Corona-virus - How worried are you?

Pyxis

50Twuncle said:

I was wondering how remote tribes  etc would  cope with zero Immunity ?

I think the evidence was shown in the past when European explorers descended on various New World and Australasian communities and devastated  their populations by introducing even mild things like the common cold.

BananaRepublic

The panic buying is disgraceful. I am lucky as I do not need loo rolls for a month, but I was shocked to see shelves empty of loo rolls, pasta, tomato puree and tinned asparagus. Those who will suffer most are the vulnerable (such as the very elderly) who will have to venture out to get supplies in the coming weeks. 

Most of us are going to get this, and for most of us it will be a heavy cold, if that. Normally we would work through it. Surely our focus should be on ensuring that the weak and vulnerable, such as those with COPD and organ transplants, are kept safe. That way the economy survives, and the NHS can cope with a reduced flow of casualties. 

pickledonionspaceraider

I still do not see that enough is done to protect the financially vulnerable. The self employed, those on zero hour contracts, the gig economy...Those who will only get the SSP of like £90 a week.....people are going to face the real possibility of having serious financial implications, and I am not talking about 'depleting emergency savings' - I mean how many people could lose jobs and homes?

They are saying this could go on for a year. How many businesses are going to go under in that time...or how many indy shops will go under if it lasts a couple of months?

amandacat

Until the last couple of days my main concerns were for the vulnerable and for the potential financial impact eg not being able to pay my mortgage. 
However, I’m now extremely worried much more than this. Seeing the issue in Italy where they are having to play god and decide whose life to save due to lack of beds and equipment...that could well happen here in the coming weeks. 
There is news from the world doctors that people in their 40s are in intensive care with no underlying health conditions. They’re estimating that while less than 1% die, 20% of people who contract the virus need intensive care. 
The supermarkets are empty and queues out the door and while the government assure us there is enough food, people are struggling to get food in some cases. I live in an underpopulated area of the country so things aren’t quite as bad here but there isn’t a single delivery slot available with any supermarket to deliver to me at any time in the future, what if someone is ill  and needs food for themselves or their pets? 
It’s very likely by the end of this that we will all know someone who dies, whether a work colleague, a family member. 
Once we do get out of this and that could be a long way away we could be in a recession. 
Perhaps the media are fuelling my fears but I feel extremely worried now. 

Pyxis

amandacat said:

Until the last couple of days my main concerns were for the vulnerable and for the potential financial impact eg not being able to pay my mortgage. 
However, I’m now extremely worried much more than this. Seeing the issue in Italy where they are having to play god and decide whose life to save due to lack of beds and equipment...that could well happen here in the coming weeks. 
There is news from the world doctors that people in their 40s are in intensive care with no underlying health conditions. They’re estimating that while less than 1% die, 20% of people who contract the virus need intensive care. 
The supermarkets are empty and queues out the door and while the government assure us there is enough food, people are struggling to get food in some cases. I live in an underpopulated area of the country so things aren’t quite as bad here but there isn’t a single delivery slot available with any supermarket to deliver to me at any time in the future, what if someone is ill  and needs food for themselves or their pets? 
It’s very likely by the end of this that we will all know someone who dies, whether a work colleague, a family member. 
Once we do get out of this and that could be a long way away we could be in a recession. 
Perhaps the media are fuelling my fears but I feel extremely worried now. 

This is our generation’s ‘war’. We haven't had to experience an actual war, like our parents, grandparents, g-grandparents did, but this is the ‘war’ we have now.

It will be absolutely horrible at first, and all lives will be altered to a greater or lesser degree, but, you know, we will get used to it, we will adapt.
The thing to remember is that you are not alone. Even as a nation we are not alone. Just grab onto that. Stuff will be done to get us through this, and remember, there will be a vaccine at some point.

I have been heartened by the good, kind things coming out of this, and by the humour at times, so hold on to those as well. 

.

MoneySeeker1

pickledonionspaceraider said:

I still do not see that enough is done to protect the financially vulnerable. The self employed, those on zero hour contracts, the gig economy...Those who will only get the SSP of like £90 a week.....people are going to face the real possibility of having serious financial implications, and I am not talking about 'depleting emergency savings' - I mean how many people could lose jobs and homes?

They are saying this could go on for a year. How many businesses are going to go under in that time...or how many indy shops will go under if it lasts a couple of months?

Very true. I am way way safer than most people against being affected by all this - but I do feel for those that are worrying where their income might come from in all this. I am worried for my social life personally (as every activity I normally do has been stopped for the duration) - but I'm only too thankful I don't have to worry in the slightest about my income (well - any more than normal anyway...). I'm just so glad I don't work in the gig economy or being self-employed at anything. I'd be nervous about my income even if in the "secure" job I used to have.

 Personally, I would have probably made a very different calculation as to whether to keep the Economy going as normal than the Government (or anyone else's government) has made. Governments really do face a "between the devil and the deep blue sea" dilemma as to how keep things as normal as possible and return them to normalcy after this is all over and, put simply, there is no way I can see to avoid hurting a lot of people somehow someway and it might have caused less hurt overall to allow people to continue as normal (with earning their livings, with socialising, etc). Without earning their livings - lots of people suffer if one person is hurt financially. Without socialising - lots of people suffer mentally.

Enterprise_1701C

The only thing that is concerning me is that my mother-in-law is very frail and NEEDS carers three times a day.

As for those saying we should have immediately closed borders?  They would have been the ones screaming that you can't close borders.  Everyone saying the country should have closed down sooner?  The economy HAS to be considered or there will be nothing for anyone to go back to.  It is going to be ages before we get the idea of the new normal, it is not wrong for the government to consider what it is going to cost the nation.

I only hope that this means that the eu wake up to themselves and realise that open borders are not a good idea/

The best thing that has come out of this is that ISIS is advising it's people to avoid Europe

ronlizpatsimon

The crisis could be cured in a few weeks if we encourage all persons except the vulnerable to mix with others.  We will all catch it and in a couple of weeks would be better again - and immune.  Then the vulnerable can emerge from isolation as there will be no one to catch it from

Enterprise_1701C

ronlizpatsimon said:

The crisis could be cured in a few weeks if we encourage all persons except the vulnerable to mix with others.  We will all catch it and in a couple of weeks would be better again - and immune.  Then the vulnerable can emerge from isolation as there will be no one to catch it from

I don't know enough about this, but, in my opinion, this is going to have to happen at some point.

Of course you get all the people screaming that the government is trying to get rid of the sick and elderly then.

Pyxis

Enterprise_1701C said:

ronlizpatsimon said:

The crisis could be cured in a few weeks if we encourage all persons except the vulnerable to mix with others.  We will all catch it and in a couple of weeks would be better again - and immune.  Then the vulnerable can emerge from isolation as there will be no one to catch it from

I don't know enough about this, but, in my opinion, this is going to have to happen at some point.

Of course you get all the people screaming that the government is trying to get rid of the sick and elderly then.

Herd immunity........that’s what the PTB were going for initially, before this week.