The Reality of Living in Australia and Covid

[C420sailor]

Genuine question.

What is the end game? If a large number of people won’t vaccinate, and the country is going to lock down every time a handful of cases pop up...

Is this just how it’s going to be for the foreseeable future?

I hate to say it, but COVID isn’t going ANYWHERE.

[El Pinguino]

Originally Posted by C420sailor

Genuine question.

What is the end game? If a large number of people won’t vaccinate, and the country is going to lock down every time a handful of cases pop up...

Is this just how it’s going to be for the foreseeable future?

I hate to say it, but COVID isn’t going ANYWHERE.

I don't think you will see a 'large number of people' refusing to get vaccinated in Australia.
The reason for the low takeup has been lack of vaccines and a degree of hesitancy. A little bit of Delta on the loose works wonders on hesitancy.

We are currently at a bit over 30/50% of double and single vax.
They reckon over 70% double vaxxed by mid October.

Apart from the unvaxxed suffering enhanced risk of death by dying they will also find quite a few restrictions on their daily life further down the track.

NSW cracked the 1000 cases last 24 hours.

[GILow]

Originally Posted by El Pinguino

NSW cracked the 1000 cases last 24 hours.

I hope that was a typo?

[RaymondR]

In addition to the economic and psychic damage being done to Melburnians the sartorial damage to both humanity and the canine world down their is incredible. Since the social distancing rules preclude barbers, hair dressers and dog groomers with arm lengths of less than seven feet to practice (and there is a severe shortage of folks carrying this physique in the public at large even if they wanted to train up a bunch) there has been very little grooming of any type being carried out in the city of Melbourne.

As a consequence, on the rare occasions the citizenry is allowed onto the streets the place looks like San Francisco in the sixties and if a dog show was allowed it would look like a mass mustering of yaks in their winter coats.

The unintended consequences of this pandemic are diabolical.

[El Pinguino]

Originally Posted by GILow

I hope that was a typo?

Maybe poorly expressed , lets try --

Over 1000 new cases in NSW overnight.

Aren't you meant to be out sailing?

[GILow]

Originally Posted by El Pinguino

Maybe poorly expressed , lets try --



Over 1000 new cases in NSW overnight.



Aren't you meant to be out sailing?

Oh, sorry, I actually read that wrong. I thought you’d written 10,000.

Setting off tomorrow morning. I promise.

[Uncle Bob]

Originally Posted by GILow

Oh, sorry, I actually read that wrong. I thought you’d written 10,000.

Setting off tomorrow morning. I promise.

Nah mate that will be next month.
Will be interesting to see how Glad Arse deals with the ever increasing numbers.

Fair winds for the morrow.

[El Pinguino]

Originally Posted by C420sailor

Genuine question.

What is the end game? If a large number of people won’t vaccinate, and the country is going to lock down every time a handful of cases pop up...

Is this just how it’s going to be for the foreseeable future?

I hate to say it, but COVID isn’t going ANYWHERE.

Victoria has a population of about 6.5 million.
Over 2.8 million have had at least one needle so far.

Hot off the press so to speak.

Yesterday 200,000 Victorians booked for their first shot - 24 hours after the Pfizer vaccine became available to all Victorians aged between 16 and 39.

https://www.theage.com.au/national/v....html#comments

[GILow]

Originally Posted by El Pinguino

Victoria has a population of about 6.5 million.

Over 2.8 million have had at least one needle so far.



Hot off the press so to speak.



Yesterday 200,000 Victorians booked for their first shot - 24 hours after the Pfizer vaccine became available to all Victorians aged between 16 and 39.



https://www.theage.com.au/national/v....html#comments

I think this supports the theory that the concerns around the rare clotting condition with AZ were a big factor in vaccine hesitancy in Australia.

I for one was holding off until I could get to Melbourne for my AZ shot as I figured the medical system in Tassie was not well suited to dealing with the complication should it occur, as unlikely as it was.

As it turned, I got lucky as they suddenly offered Pfizer to my age group and I was able to book a shot in just three days. The second shot a few weeks later and I ended up being in the first 17% of Australians vaccinated, which felt kinda like I was gaming the system at the time.

(If I had been in Melbourne or South Australia I would have grabbed AZ the moment I was eligible.)

Meanwhile, the preliminary NAPLAN results make uncomfortable reading for teachers (like me) as some aspects of Victorian school children’s academic outcomes appear to have been at the very least, unaffected by the lockdowns, and in some cases they may have improved. Early days but I for one will be watching the analysis closely.

What is probably true though is that school children’s mental health will have taken a beating, even if their academic abilities have not.

[Simi 60]

Originally Posted by GILow

I think this supports the theory that the concerns around the rare clotting condition with AZ were a big factor in vaccine hesitancy in Australia.


.

The reality is that contraceptive pill has a much higher risk of blood clotting occuring but most don't give that a moment's thought.

In the UK, blood clots have occurred in people taking the AstraZeneca vaccine at a rate of roughly one in every 250,000, whereas blood clots caused by the pill are estimated to affect one in every 1,000 women each year.


https://theconversation.com/blood-cl...ve-pill-158652

[GILow]

Originally Posted by Simi 60

The reality is that contraceptive pill has a much higher risk of blood clotting occuring but most don't give that a moment's thought.

Yep, as I mentioned earlier, people are lousy at estimating risk.

Thank goodness I don’t take the pill.

[El Pinguino]

Hard lockdown?

Try NZ which is presently at level 4

Chemists
Fuel stations
supermarkets
Plus GP’s

That's it.

[NevilleCat]

Well it may be the case that Delta proves too much for us too in Victoria. We've not given up yet but, honestly the people are tired, weary and generally disheartened. Perhaps if we were fresh it might be a different story but we are well longer than 200 days in lockdowns and I don't think we have it in us to do another long stint even though the majority feel it is still the right approach. If we can't get on top of it again in the next few weeks then at least we will have delayed the process enough to ensure a better vaccination rate. The fully vax rate should be climbing steadily now as the 12 week second shots for AZ are all coming round and the Pfizer comes online.

[Wotname]

Originally Posted by RaymondR

....... What is obvious to well informed observers of the Australian polity is that those states where the political pendulum has regularly swung between right and left are far less liable to draconian solutions than those where a single side of the polity has become inordinately well entrenched (As an islanded sub population far less culturally diverse than the rest of the country Western Australia is an outlier in the national societal existence)
............

Let's put this opinion to a facts based test. Looking at the east coast mainland states (ie the ones that count) and making a basic distinction between L and R.

QLD - has had 13 L premiers, 16 R premiers (and 9 non aligned); 56 years of L government and 54 years of R government. So looks pretty evenly split.

NSW - has had 16 L premiers, 19 R premiers (and 11 non aligned); 67 years of L government 58 years of R government. Thus also reasonably evenly split.

VIC - has had 11 L premiers, 20 R premiers (and 19 unaligned); 37 years of L government and 89 years of R government. Not so evenly spilt and a strong bias towards the R over the years.

So while QLD and NSW has swung regularly L&R, the Covid response has been considerably different. VIC is historically a R entrenched government yet the Covid response has been strong.

While judgement is necessarily subjective, I can't share RayR's opinion.

Disclaimer - these numbers are approximate and the years of non aligned government has not being counted.

[goboatingnow]

I think vaccine hesitancy will ebb away away. 3 out of 4 in hospital ate unvaccinated. It’s becoming obvious the vaccine protects you against serious illness even if you get COVID.