The worst responses to the coronavirus

[phantom_power]

Why do we want the state to be "nimble and agile"? Surely we want it to be rugged and strong, enough to support those that need it. It's not a fucking software house

[dissolute ocelot]

Why do we want the state to be "nimble and agile"? Surely we want it to be rugged and strong, enough to support those that need it. It's not a fucking software house

We need more U-Turns! A u-turn every day? No, every hour!

Still no mention of where the money's going to come from, Rishi? I mean we all know it'll be austerity not tax rises, but you may as well say it.

[frajer]

BBC News site asking "Coronavirus: Are the lockdown restrictions too strict?" - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-europe-54285145

Well Beeb I've had a think and no, they fucking aren't, and this is a dangerously irresponsible headline when a lot of people are already woefully under-informed/ willfully throwing caution to the wind.

[phes]

this is the same website that ran an article titled something along the lines of how to get your flying fix during covid (and environmental apocalypse).

[BlodwynPig]

BBC News site asking "Coronavirus: Are the lockdown restrictions too strict?" - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-europe-54285145

Well Beeb I've had a think and no, they fucking aren't, and this is a dangerously irresponsible headline when a lot of people are already woefully under-informed/ willfully throwing caution to the wind.

They and other media have been playing these games since the beginning - part of the 'confuse to destroy' tactics of the liberal elites.

[olliebean]

Had a letter today informing me that my household has been "selected" ("conscripted" would seem like a more appropriate word) for the National Television Viewing Study. This apparently means, if I do nothing about it, that someone will visit my home in person in the next few days or weeks (depending which bit of it you read) to interview me about my TV viewing habits.

There's a link to follow specifically if you're shielding or self-isolating (not if you just don't fancy an unsolicited home visit during a pandemic, although I had a look at it anyway) that gives you the option to do it by phone or Microsoft Teams, but no option just to say "No, not interested, fuck off." Also the online FAQ says the interviewers are being told to stay 2m back from the door, and provided with gloves and hand gel - irrelevant if they're staying 2m away; but no mention of masks.

I've sent them a non-abusive but not entirely polite email expressing my thoughts about this and asking them not to bother me further about it. If they ignore it and send someone round regardless, they'll get very short shrift.

[What Doth Life?]

Had a letter today informing me that my household has been "selected" ("conscripted" would seem like a more appropriate word) for the National Television Viewing Study. This apparently means, if I do nothing about it, that someone will visit my home in person in the next few days or weeks (depending which bit of it you read) to interview me about my TV viewing habits.

There's a link to follow specifically if you're shielding or self-isolating (not if you just don't fancy an unsolicited home visit during a pandemic, although I had a look at it anyway) that gives you the option to do it by phone or Microsoft Teams, but no option just to say "No, not interested, fuck off." Also the online FAQ says the interviewers are being told to stay 2m back from the door, and provided with gloves and hand gel - irrelevant if they're staying 2m away; but no mention of masks.

I've sent them a non-abusive but not entirely polite email expressing my thoughts about this and asking them not to bother me further about it. If they ignore it and send someone round regardless, they'll get very short shrift.

Just do it over Teams, and share screen as you explain you only really watch very extreme pornography

[Cloud]

BBC News site asking "Coronavirus: Are the lockdown restrictions too strict?" - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-europe-54285145

Well Beeb I've had a think and no, they fucking aren't, and this is a dangerously irresponsible headline when a lot of people are already woefully under-informed/ willfully throwing caution to the wind.

Not the first time they've had an irresponsible headline either - a few days ago their headline, on the front page of BBC News, was "Is it time we learnt to live with the virus?" which of course got the "just let it rip" crowd rather excited.

Personally I follow Betteridge's Law (Any headline that ends with a question mark should be answered "no") but a lot of people take these headlines as rhetorical.

[olliebean]

Just do it over Teams, and share screen as you explain you only really watch very extreme pornography

Too much effort.

I probably would have done it properly over Teams if they'd approached me first to see if I was interested in participating, and made Teams the default, rather than gone straight in with the "we've selected you, so you're doing this, we'll be sending the lads round soon to shout droplets at you from 2m outside your door" line. But now they've got my back up, so they can fuck off.

[What Doth Life?]

Too much effort.

I probably would have done it properly over Teams if they'd approached me first to see if I was interested in participating, and made Teams the default, rather than gone straight in with the "we've selected you, so you're doing this, we'll be sending the lads round soon to shout droplets at you from 2m outside your door" line. But now they've got my back up, so they can fuck off.

Shooting droplets is also a key component of my idea

[Fambo Number Mive]

Wrong Said Fred: https://twitter.com/TheFreds/status/1309873339842932738

[thecuriousorange]

They were Pro-Brexit as well.

[bgmnts]

https://twitter.com/i/status/1310218350526693377

[Sebastian Cobb]

https://twitter.com/i/status/1310218350526693377

loooool

[Mr Banlon]

Right Said Dead Soon

[Sebastian Cobb]

I'm also laughing at it being the official Fred position. Like Neil Tennant getting Chris Lowe to stand in the background in a funny jumper while he tells everyone the PSB's don't believe in masks.

[Absorb the anus burn]

I'm also laughing at it being the official Fred position. Like Neil Tennant getting Chris Lowe to stand in the background in a funny jumper while he tells everyone the PSB's don't believe in masks.

[Fambo Number Mive]

Cartoonist at the Telegraph tells people not to wear a mask or get a test.

https://twitter.com/bobscartoons/status/1310488526899863552

Having seen his cartoons attacking people on furlough and trying to paint covid mitigation measures as an overreaction I'm not surprised.

[Gulftastic]

They were Pro-Brexit as well.

Deeply UKIPy about the Brexit plan

[Sebastian Cobb]

Cartoonist at the Telegraph tells people not to wear a mask or get a test.

https://twitter.com/bobscartoons/status/1310488526899863552

Having seen his cartoons attacking people on furlough and trying to paint covid mitigation measures as an overreaction I'm not surprised.

Bob Moron more like!!!

[dissolute ocelot]

A restaurant employee in Northern Ireland caused the business to briefly close and triggered a Covid-19 alert after falsely claiming to have the virus so he could get off work. Moira Pizzeria in County Down apologised to customers and said it had been misled. In a Facebook post it said:

It turns out that the staff member claimed to have had a positive test as he had other plans for the weekend.

I guess the days of calling in bomb threats are long past. (Guardian today).

[Sebastian Cobb]

[Zetetic]

I don't see why we'd expect the DHSC to have firm timescales for that, to be honest, since they're:
- massively dependent on how smoothly converting the Imperial startup's prototypes to mass-production goes
- not necessarily going to prioritise all English[nb]Noting that the question was made in terms such that it excludes the rest of the UK, for no obvious reason.[/nb] hospitals above every other context where you need rapid COVID-19 testing (e.g. care home workers)

[Sebastian Cobb]

Do you think they could've possibly given a better deferral than 'we can't answer this question about timescales within an acceptable timescale'?

[idunnosomename]

Cartoonist at the Telegraph tells people not to wear a mask or get a test.

https://twitter.com/bobscartoons/status/1310488526899863552

Having seen his cartoons attacking people on furlough and trying to paint covid mitigation measures as an overreaction I'm not surprised.

this cunt makes Matt look clever

https://twitter.com/bobscartoons/status/1309906250830839808

https://twitter.com/bobscartoons/status/1309548622154002437

This last one is particularly odious

https://twitter.com/bobscartoons/status/1309185824190275585

[Sebastian Cobb]

Imagine buying prints of that shit.

I say this as someone who in a moment of madness bought a Jim'll Paint It canvas.

[BlodwynPig]

this cunt makes Matt look clever

https://twitter.com/bobscartoons/status/1309906250830839808

https://twitter.com/bobscartoons/status/1309548622154002437

This last one is particularly odious

https://twitter.com/bobscartoons/status/1309185824190275585

that led me to a still from the new Thick of It series

[ajsmith2]

this cunt makes Matt look clever


https://twitter.com/bobscartoons/status/1309548622154002437

Haha his wee 'Kung Flu Fighting' quip in reply to his original tweet here is pure The Onion's Kelly.

[Zetetic]

Do you think they could've possibly given a better deferral than 'we can't answer this question about timescales within an acceptable timescale'?

I think that's the usual form of words for responding to questions in the Commons.

I'd much rather have a (fairly) clear "We don't know and we're trying to work it out" than 1) making up something just to answer the question or 2) "We've commissioned Deloitte to manage this and they've told us it'll be in place by Christmas".

[Gurke and Hare]

Noting that the question was made in terms such that it excludes the rest of the UK, for no obvious reason.

Isn't the reason that health is a devolved power to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, so the health ministers at Westminster can only speak for matters related to England?