Coronavirus

[MrGongGong]

https://www.counterpunch.org/2020/04/10/the-last-refuge-of-a-scoundrel-coronavirus-and-the-british-establishment/?fbclid=IwAR0WdU3opDEJQjjGwPdptM1fHe97mtFRawQSckWTzWCgar1u2cibmwAqE6Q

[Pulcinella]

https://www.counterpunch.org/2020/04...r1u2cibmwAqE6Q

Maybe, just maybe, the grateful nation will treat this government in the same way it did Churchill's in the June 1945 election.

[oddoneout]

Maybe, just maybe, the grateful nation will treat this government in the same way it did Churchill's in the June 1945 election.

How? It'll take more than a few months to rehabilitate the Labour Party in the electorate's mind, especially if vested interests don't want it, and the FPTP system ensures the current Tory stranglehold won't shift.

[Pulcinella]

How? It'll take more than a few months to rehabilitate the Labour Party in the electorate's mind, especially if vested interests don't want it, and the FPTP system ensures the current Tory stranglehold won't shift.

True, but if the fixed-term (5 years) holds (that was a good bit of legislation, wasn't it?) then there might be time for the present government to be held to account and found wanting; I'm not imagining that there'll be an immediate post-crisis election, as in 1945.

[LeMartinPecheur]

Pandemics and social inequality

This historically wide-ranging piece from the Guardian is interesting https://www.theguardian.com/commenti...IND_Brexit_CDP

[LeMartinPecheur]

Economic Stimulus - working(?) example

Could have put this on the Jokes thread - hope it's appreciated here. It isn't really a joke anyway but it's amusing I hope.

Subject: Economics

It is a slow day in the small town of Pokeno in the Waikato region, and streets are deserted. Times are tough, everybody is in debt, and everybody is living on credit.

A tourist visiting the area drives through town, stops at the motel, and lays a $100 bill on the desk saying he wants to inspect the rooms upstairs to pick one for the night.

As soon as he walks upstairs, the motel owner grabs the bill and runs next door to pay his debt to the butcher.

The butcher takes the $100 and runs down the street to retire his debt to the pig farmer.

The pig farmer takes the $100 and heads off to pay his bill to his supplier, the Farmers Co-op.

The guy at the Farmers Co-op takes the $100 and runs to pay his debt to the local prostitute, who has also been facing hard times and has had to offer her "services" on credit.

The hooker rushes to the hotel and pays off her room bill with the hotel owner.

The hotel proprietor then places the $100 back on the counter so the traveler will not suspect anything.

At that moment the traveler comes down the stairs, states that the rooms are not satisfactory, picks up the $100 bill and leaves.

No one produced anything. No one earned anything.......

However, the whole town is now out of debt and now looks to the future with a lot more optimism.

*And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how an Economic Stimulus package works*

We all owe a lot of people a lot of stuff, in a lot of different ways, not all of them repayable in money of course. We may hope that Boris and his party have just learnt this lesson.

[Dave2002]

Went for a walk yesterday. Could pick up all sorts of smells. Made me wonder. How does the size of typical “smell” molecules compare with the size of the virus? For example, cigarette smoke?

Do I really believe that CV-19 can’t travel far if blown out into the air? Really not sure.

[Stanfordian]

From what I can see most people are being very careful and responsible about the Gov's social distancing, unnecessary travel etc.

However, noticably there are still groups of cyclists and motor bikers assembling for trips and many young people still gathering together with friends and not keeping 2m apart.

[teamsaint]

How? It'll take more than a few months to rehabilitate the Labour Party in the electorate's mind, especially if vested interests don't want it, and the FPTP system ensures the current Tory stranglehold won't shift.

Not agreeing with the government about everything might be a good place to start.

And accepting their part, when in government in reducing the preparedness of the country for this kind of crisis , assuming they had some part in in, would also be good.

I haven't read this, but it looks very interesting, and pretty authoritative.

https://www.kcl.ac.uk/policy-institute/assets/Pandemic-risk-management.pdf

[jayne lee wilson]

Truly excellent from Nesrine M., compassionate, factual, unremitting.... one of the best pieces yet.......

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/apr/12/uk-coronavirus-deaths-preventable-government-account

[Dave2002]

Truly excellent from Nesrine M., compassionate, factual, unremitting.... one of the best pieces yet.......

https://www.theguardian.com/commenti...rnment-account

Maybe. Somebody - not me though - said “never doubt the ability of the Conservative party to replace the people who are currently ‘running’ things with people even less able to do so.” Sad world isn’t it?

Yes, I had compassion for BJ, but not for the “plans” which he may have inflicted on us, nor all of the people who are trying to manage the mess. They’re not all bad though, I suspect, but some should be booted out - but who to replace them?

[Serial_Apologist]

They’re not all bad though, I suspect, but some should be booted out

One in particular, definitely!

- but who to replace them?

The problem consists in those of right wing persistence who helped put this government in are notoriously impervious to criticism, either by themselves or from others. In times past of greater normality and consensus such people could be pushed to the outer reaches of ones awareness - they would eventually change their minds or have to. Closed mindedness comes with the territory, I'm afraid.

[MrGongGong]

Yes, I had compassion for BJ,

In the past ?
He got himself infected by his own stupidity then probably spread the virus to the rest of the people he shook hands with
borderline criminal behaviour IMV
but he will simply carry on as if he hasn't a care in the world while other people suffer the consequences of his actions

[Bryn]

In the past ?
He got himself infected by his own stupidity then probably spread the virus to the rest of the people he shook hands with
borderline criminal behaviour IMV
but he will simply carry on as if he hasn't a care in the world while other people suffer the consequences of his actions

His wilfully wrong leadership in the early stages of this emergency was, indeed, deserving of the description "criminal". He and his crew must be brought to book, once things are duly under control.

[MrGongGong]

His wilfully wrong leadership in the early stages of this emergency was, indeed, deserving of the description "criminal". He and his crew must be brought to book, once things are duly under control.

Sadly the whole "protocol" and "respect" nonsense afforded to those in power will mean that they will, in all probability, simply walk away with their wealth intact.