I literally have facetime parties with my friends. Grab the vodka hun, we're going out to our livingrooms drinking.

 

I hate this lockdown as well. I am in an entirely different country from my friends as well. But I'm trying my best to make something out of it. Complaining will only make me feels worse about it so I just forget about it an started playing some videogames again as well.

 

Sidenote: I've been in lockdown since the 13th of march. On my 8th week already :cheeseblock:

Yes, and I’ve already stated that this is shit for everyone. I’ve had bad days myself, most recently this weekend where I have felt my mental health suffering, so please do not act like I have no idea.

 

You haven’t stated what it is you think you should be able to do right now that you can’t. Forgive me, but it’s coming off a lot like you’re not bothered that hundreds of people are dying.

 

Your tone is quite rude and not really any need for it.

 

I think the I’m not bothered hundreds of people are dying is such a bog standard response when people can’t hold a debate properly. I’ve stated in previous posts that what I am finding the most difficult is no relaxation on people who live alone being able to visit others not like I am sitting here saying I want to go to Glastonbury the fact I have been isolated alone since 12th March demonstrates I do care about people dying but thanks for making me feel even worse when I was seeking discussion on support hopefully you now have in your mind have you have made someone feel like crap who is already struggling.

Your tone is quite rude and not really any need for it.

 

I think the I’m not bothered hundreds of people are dying is such a bog standard response when people can’t hold a debate properly. I’ve stated in previous posts that what I am finding the most difficult is no relaxation on people who live alone being able to visit others not like I am sitting here saying I want to go to Glastonbury the fact I have been isolated alone since 12th March demonstrates I do care about people dying but thanks for making me feel even worse when I was seeking discussion on support hopefully you now have in your mind have you have made someone feel like crap who is already struggling.

 

I’m leaving the thread now because you do not want a discussion because you seem unwilling to accept anyone’s points, which I’ll point out that I considered all of yours in my responses.

 

Also with this latest response, you have done exactly what you have accused me of doing and attempted to make me feel bad but in addition you’ve also tried to make me look bad. I don’t think I’ve displayed a rude tone at all, I’ve just been trying to engage in an actual discussion. You ‘hope’ that I feel like crap? I feel like this is more rude and now I absolutely won’t. I’m not going to speak to you again.

Your tone is quite rude and not really any need for it.

 

I think the I’m not bothered hundreds of people are dying is such a bog standard response when people can’t hold a debate properly. I’ve stated in previous posts that what I am finding the most difficult is no relaxation on people who live alone being able to visit others not like I am sitting here saying I want to go to Glastonbury the fact I have been isolated alone since 12th March demonstrates I do care about people dying but thanks for making me feel even worse when I was seeking discussion on support hopefully you now have in your mind have you have made someone feel like crap who is already struggling.

 

In this instance, if you are looking for support, I would suggest you seek out the Lounge's COVID-19 community thread. Not that we can't be supportive in here, but a political debate forum is going to be focused on debates.

Your tone is quite rude and not really any need for it.

 

I think the I’m not bothered hundreds of people are dying is such a bog standard response when people can’t hold a debate properly. I’ve stated in previous posts that what I am finding the most difficult is no relaxation on people who live alone being able to visit others not like I am sitting here saying I want to go to Glastonbury the fact I have been isolated alone since 12th March demonstrates I do care about people dying but thanks for making me feel even worse when I was seeking discussion on support hopefully you now have in your mind have you have made someone feel like crap who is already struggling.

Well to be honest. People are already stretching the borders of the lockdown. What do you think is gonna happen if you loosen them for 1 particular group? If ur a silent carrier you pose a danger to the people you visit, the people you come along in the streets and anypne they visit.

Give people an inch they'll take a mile, selfishly I want nothing more than to go and see my boyfriend but if the government relax things so that we can do that or see our family, close friends, more and more people are going to take the piss and flout the rules, have more gatherings. Everyone is suffering right now, no matter who they live with what they do.

 

I still go to work and I should be grateful for that, I live with my mum so I'm not alone, but it doesn't mean that I can't struggle with other things. Making something that affects virtually everyone a competition of who has it worse just doesn't sit right with me. I mean some people wanting to go the pub sounds selfish, but for them in their world that could be more or less all they have and something that seems trivial or small to us is a lot to them. We can't underestimate the importance of those little things that get people through the week or day or whatever, that's why I'm trying to do things like virtual quizzes and games with my friends, it's a little bit of almost normality for a couple of hours.

I think the point Alex is trying to make is that for people who live in flats/apartments they don't have the luxury of going out to the garden etc. when it's a nice summer's day and quite often what we are finding is a response from the general public who look upon with disgust when there are large amounts of people out and about in parks on a nice day for example. I agree entirely it's easy to criticse and judge when you have a garden but not everyone has the same luxury. But it's almost impossible to start having different restrictions on different groups - it overcomplicates the situation and it's extremely hard to then manage and implement.

 

It's shit when you see people flaunting the rules and you abide to them, but people break the rules in all kinds of life no matter how trivial- be it breaking speed limits, having that extra drink at the pub when you're driving, checking your phone at the wheel etc. etc. all things the majority are or have been guilty with at times. It's not right, but my point is people break rules all the time.

I'm with Alex here. With respect regarding "you don't care that people are dying!" arguments... if we're getting into blunt honesty territory, then done is done. Yes, people have died. Yes, people will continue to. Caring or not caring about that doesn't make coronavirus sit up and go "oh since people are caring now I'll stop".

 

And once again to be bluntly honest lockdown isn't stopping transmission either, it's only decreasing its likelihood. With respect to people who have gardens and the like, one could level the exact same argument back - from the comfort of your garden exercising, you may be sending someone to their death by suggesting they go for a run if they happen to cross paths with someone with a high viral load.

 

Fact is people are going to have varying levels of empathy to others and imo, the level of stress they're under will affect that.

In my humble opinion that is a very worrying stance on things 🤷‍♂️

I do feel for those that are struggling mentally with the lockdown. It's easy to fall into a trap of policing or belittling those feelings — especially when people suggest that empathy is pointless right now — and so on. It's difficult, and we're all going a little stir-crazy, but we just need to remind ourselves that we are saving lives, and lockdown is working. Of course, that is easier said than done.

 

The government needs to, again, work on their messaging and manage expectations for May. It's going to be an important month — one where deaths will fall and we'll build our capacity to ease the more strict restrictions for (likely) very early June.

 

http://global.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202004/2...50a3d187fe.html

http://global.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202004/2...50a3d188ee.html

http://global.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202004/2...50a3d1887c.html

 

China Daily is an interesting news source, it's aimed at foreigners within China and Chinese people learning English, it's about as liberal as a Chinese outlet is going to be (it's still very pro-China government where that matters as you'd expect, which is important to keep in mind when you read from there). Anyway, these three articles are based around Britain, the third one compares how Western Europe has fought the virus from a 'neutral' perspective, it mentions the German situation as being lauded while the UK's position is being questioned by critics, and the second notes that Hancock has faced criticism, and the first:

Obviously this is on an issue where it's gotten the Chinese riled a bit as it's partly a response to the UK government starting to shift blame towards Beijing but that's scathing.

 

Thank you!

Edited April 27, 20205 yr by blacksquare

I'm with Alex here. With respect regarding "you don't care that people are dying!" arguments... if we're getting into blunt honesty territory, then done is done. Yes, people have died. Yes, people will continue to. Caring or not caring about that doesn't make coronavirus sit up and go "oh since people are caring now I'll stop".

 

And once again to be bluntly honest lockdown isn't stopping transmission either, it's only decreasing its likelihood. With respect to people who have gardens and the like, one could level the exact same argument back - from the comfort of your garden exercising, you may be sending someone to their death by suggesting they go for a run if they happen to cross paths with someone with a high viral load.

 

Fact is people are going to have varying levels of empathy to others and imo, the level of stress they're under will affect that.

 

I was not belittling anyone’s struggle with the current situation and actually offered suggestions on how to help cope with it just to have them tossed aside. I’m aware that not everyone has a garden to exercise in but everyone is allowed to go out for exercise and that includes visiting numerous parks. And to start scoffing about people being ‘comfortable’ life in their nice gardens it turns into exactly what Liam was describing-a competition over who has it worse. All I did was point out that the people who have it the worst are not even in this thread. They’re in hospital or at home suffering with a deadly illness. There is a reason we have locked down and although it is difficult to varying different degrees for everyone, at the moment it is the best option. I cannot see anywhere in this thread a solution or different approach that would work. As Rooney has said, it is pretty much impossible to lift restrictions on certain demographics without causing more strife. You might think you’ll be fine but you can’t be sure that you or anyone else you encounter will be-this disease has killed young and healthy people.

Allow me to extend my empathy to those struggling. I too do have ups & downs going from a typical busy social schedule to the current situation but in such a situation everyone really does have to look at the bigger picture. We should be somewhat thankful we can still go outside/to parks etc. unlike a number of countries in Europe.

Edited April 27, 20205 yr by Dobbo

I'm glad to say I'm coping reasonably well, it's not too dissimilar to when I was unwell last year so I've had practice at this!!!

 

I found last year that it really helps to set yourself little tasks to do to help you feel like you've achieved something, it also helps focus your mind on something and removes that temptation to drift and dwell on the bad points around all of this. I found that computer games were quite good to absorb yourself into as can more old fashioned things like jigsaws that you can sit and do with your favourite music on in the background etc. The other thing is, if you're not fortunate enough to be able to work at the moment as a purpose, find yourself something else to focus on - maybe take up art or writing... or more likely on this site, establish what your top 20 singles would have been every week from 1980 onwards :lol:

 

The other thing I do is control when news about COVID-19 infiltrates my life. All the news alerts etc are really bad as they catch you unawares, if you want to keep up to date I think it's better to limit to half an hour a day when you choose to catch up with the events of the day.

The thing is working from home is not really ideal, you have the constant kid from next door "hey mister, can we have our ball back, its in your garden again", or they are playing loud music. Than you have the noise outside at the front as we live in a cul-de-sac, the weather now is getting warmer we have to keep our windows open, people mowing their gardens, you can't tell them to do it later. Also motorbikes going up and down the road not far from us, loud as anything. Its the constant disruptions, working in an office would be much better as you won't get the noise that's what I miss and my colleagues, sometimes I hardly get much work done at home... I just want to get back to normality especially for my mental state of health and our family, our children they are not kids anymore, they are teenagers on the verge of leaving school and college, and scared of what's going on around them, missing their friends, getting bored. Its a bit soul destroying for some families.

 

Even when standing in a queue people talk to you from a self-distance, you get the general feeling they just want to get back to normality, it effects people in so many ways.

 

Yeh all those problems are annoying working at home, One thing about working from home which is good is that I get to play music/records and chose what I want whereas at work I can't and we aren't allowed music. But on the other hand it's much harder doing the actually work even simple things like scanning documents!

 

There was a good ch4 news report about the difficulties of those who live in flats this evening.

Allow me to extend my empathy to those struggling. I too do have ups & downs going from a typical busy social schedule to the current situation but in such a situation everyone really does have to look at the bigger picture. We should be somewhat thankful we can still go outside/to parks etc. unlike a number of countries in Europe.

Exactly, of course we are all strugglng and I have really shit days but the thing that usually gets me out of it is, we cannot do a thing about this and we just need to remember the things we can enjoy and take as much joy from those as possible. Or just adapt to things, like I said I do little things like virtual quizzes and of course that can't replace actually seeing people but when it's that or nothing, it ends up being really fun, something to look forward to and break up the week a bit. Of course the more time you have to do nothing, be bored and mull things over, the worse you feel, and I do it way too often but I'm trying to get out of it because it just doesn't help.

@1255055939280998400

@1255054974851170305

 

The ONS figures this week are absolutely heartbreaking.

And yet we keep being told we should be rejoicing that Johnson is back. Yes, we are meat to be grateful that the man whose dithering contributed to these figures is back to do even more damage.

 

We can already see he's the same as he ever was. He'd only been back five minutes before the lies started. He had the gall to say that other countries would be looking at "our apparent success". Yet the number of deaths in the UK has continued to follow roughly the same pattern as Italy at the same stage in the outbreak. Indeed, the figures in the UK are slightly higher - even before you factor in the fact that Italy's figures, unlike the UK's, include all care home deaths. We should be doing significantly better than Italy. Not because of some imagined superiority but because we had the advantage of being able to learn form other countries. Instead, we are doing a lot worse.

 

So no, I won't be celebrating Johnson's return.

Nicola Sturgeon is is recommending face masks when at shops. Glad to see at least one part of the UK is finally doing so, but I’m surprised it’s taken so long for this recommendation to be endorsed at the national level.

Nicola Sturgeon is is recommending face masks when at shops. Glad to see at least one part of the UK is finally doing so, but I’m surprised it’s taken so long for this recommendation to be endorsed at the national level.

The consensus still seems to be that masks are next to useless in preventing an uninfected person contracting the virus. They can, however, help to prevent an infected person passing it on to someone else. What we don't know is how many infected people there are at any one time. As (to my knowledge) no country has been testing people who are showing no symptoms. we therefore haven't got a clue how many infections might be prevented by the wearing of masks.

 

Of course, the other consideration is whether there are enough masks and how they should be distributed. What have they done in other countries?