PANDEMIC STORIES

Lockdowns Make Sense

Something old something new

Photo by Jens Maes on Unsplash

Lockdowns Make Sense

Or do they? That’s the question posed in this latest, ‘Something old, something new’ article related to the Pandemic.

It certainly seemed to make complete sense: 23rd March 2020 in the UK:

Let’s have a look at my diary extracts from that time to see what was relevant then, compared to where we think we are now?

Diary extracts:

Deadly virus hitting the globe and the UK with a vengeance and of course no known vaccine at all to combat it.

An almighty U-turn by Boris Johnson at the time. Something we became used to.

He changed course at the last moment. No, make that far too late. At least ten days too late, which proved fatal for the UK.

Modellers were imploring him to think again against his fatalistic ‘**Herd Immunity**’ target that he favoured in the second week of March within that totally surreal year of 2020. At least 250,000 dead in the first major wave became something else for him to ponder if he maintained his stance to simply, ‘Let it rip.’

He did duly ponder and then of course hastily came his late decision to close the country down.

First UK Lockdown : March 23rd 2020:

Tonight Boris Johnson is to hold a briefing session at 5.00pm, with the media questions, or rather was. Its been cancelled due to him attending another Emergency Cobra meeting.

We must all brace ourselves in the UK for far more stringent restrictions concerning our personal movements.

Well done all of you who have enjoyed a last stroll in the park along with thousands of others at the weekend, not even heeding a one metre spacing, let alone two. I expect that will be a last stroll anywhere for the next few months now.

So, that was March, 2020, but what about 2026?

With the benefit of hindsight and even as far as the next Pandemic is concerned, do we really have a choice, other than shutting the country down again? Applies equally well to any country in th world.

All I hear, (yes, perhaps ‘X’ is not the best sounding board), are hindsight maestros saying, ‘Anything but Lockdowns if you please. It causes, has caused, so many more problems than it can ever solve.’

Or so they say.

• Such as : A huge backlog in day to day treatments for other deadly ailments of this world. Cancer to name but one, but there’s plenty more. Far more.
• Further down the track in 2020, Chris Whitty referred to the resulting deaths from this backlog of treatment as the unseen collateral damage of Covid.
• A huge economic deficit. Job losses in the end resulted for far too many. Despite or because of Rishi Sunak’s furloughing scheme?
• Massive economic hit suffered by the UK due to this first Lockdown.
• Education : Schoolkids and University students also hit hard. Almost hysterical calls here that a ‘mere’ two month curtailment of kids education has resulted in writing off these youngsters for the remainder of their lives!

And so on and so forth. We all know the rhetoric by now and sadly plenty of it is not only the preserve of the conspiracists. A fair slice from people in authority who really should know better?

Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash

Yes, I always do love to do exactly this. Exactly why I’m posting this article!

As usual, I’ll throw my two- penneth into the arena.

My take:

I’m amazed by all this. To listen to any of them, six years on, you’d think there simply wasn’t any deadly virus circulating in March, 2020 at all.

Just when did the conspiracists win the day?

There certainly was a deadly virus, for we also know by now its claimed and still to this day adds more to the huge total of millions of global covid deaths. Not to mention the debilitating effects of Long Covid, but I will. Many would rather I not!

But, these people apparently now believe that’s ‘by the by!’ It never happened and similar tosh given out on a daily basis.

So to my second major question with the benefit of hindsight:

Q. Is there any alternate to Lockdowns?

I sincerely would like to hear of any alternate way from yourselves and for that matter let’s throw open the whole debate regarding the controversial subject of lockdowns.

Are they effective, are they necessary?

Once again: Over to you. Please comment accordingly.

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