[St Charles Owl]

I'm not sure that any leader will get this right with this virus. A total lock down in Italy doesn't appear to be working very well, and in reality they locked it down because their health service was at breaking point. The UK, nor the US is at that point yet, the healthcare services are stretched but not at bursting point. If the virus continues to spread, then it will reach a point where localised or then national shutdowns will be required but the current suspension of mass gatherings should slow the spread but I am not sure there is really anything that will stop it completely.

[0762]

As the old saying goes: "The proof is in the pudding". The eventual regression of this crisis in the months ahead will illustrate who actually did deal with this threat in the best possible way and lessons will be learnt by academics, officials of the WHO, govt officials, medical researchers etc. They will be well rehearsed in facing the next pandemic but ultimately, "Will it be any different"? Taking on a virulent threat, like this prolific one, can only demand a formally recognised systematic process of tackling it in the most effective way possible. I think one of the lessons learnt is one re delaying the appropriate action for too long and not recognising the impending threat in time. Govt officials and medical advisors in Italy would admit that failure when "looking back in hindsight".

[ritchiebaby]

I'm with 0762 in his last two sentences. Too little, too late might be oversimplifying the response, but too late is 100% correct in almost every country. South Korea seems to have been best in dealing with the virus, as they have placed testing as their priority. Surely the best way to stop any virus spreading is to identify the likely sources of the spread and isolate them.

I watched the zombie aka Matt Hancock on The Andrew Marr Show this morning and was amazed (but not surprised) to find that the Government are doing as little as possible, whilst giving the impression they are in control. Topping that performance was his announcement that their priority was to save lives and protect the vulnerable, at the same time as saying that the over 70s (that's me) and vulnerable (me again, I suppose) would be advised to self-isolate at an indeterminate date for an indefinite period. Presumably those groups are those most at risk from a virus spread by the healthier under-70s.

Two points here :-
1. If they really want to protect those groups as a priority, why did they not do this right at the start?
2. From my point of view, it would make much more sense to isolate the under-70s (being the likely carriers) and allow the over-70s freedom of movement and enjoy their last days before the ventilators are switched off.

Again supermarkets are going to ask customers to be reasonable and not buy too many toilet rolls, anti-bac, etc. Yet again my answer would be for the supermarkets to impose a rationing system. My local Aldi does, but I suppose that's much too sensible for the up-market lot to understand.

As far as Governments of all colours and affiliations are concerned, my attitude is still   but only a cough away from  

[St Charles Owl]

The problem is there will be absolutely no proof in the pudding!!! We are cooking only one pudding essentially, its will taste how it tastes, with no other pudding to compare it to it will be the best and the worst pudding we have!! Governments are making decisions, some planned, some on the fly, each decision causes one effect, and each discarded decision causes an effect, problem is the decision we make means the rest of the potential decision become hypothetical!!

If we strictly quarantine elderly people, then that will likely reduce the number of deaths, but will it have any effect on the spread? If we test everyone it won't stop the spread at all, it will just tell us whether they were infected at the time of the test, but if they leave the test room and then meet someone who does have it then they will still get it!! So far we have seen very few healthy people under 60 die from this virus, is there an argument to let it spread among these people, who will survive and will then build an immunity to it and protect those most vulnerable in our society from ever getting it in the first place?? I don't know if that would work at all but I can guarantee that the country would continue to operate as such. Governments have to look after their citizens and part of that means having a country and infrastructure left after this is done.

[hibeejim21]

Was just hearing on the radio a German pharma company has developed a vaccine for covid 19 and trump is trying to buy them out!

[ritchiebaby]

Was just hearing on the radio a German pharma company has developed a vaccine for covid 19 and trump is trying to buy them out!

The ultimate in panic buying - unless it's fake news of course!

My basic point in post#85 was that the damage has already been done, but we had some minimal control right at the start when we were testing. We threw any semblance of wanting to control the spread the minute we stopped testing as soon as cases were discovered. It's too late now and the case figures and deaths figures will go through the roof.

As I stated in my earlier post today, why did they not isolate the unhealthy and elderly at the beginning?

[0762]

Yep! All about timing and proper leadership!! An "acid test" that many governments have failed on. Trump is a classic case of meandering from total denial at the start of the COVID-19 outbreak to a grudging reality that this thing was a huge threat to the USA. He has been hugely exposed and damaged politically - can't disguise what you actually are and represent, another "acid test" failed!!!

[hibeejim21]

My trip to the supermarket today found no toilet roll, pasta,tinned tomatoes or cereals on the shelf.

Really are some selfish, moronic bastards out there.

[Amelia Chaffinch]

Same experience for us, Jim, but we got the cereal.

[0762]

Add in milk, bread and here's an odd one - bananas (highly nutritional all the same!). Listening on the radio to a desperate Scottish lassie stranded in Tenerife with no money left and missed out on the last "first come, first served" free mercy flights to remove Brits from the island. Looks like a visit to the British Embassy (if there is one there). Gotta add, "Why on earth did you go there when it was clear that travel bans were highly likely"!!!?