We have had 909 in total. Severe restrictions from the start. That of course does not prevent tennis players from overseas complaining that they are required to quarantine for 14 days after arrival.
Apparently viruses behave differently in wealthy tennis players.
Multiple apologies now from the tennis players. They did not mean it, they say. Of course they did, and they're now backing down because of uniformly bad publicity.
We have had 909 in total. Severe restrictions from the start. That of course does not prevent tennis players from overseas complaining that they are required to quarantine for 14 days after arrival.
Apparently viruses behave differently in wealthy tennis players.
There is plenty of data to show the sources of infection and the kind of event you are referring to are not a major source. (Based on the data I've seen).
From which we learn that in the last week 48% of working age people travelled to work one or more times. That's the biggest source of mass movement. Now we don't know that everyone getting infected is getting infected at work but given other circumstantial evidence it seems likely that a significant number of infections are down to the workplace.
I must admit, the spectacle of Mrs Mayhem admonishing the Mad Mophead for failing to provide "moral leadership" raised a smile today... followed by bitter laughter.
(Cough) Windrush (cough)
Well, quite. I thought "pot; kettle". Though May is not in the same league as Johnson.
It's an endemic problem with government agencies. I know of another government agency near here which is almost exclusively acting as a telephone call centre where most staff have been going into the office everyday. Yes, the work is essential (whether providing a telephone centre for vulnerable people enquiring about payments they should receive, or all the stuff about drivers) but it should be possible for the majority of that to be done from home - subject to people having suitable broadband at home and a suitable computer (computers can be easily supplied if needed, poor broadband is a harder thing to sort out ... similar to problems with schooling at home for children). But, it seems that the government has been much slower than the private sector (many of those businesses are reviewing their working practices having experienced benefits of having staff work from home) in helping employees work from home.
And, yes, long term underinvestment is part of the problem. And, in the case of IT systems poor management of usually out-sourced contracts which have failed to deliver.
I think Gee D was referring to courts being set up in such a way as to encourage the spread of Covid, but there are a number of mitigating factors here: many hearings are by phone or video link currently - see the June 2020 .gov guidance, which had its drawbacks that hit the press. Also huge delays in courts that cannot be carried out by video link are also hitting the press as the new procedures are slowing everything down.
This. I have detested Alex Johnson ever since I first came across him hosting a middle-brow TV panel game in the early 00's (about his natural level IMO). Today though, I find myself loathing him with a deep visceral hatred that I didn't think myself capable of. I don't enjoy feeling like this, but it's entirely his fault. I try to avoid watching or even reading about his bumbling TV "briefings" (entirely misnamed, as a briefing should consist of accurate information), but his latest foray into televised lying on an epic scale has been too ubiquitous to ignore.
This. I have detested Alex Johnson ever since I first came across him hosting a middle-brow TV panel game in the early 00's (about his natural level IMO).
I don't think that was even his 'natural level'. According to Ian Hislop, Johnson hadn't a clue about hosting 'Have I got news for you', despite having guested a few times on the show, and everything being done for him, as a guest-host. Johnson's 'style' was apparently to try and 'wing' it and waff-waff about when he got the cards in the wrong order, or couldn't read the auto-cue or didn't know what was happening, and so on. He seemed to think everything would just happen around him and get sorted out, while all he had to do was sit in the middle and be charmingly buffonish. Sounds familiar?
. He seemed to think everything would just happen around him and get sorted out, while all he had to do was sit in the middle and be charmingly buffonish. Sounds familiar?
Yes.
And this time, his abject failure is measured in thousands of deaths.
At PMQs today, we heard an desperately inadequate man trying to apportion the blame to anyone but himself.
Which is why I was swearing at the radio very loudly today.
I have detested Alex Johnson ever since I first came across him hosting a middle-brow TV panel game in the early 00's (about his natural level IMO).
I don't think that was even his 'natural level'. According to Ian Hislop, Johnson hadn't a clue about hosting 'Have I got news for you', despite having guested a few times on the show, and everything being done for him, as a guest-host. Johnson's 'style' was apparently to try and 'wing' it and waff-waff about when he got the cards in the wrong order, or couldn't read the auto-cue or didn't know what was happening, and so on. He seemed to think everything would just happen around him and get sorted out, while all he had to do was sit in the middle and be charmingly buffonish. Sounds familiar?
One of the reasons I took an instant dislike to him was that he wasn't much good as a TV host, but clearly regarded himself as God's gift. People like that are pure poison in any area of life, but this particular example has a faux-posh manner which triggers automatic cap-touching responses in a certain section of the British electorate.
And today he is defying the travel ban and coming to Scotland. That will go well at the May elections (Scottish Parliament).
It probably wouldn't be too bad if it was just him. But, there'll be an entourage travelling with him, and a load of journalists descending on the places he visits to cover this. Someone local could have taken a laptop to the places he's going and he could visit via Zoom, the same as the rest of us have to.
Maybe he'll stop at the hotel at Gretna Services and quarantine for 2 weeks before entering the country.
This. I have detested Alex Johnson ever since I first came across him hosting a middle-brow TV panel game in the early 00's (about his natural level IMO). Today though, I find myself loathing him with a deep visceral hatred that I didn't think myself capable of.
I think that in some ways this kind of focus has an exculpatory effect on the people who enabled him along the way. In many ways Johnson is a fairly conventional politician of the right, he's not populist in the sense that Farage is/was, he was just slightly quicker - on this occasion - to be an opportunist than his peers.
The NHS that is creaking at the moment had its capacity reduced under Cameron and Osborne, the kinds of people and companies getting PFI contracts are the same names that crop up from 2010. "Eat Out to Help Out" is just the kind of market friendly scheme that modern conservatism would have pushed, the school openings and university admissions fiasco are all on point.
Anyone who wants to preserve the Union should keep him out of Scotland. Or take him to St Kilda and leave him there.
Any Unionist would recognise that he's campaigning for Independence every time he opens his mouth. So, they would need to gag him and hide him in a broom cupboard or something until such a time as they can remove him from any position of political influence.
What's the point of The Lord Protector's visit to Scotland?
Is he perhaps hoping to address a Bigly Trump-style Rally? Or is he intending to visit, and console (alas, with a heavy heart), the Unhappy Fisherfolk of Peterhead?
What's the point of The Lord Protector's visit to Scotland?
Well, no doubt to persuade us that we wouldn't have had vaccines by now if it hadn't been for the UK government approving them and getting hold of them before the rest of Europe. Especially(if we'd been part of Europe, which hasn't approved the AZ vaccine yet!)
Oh, and those whose furlough was extended owe it all to Westminster..... So we're better together.....
I'm not sure I imagine it will have much effect though: as Alan said
Anyone who wants to preserve the Union should keep him out of Scotland. Or take him to St Kilda and leave him there.
Any Unionist would recognise that he's campaigning for Independence every time he opens his mouth. So, they would need to gag him and hide him in a broom cupboard or something until such a time as they can remove him from any position of political influence.
I do indeed wonder if our possibly Machiavellian Lord Protector of the Happy Fishes (and the Dancing Unicorns) deliberately visits Scotland, so as to reinforce the latter's desire for independence.
As in *Who will rid me of this troublesome country? O wait - I can do it myself just by Going There...*
The Prime Minister is very sorry that so many people have died . He should own up to errors of judgement.
You can't really have the former without the latter.
I kind of think you're both right. I think at some level he feels sorry - and that this is a genuine feeling.
I'm no Johnson apologist, but I've always felt that one of the differences between his brand of incompetence about the people he governs versus Trump's indifference, was that with Johnson it was basic carelessness, whereas with Trump it was true sociopathic indifference. I'm not excusing him, and it doesn't make me like him any the more. But I think that there may well have been a number of serious 'oh shit!' moments for Johnson as he realised, increasingly, how many of his decisions, and his words, have exacerbated the pandemic's effects so fatally for so many thousands of people. Whereas with Trump, it will always be 'who gives a shit?'
But he isn't allowing himself to acknowledge the connection between his decision-making and some of the consequences. And 'sorry' has no useful meaning without a sincere and quite specific 'my bad'.
I'm no Johnson apologist, but I've always felt that one of the differences between his brand of incompetence about the people he governs versus Trump's indifference, was that with Johnson it was basic carelessness, whereas with Trump it was true sociopathic indifference.
I was fully expecting to hear that Johnson's extra-territorial visit to "Save the Union" was followed by a report that a line of volcanoes had sprung up along the Southern Uplands, as a prelude to the formation of an entirely new Scottish tectonic plate.
I do indeed wonder if our possibly Machiavellian Lord Protector of the Happy Fishes (and the Dancing Unicorns) deliberately visits Scotland, so as to reinforce the latter's desire for independence.
As in *Who will rid me of this troublesome country? O wait - I can do it myself just by Going There...*
Perhaps he is trying to find the unicorn so he can show us footage at the next press conference to distract from the figures. (There must be unicorns there, right? After all the Scots gave us one in to put in the royal coat of arms instead of a Welsh dragon.)
I was fully expecting to hear that Johnson's extra-territorial visit to "Save the Union" was followed by a report that a line of volcanoes had sprung up along the Southern Uplands, as a prelude to the formation of an entirely new Scottish tectonic plate.
At least it wasn't Grayling, I suppose...
Don't necessarily need volcanoes for a divergent boundary like the mid-Atlantic ridge, do we?
I was fully expecting to hear that Johnson's extra-territorial visit to "Save the Union" was followed by a report that a line of volcanoes had sprung up along the Southern Uplands, as a prelude to the formation of an entirely new Scottish tectonic plate.
At least it wasn't Grayling, I suppose...
Don't necessarily need volcanoes for a divergent boundary like the mid-Atlantic ridge, do we?
There is a long and complicated answer to this, but the short and quick one is, yes.
This. I have detested Alex Johnson ever since I first came across him hosting a middle-brow TV panel game in the early 00's (about his natural level IMO). Today though, I find myself loathing him with a deep visceral hatred that I didn't think myself capable of.
I think that in some ways this kind of focus has an exculpatory effect on the people who enabled him along the way. In many ways Johnson is a fairly conventional politician of the right, he's not populist in the sense that Farage is/was, he was just slightly quicker - on this occasion - to be an opportunist than his peers.
The NHS that is creaking at the moment had its capacity reduced under Cameron and Osborne, the kinds of people and companies getting PFI contracts are the same names that crop up from 2010. "Eat Out to Help Out" is just the kind of market friendly scheme that modern conservatism would have pushed, the school openings and university admissions fiasco are all on point.
I absolutely get that Johnson is merely the boil on the buttock of modern Tory politics, but ISTM he is the first PM we've had who believes in absolutely nothing but his own advancement and gratification. Previous PM's told lies - politician lies, hold the front page! but Johnson seems to be incapable of ever telling the truth about anything.
This. I have detested Alex Johnson ever since I first came across him hosting a middle-brow TV panel game in the early 00's (about his natural level IMO). Today though, I find myself loathing him with a deep visceral hatred that I didn't think myself capable of.
I think that in some ways this kind of focus has an exculpatory effect on the people who enabled him along the way. In many ways Johnson is a fairly conventional politician of the right, he's not populist in the sense that Farage is/was, he was just slightly quicker - on this occasion - to be an opportunist than his peers.
The NHS that is creaking at the moment had its capacity reduced under Cameron and Osborne, the kinds of people and companies getting PFI contracts are the same names that crop up from 2010. "Eat Out to Help Out" is just the kind of market friendly scheme that modern conservatism would have pushed, the school openings and university admissions fiasco are all on point.
I absolutely get that Johnson is merely the boil on the buttock of modern Tory politics, but ISTM he is the first PM we've had who believes in absolutely nothing but his own advancement and gratification.
Famously David Cameron wanted to be PM because he 'thought he would be rather good at it'
And today he is defying the travel ban and coming to Scotland. That will go well at the May elections (Scottish Parliament).
It probably wouldn't be too bad if it was just him. But, there'll be an entourage travelling with him, and a load of journalists descending on the places he visits to cover this. Someone local could have taken a laptop to the places he's going and he could visit via Zoom, the same as the rest of us have to.
Maybe he'll stop at the hotel at Gretna Services and quarantine for 2 weeks before entering the country.
I absolutely get that Johnson is merely the boil on the buttock of modern Tory politics, but ISTM he is the first PM we've had who believes in absolutely nothing but his own advancement and gratification.
Famously David Cameron wanted to be PM because he 'thought he would be rather good at it'
And boy was he ever wrong. Yeah, Cameron was also pretty much a moral vacuum, though he does seem to have genuinely believed in continued EU membership, if only so he could keep going to those rather swish summit meetings.
All you need to do is reactivate a preexisting plate suture - no new tectonic plate required. Just keep part of the southern plate still attached for the benefit of those living south of the rift valley.
Comments
Multiple apologies now from the tennis players. They did not mean it, they say. Of course they did, and they're now backing down because of uniformly bad publicity.
But not mice apparently
Just to underline this: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/conditionsanddiseases/bulletins/coronavirustheukeconomyandsocietyfasterindicators/21january2021#social-impacts-of-the-coronavirus
From which we learn that in the last week 48% of working age people travelled to work one or more times. That's the biggest source of mass movement. Now we don't know that everyone getting infected is getting infected at work but given other circumstantial evidence it seems likely that a significant number of infections are down to the workplace.
Well, quite. I thought "pot; kettle". Though May is not in the same league as Johnson.
The courts have a bad reputation also, but I can't give a link for that as it's in a professional magazine.
It is all typical of a government whose instinctive approach is 'do what we tell you but don't expect us to'.
Mr Johnson, that is probably the biggest lie you have ever told. Which, yes is REALLY saying something.
You are a callous, self-serving bastard. That's not really an insult, more a statement of fact.
Now fuck right off.
http://alienfromzog.blogspot.com/2020/09/covid-19-and-why-timing-of-lockdown.html
Perhaps it's endemic to working in a court, as much of what you set out would fit many court registries here.
DVLA is not a court.
And, yes, long term underinvestment is part of the problem. And, in the case of IT systems poor management of usually out-sourced contracts which have failed to deliver.
This. I have detested Alex Johnson ever since I first came across him hosting a middle-brow TV panel game in the early 00's (about his natural level IMO). Today though, I find myself loathing him with a deep visceral hatred that I didn't think myself capable of. I don't enjoy feeling like this, but it's entirely his fault. I try to avoid watching or even reading about his bumbling TV "briefings" (entirely misnamed, as a briefing should consist of accurate information), but his latest foray into televised lying on an epic scale has been too ubiquitous to ignore.
The sooner the whole of the Chumocracy is consigned to the Pig-Swill Bucket of History, the better.
I don't think that was even his 'natural level'. According to Ian Hislop, Johnson hadn't a clue about hosting 'Have I got news for you', despite having guested a few times on the show, and everything being done for him, as a guest-host. Johnson's 'style' was apparently to try and 'wing' it and waff-waff about when he got the cards in the wrong order, or couldn't read the auto-cue or didn't know what was happening, and so on. He seemed to think everything would just happen around him and get sorted out, while all he had to do was sit in the middle and be charmingly buffonish. Sounds familiar?
Yes.
And this time, his abject failure is measured in thousands of deaths.
At PMQs today, we heard an desperately inadequate man trying to apportion the blame to anyone but himself.
Which is why I was swearing at the radio very loudly today.
AFZ
You can't really have the former without the latter.
One of the reasons I took an instant dislike to him was that he wasn't much good as a TV host, but clearly regarded himself as God's gift. People like that are pure poison in any area of life, but this particular example has a faux-posh manner which triggers automatic cap-touching responses in a certain section of the British electorate.
Maybe he'll stop at the hotel at Gretna Services and quarantine for 2 weeks before entering the country.
Nah, They've had to shut down for now.
Tempting..... but unfair on those who already live/work on St Kilda.
I think that in some ways this kind of focus has an exculpatory effect on the people who enabled him along the way. In many ways Johnson is a fairly conventional politician of the right, he's not populist in the sense that Farage is/was, he was just slightly quicker - on this occasion - to be an opportunist than his peers.
The NHS that is creaking at the moment had its capacity reduced under Cameron and Osborne, the kinds of people and companies getting PFI contracts are the same names that crop up from 2010. "Eat Out to Help Out" is just the kind of market friendly scheme that modern conservatism would have pushed, the school openings and university admissions fiasco are all on point.
I suppose she thought she might as well give him a bit more rope with which to hang himself...
Rockall is technically part of Scotland...
Is he perhaps hoping to address a Bigly Trump-style Rally? Or is he intending to visit, and console (alas, with a heavy heart), the Unhappy Fisherfolk of Peterhead?
Well, no doubt to persuade us that we wouldn't have had vaccines by now if it hadn't been for the UK government approving them and getting hold of them before the rest of Europe. Especially(if we'd been part of Europe, which hasn't approved the AZ vaccine yet!)
Oh, and those whose furlough was extended owe it all to Westminster..... So we're better together.....
I'm not sure I imagine it will have much effect though: as Alan said
As in *Who will rid me of this troublesome country? O wait - I can do it myself just by Going There...*
I kind of think you're both right. I think at some level he feels sorry - and that this is a genuine feeling.
I'm no Johnson apologist, but I've always felt that one of the differences between his brand of incompetence about the people he governs versus Trump's indifference, was that with Johnson it was basic carelessness, whereas with Trump it was true sociopathic indifference. I'm not excusing him, and it doesn't make me like him any the more. But I think that there may well have been a number of serious 'oh shit!' moments for Johnson as he realised, increasingly, how many of his decisions, and his words, have exacerbated the pandemic's effects so fatally for so many thousands of people. Whereas with Trump, it will always be 'who gives a shit?'
But he isn't allowing himself to acknowledge the connection between his decision-making and some of the consequences. And 'sorry' has no useful meaning without a sincere and quite specific 'my bad'.
I think it's sociopathic egotism tbh: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DzIddMcWwAwuMVW?format=jpg&name=small
At least it wasn't Grayling, I suppose...
Perhaps he is trying to find the unicorn so he can show us footage at the next press conference to distract from the figures. (There must be unicorns there, right? After all the Scots gave us one in to put in the royal coat of arms instead of a Welsh dragon.)
Don't necessarily need volcanoes for a divergent boundary like the mid-Atlantic ridge, do we?
There is a long and complicated answer to this, but the short and quick one is, yes.
I absolutely get that Johnson is merely the boil on the buttock of modern Tory politics, but ISTM he is the first PM we've had who believes in absolutely nothing but his own advancement and gratification. Previous PM's told lies - politician lies, hold the front page! but Johnson seems to be incapable of ever telling the truth about anything.
The scruffy git still doesn't fit into his suit - can't they find him a boiler suit, or a onesy?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siren_suit
The Lord Protector would need to shave his Head, though, and take up smoking (or at least holding ) a large Cigar. Carrie might not be Amused.
Famously David Cameron wanted to be PM because he 'thought he would be rather good at it'
The same St Nicola who want to suck up to the EU by letting them have our vacine supply
And boy was he ever wrong. Yeah, Cameron was also pretty much a moral vacuum, though he does seem to have genuinely believed in continued EU membership, if only so he could keep going to those rather swish summit meetings.