IOM Covid removing restrictions

[Filippo]

The title of the posting makes it clear where I stand; I see the lockdown as a politically motivated act of social and economic vandalism. There is little evidence that the lockdown is achieving much as concerns limiting the direct damage from the pandemic: countries that have introduced social-distancing on a mostly voluntary basis (Sweden, The Netherlands, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea) while keeping most of their economies open and afloat are having much lower Covid-19 deaths per-capita than us. It tells about the competence (or lack thereof) of our authorities to achieve anything apart from crashing the economy and depleting public coffers.

The evidence of that bonehead failure is staggering (figures as of the 20th of April):

                              Cases     Deaths
    Isle of Man       300           9
    Singapore         8,014       11
    Hong Kong       1,206        4

The population of Hong Kong is 7.45 million versus 86K on this island. It means that on this island, the per-capita fatality of Covid-19 is 7,450 / 86 x 9 / 4 = 195 times that of Hong Kong. Same virus, but nearly 200 times more deadly on these shores! Hallelujah.

Yes, I know that IOM’s population is older on average. But also note these other circumstances. In Hong Kong, Singapore and South Korea the pandemic started nearly two months before us; the authorities here had nearly two months to prepare, and did nothing or very little about it. Furthermore, it is enormously more difficult to control a pandemic in such densely populated regions as Hong Kong and Singapore (the land surface of this island is nearly as much as Singapore’s, think). In Singapore, most of the contagion has come from immigrants’ dormitories where ten people sleep in a room; we don’t have here that kind of unmanageable problems on the IOM. It should have been comparably much easier for us.

Basically, the authorities here have been good at crashing the economy and stopping us from living our lives; while achieving very little as concerns mitigating the direct damage from the pandemic. They have little to show for the sacrifice imposed on us.

Listen to the pathetic speech of our politicians: I protect the island, I protect the island and I protect the island. Brainless. Brainless justification for trashing civil liberties, endangering our economic, physical and mental well-being, imposing on us a busybody police state. The politicians succeeded in positioning themselves such as to deflect or take the least blame for the situation of the pandemic. The police succeeded in jailing for months some low-lifers for having parties (keep reading about those sentences nearly every day now on IOM Today and Manx News and it makes me cringe). Good job.
 

[GD4ELI]

I have a friend in Ramsey who will probably die if he comes into contact with a Covid 19 carrier.

There's more to life than money.

[PaulJ]

1 hour ago, GD4ELI said:

I have a friend in Ramsey who will probably die if he comes into contact with a Covid 19 carrier.

There's more to life than money.

What happens if he comes into contact with a hod carrier?

[asitis]

The problem with the whole thing is people have no idea what to believe, we have a MSM pushing a political agenda, we have ex prime ministers and other pushing their narcissism and a load of armchair experts pushing various theories. I for one have no idea what or who to believe. Maybe one good thing to come out of they whole shit show would be someone establishing a politically neutral reporting agency which fed facts to the public, not spin or personal agendas, like the BBC used to be !

If we do open up I sincerely hope everyone stays well.

[The Lurker]

10 minutes ago, asitis said:

The problem with the whole thing is people have no idea what to believe, we have a MSM pushing a political agenda, we have ex prime ministers and other pushing their narcissism and a load of armchair experts pushing various theories. I for one have no idea what or who to believe. Maybe one good thing to come out of they whole shit show would be someone establishing a politically neutral reporting agency which fed facts to the public, not spin or personal agendas, like the BBC used to be !

If we do open up I sincerely hope everyone stays well.

https://fullfact.org/ 

I find this helpful.

 

[pongo]

7 minutes ago, asitis said:

Establishing a politically neutral reporting agency which fed facts to the public, not spin or personal agendas, like the BBC used to be !

Since the 1930s and even during WW2 the BBC has been under fire from people on the political fringes.

Much of that criticism began with the press barons who objected to a public body reporting news at all (even at a time before the war when much of the British press was supporting the clear enemy).

[Mr Newbie]

3 hours ago, GD4ELI said:

I have a friend in Ramsey who will probably die if he comes into contact with a Covid 19 carrier.

He should probably stay in then. 

[GD4ELI]

45 minutes ago, Mr Newbie said:

He should probably stay in then. 

Easy to say. The virus can be transmitted with ease.

[P.K.]

4 hours ago, Filippo said:

The title of the posting makes it clear where I stand; I see the lockdown as a politically motivated act of social and economic vandalism. There is little evidence that the lockdown is achieving much as concerns limiting the direct damage from the pandemic: countries that have introduced social-distancing on a mostly voluntary basis (Sweden, The Netherlands, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea) while keeping most of their economies open and afloat are having much lower Covid-19 deaths per-capita than us. It tells about the competence (or lack thereof) of our authorities to achieve anything apart from crashing the economy and depleting public coffers.

Would you please explain what actual politics drove these "politically motivated acts" on the island?

Thanks.

[yootalkin2me]

22 minutes ago, GD4ELI said:

Easy to say. The virus can be transmitted with ease.

It sounds like your friend in Ramsey is pretty fragile and could easily die of the flu or common cold, do we keep lockdown going indefinitely for him/hard and others like them? It's not about money, it's about treating people in hospital who are gravely sick and will die as a result of reduced services for the lockdown, the massive increase in mental ill health, the massive increase of domestic abuse and violence etc etc...but as long as your friend who is most probably at death's door anyway is kept alive then that's ok.

[GD4ELI]

9 minutes ago, yootalkin2me said:

It sounds like your friend in Ramsey is pretty fragile and could easily die of the flu or common cold, do we keep lockdown going indefinitely for him/hard and others like them? It's not about money, it's about treating people in hospital who are gravely sick and will die as a result of reduced services for the lockdown, the massive increase in mental ill health, the massive increase of domestic abuse and violence etc etc...but as long as your friend who is most probably at death's door anyway is kept alive then that's ok.

He'll survive a cold / normal flu but not Covid-19.

[Numbnuts]

The S*** is going to hit the fan over this go back to work announcement when news comes out around Friday ! 

[yootalkin2me]

7 minutes ago, GD4ELI said:

He'll survive a cold / normal flu but not Covid-19.

How can you be sure, are you medically qualified as well as being qualified in just about everything else on planet Earth?

My point weeks and weeks ago was to isolate the vulnerable and allow everyone else to be free, let the virus do it's thing and then slowly die off and then when/if a vaccine is created let this a who wish to have it, have it.

By your logic we should either ban all forms of transport, or at least reduce the speed of road vehicles to 10mph and reduce the frequency of all other forms of transport because people die of it and we must reduce those rates of death, continue down this line and the whole world comes to a complete standstill forever.

Edited April 22, 2020 by yootalkin2me

[GD4ELI]

2 minutes ago, yootalkin2me said:

How can you be sure, are you medically qualified as well as being qualified in just about everything else on planet Earth?

Just repeating what he has told me. Were I to be bothered I'd post a list of the things that can knock him out, it's on his Facebook page.

Thanks for caring, you're a total sweetie-pie.

[yootalkin2me]

9 minutes ago, Numbnuts said:

The S*** is going to hit the fan over this go back to work announcement when news comes out around Friday ! 

In what way?

Edited April 22, 2020 by yootalkin2me