. 

[squirrelarmy]

Restrictions on outdoor events will be lifted by the third week in March. 

[steviewevie]

1 minute ago, squirrelarmy said:

Restrictions on outdoor events will be lifted by the third week in March. 

cheers Nostradamus.

[Copperface]

7 minutes ago, jparx said:

I think Boris is going to struggle to get anything too severe through parliament at this rate.

Restrictions on large gatherings do not go through Parliament. They are one of the several unique areas that are subject to Statutory Instruments laid down by the Sec State. No votes or scrutiny needed.

[steviewevie]

EU talks have gone into the tunnel...apparently...

[stuartbert two hats]

26 minutes ago, zahidf said:

Yeah. Tbh im fine with handwashing and masks on public transport permanently 

Masks can get right in the sea.

 

Having said that, it's the only thing I can think of that seems like it could explain the relatively sharp drop off of cases in lockdown MK2.  We have a much less stringent lockdown this time, but with widespread mask wearing - could that be the key?

Anyone else have any thoughts?  

[Ozanne]

15 minutes ago, steviewevie said:

Furlough ends in March...right? Did they say when in March? If end of March then maybe you're right as easter is early April next year.

Furlough ends at the end of March I think. 

[steviewevie]

3 minutes ago, stuartbert two hats said:

Masks can get right in the sea.

 

Having said that, it's the only thing I can think of that seems like it could explain the relatively sharp drop off of cases in lockdown MK2.  We have a much less stringent lockdown this time, but with widespread mask wearing - could that be the key?

Anyone else have any thoughts?  

Yeah, probably lockdown restrictions plus mask wearing has done the job.

Back in the first lockdown masks weren't much of a thing, now they're all the rage.

[DeanoL]

1 hour ago, stuartbert two hats said:

We'll probably agree to disagree on this, but I do want to point out, than even the Oxford vaccine, which seems to be the least effective has reported zero cases of severe disease in the vaccinated group.  So we do know it prevents severe disease, and very effectively.

That's true, and it's promising, but even the scientists will tell you there's not enough data to prove it yet.

We can agree to disagree, but equally, I'm being honest here about my own feelings on it and I hope we can agree that I definitely exist. And I have concerns still. I have gigs that were booked in last year that are getting moved to March/April and we're being told they'll be socially distanced if needs be and I'm still not sure I want to go.

For me having the vaccine as it stands won't be enough to convince me to start going to pubs/gigs on its own. For you it will be. All we disagree on is how many people there are that think the same way as us.

But I know you're a fairly reasonable person, you've not been someone to jump at the chance to go out as soon as it's in any way allowed - so you probably do represent a large number of people. But equally I'm not a lockdown hawk, you can go read my past posts where I've been defending the government decision on Christmas bubbles - I've even broken some of the rules at one or two points where we personally felt it was safe to do so. So I don't think I'm a total outlier either.

And even if people like me are even 20% of the public, that's a large amount of business for pubs, restaurants, gigs, etc to do without (not to mention the fact that some of the people like me are actually the ones putting on shows, and if we're not running the gig no-one can go to it).

I don't think it'll be ridiculous - it's not going to be May and city centres still empty. But things won't be at the levels they were in Feb for a good while.

(I've noticed quite a few big tours have gone on sale for gigs towards the end of next year - I'd imagine the speed at which they've sold would be a good indicator of general confidence and attitude towards going out again)

Edited December 1, 2020 by DeanoL

[stuartbert two hats]

2 minutes ago, DeanoL said:

That's true, and it's promising, but even the scientists will tell you there's not enough data to prove it yet.

We can agree to disagree, but equally, I'm being honest here about my own feelings on it and I hope we can agree that I definitely exist. And I have concerns still. I have gigs that were booked in last year that are getting moved to March/April and we're being told they'll be socially distanced if needs be and I'm still not sure I want to go.

For me having the vaccine as it stands won't be enough to convince me to start going to pubs/gigs on its own. For you it will be. All we disagree on is how many people there are that think the same way as us.

But I know you're a fairly reasonable person, you've not been someone to jump at the chance to go out as soon as it's in any way allowed - so you probably do represent a large number of people. But equally I'm not a lockdown hawk, you can go read my past posts where I've been defending the government decision on Christmas bubbles - I've even broken some of the rules at one or two points where we personally safe to do so. So I don't think I'm a total outlier either.

And even if people like me are even 20% of the public, that's a large amount of business for pubs, restaurants, gigs, etc to do without (not to mention the fact that some of the people like me are actually the ones putting on shows, and we're not running the gig no-one can go to it).

I don't think it'll be ridiculous - it's going to be May and city centres still empty. But things won't be at the levels they were in Feb for a good while.

(I've noticed quite a few big tours have gone on sale for gigs towards the end of next year - I'd imagine the speed at which they've sold would be a good indicator of general confidence and attitude towards going out again)

That's fair.  Do you think you'll be more comfortable going out than during summer?

[Copperface]

21 minutes ago, jparx said:

Don't the current proposed tiers have an end date of Feb 3rd? I can see new restrictions coming in from Feb through to Easter, maybe tiers again, but them being much less stringent. I think Boris is going to struggle to get anything too severe through parliament at this rate.

This a couple of months old but one of many, many articles from both the UK and further afield. This will not be ignored in its entirety by the government, no matter how pissed off people are.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-54371559 

[zahidf]

13 minutes ago, stuartbert two hats said:

Masks can get right in the sea.

 

Having said that, it's the only thing I can think of that seems like it could explain the relatively sharp drop off of cases in lockdown MK2.  We have a much less stringent lockdown this time, but with widespread mask wearing - could that be the key?

Anyone else have any thoughts?  

yeah i think thats likely. So am happy with keeping masks as a price for loosening elsewhere. 

[DeanoL]

Just now, stuartbert two hats said:

That's fair.  Do you think you'll be more comfortable going out than during summer?

That's the tricky bit and the crux of this for me - part of it will depend on evidence of it actually preventing severe disease and transmission.

But without that, if it's belt and bracers - ie. I've had it, but pubs are sticking to table service, wiping down tables all the time, gigs are seated and no squeezing past people to get to your seat, people from different groups are still spaced out a bit (maybe 1m, not 2m) then yeah. But if it's back to a free-for-all, mosh pits, random hugs from strangers COVID is over let's party... then no I wouldn't feel more comfortable.

It's like, I wasn't comfortable going out during summer, it felt too risky, even with the restrictions. A vaccine that makes it 90% less risky would be great - if I had had that vaccine in June then I'd have gone out in the summer. But I feel like next year, loads of that 90% less risk will get counteracted by 50% or so more risk because there's no distancing any more. So is it actually that much safer out?

(And like I say, if I'm right and lots of people feel like me, I think a lot of businesses may find they're actually more popular if they keep some restrictions in place)

[Brownie30]

Seems almost perverse with numbers still looking pretty concerning BUT tomorrow evening I will have my first real taste of a return to pre-Covid life as one of 1000 fans let in to a pilot event at the mighty Wycombe Wanderers vs Stoke City in the Championship. All tickets spaced out by 3 / 4 seats apart, one way systems, temp checks and masks enforced all around the ground, even outdoors. Bound to be very weird, but with football and gigs / festivals the two main staples of my social life I'm incredibly excited to get a first real taste of one of them for the first real time since March! 

Edited December 1, 2020 by Brownie30

[DeanoL]

(I also don't think there's any chance that actual restrictions continue past March, nor I'd say should there be - the NHS issue will be solved. But instead the government will still be issuing advice, backed by the scientists - much of which will be: keep your contacts low, don't touch people you don't need to, try not to gather in groups of more than 6... along with advice for pubs, restaurants etc. on distancing - but crucially it will be advice, rather than law)

[Ozanne]

Figures for today. Numbers still look high as we exit lockdown.