Davelfc

Voyage Care provides support for thousands of people with learning and physical disabilities, brain injuries, autism and other needs across the UK.

We have been told that masks are generally only a good idea for those with the virus to stop it being spread But one of the reasons that its a good idea everyone wears a mask is because so many are apparently asymptomatic.

There are still plenty ion idiots out there, the looks I got from people in Tesco's when I was wearing my mask.

Comedian Eddie Large has died after contracting coronavirus, his heartbroken son has revealed. The news that one half of the popular double act Little and Large had died was announced on Facebook on Thursday (April 2). His son, Ryan McGinnis made the sombre announcement, telling family and friends that his Scottish comedian dad had passed away at the age of 78. He had three children. He wrote: "It is with great sadness that mum and I need to announce that my dad, Edward Mcginnis, passed away in the early hours of this morning.

This is why they are testing now, to see if the science backs it. Interesting but I am sure many other such things are being investigated and tested to see if there is a link between them. Correlation does not imply causation. But in the middle of a pandemic to ignore is surely foolish, hence the interest.

“We found that there was a reduction in the number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 per million inhabitants in countries that have universal BCG vaccination (usually at birth) compared to the countries that never established such policy,” he said. “The earlier the establishment of such policy, the stronger the reduction in mortality, consistent with a protection to the elderly population which is more severely affected by COVID-19.” Italy and the United States, two of the countries hit hardest by the pandemic, do not have universal BCG vaccination policies. https://www.forbes.com/sites/ericmack/2020/03/31/a-vaccine-from-the-1920s-could-help-fight-the-coronavirus-pandemic/#48e935801220 BCG usage in the UK BCG was first introduced into the NHS’ childhood vaccination scheme in 1953, and until 2005 the vaccine was administered to all children at the age of 13. Because BCG is a live vaccine, it can effectively induce immunity with a single dose given at this age. The incidence of TB peaks during adolescence, which is why children were immunised at the beginning of their teenage years. Since 2005 however the administration of the BCG vaccine in the UK has changed dramatically. Now the BCG vaccine is offered shortly after birth, particularly to children in high risk areas of the UK like certain parts of London. The vaccine can still be administered to older children if the early immunisation was missed. https://www.healthcentre.org.uk/vaccine/who-gets-the-bcg-vaccine-in-the-uk.html

Researchers in a handful of countries are testing a century-old tuberculosis vaccine to see if it can give a boost to the immune system to help it fight off the novel coronavirus now causing the COVID-19 pandemic. Clinical trials of the Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine, which was first developed in the early 1920s, are planned in Europe and Australia to see if it can help reduce the prevalence and severity of COVID-19 symptoms. Researchers from the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) in Melbourne are currently working to enroll 4,000 healthcare workers from hospitals around Australia in one study. A WHO review in 2014 gave the findings that BCG may reduce overall mortality a very low confidence rating, however. Other reviews have been more favorable. Still, researchers hope that BCG could be a bridge that suppresses the overall impact of the coronavirus pandemic until a new, targeted vaccine is ready. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology developed the vaccine candidate VPM1002 based off of BCG earlier this century, which will be used for the trial starting soon in Germany. VPM1002 has been shown to protect the respiratory tracts of mice from viral infections. “In addition, VPM1002 can be manufactured using state-of-the-art manufacturing methods which would make millions of doses available in a very short time”, says Adar C. Poonawalla, CEO and Executive Director, Serum Institute of India in a statement. https://www.forbes.com/sites/ericmack/2020/03/31/a-vaccine-from-the-1920s-could-help-fight-the-coronavirus-pandemic/#37e12d601220

If only our Government had had some kind of warning, some other countries to observe and worldwide experts to listen to. Some kind of global health organisation to guide it and data from other countries to examine. When most of the world were reading from the same hymn book on flattening the curve by testing testing testing we were doing the opposite and claiming it was flattening the curve. The vulnerable were highlighted straight away but the answer was to allow 8 or more days of mass crowding and panic buying before making those people stay indoors, and days of more mass panic before then limiting the rest. To keep schools open and to allow sports events to continue, eventually resulting in them having to cancel themselves. Everyone was put on the honour system, which even an idiot knows applies to a tiny amount of sensible people. Then they delayed and delayed measures to give people guarantees on pay so they would feel forced to carry on working. They constantly gave out unclear instructions. The result is as many have already said, is that we have a situation where they have encouraged most people to catch it. They let the cat out of the bag on day one by basically announcing their plan, then changed the PR but stuck to the same plan. It's not as if they don't have disaster plans in place, they have been spending loads of our cash each year on a pandemic plan. Many responsible for those plans are already questioning why they appear to have been ignored. I get that not all plans fit all situations and this virus has it's own challenges but the basic responses appear to have been ignored. There will be and should be some hard questions asked after this. Unfortunately the results of such questions are usually hidden away, not released or locked up for 50 years to protect the greedy. Around 55% of welfare spending (£114bn in 2014/15) is currently paid to pensioners, with the state pension by far the largest element of this. This expenditure is forecast to increase by an average of £2.8 billion a year over the next five years, resulting in spending of £128 billion by 2019/20. Despite the recent increases in state pension age, it is expected that the pensioner population will continue to rise. In 2014 there were 3.2 people of working age for every person of pensionable age. This ratio is projected to fall to 2.7 by 2037. The Office for Budget Responsibility points out that without offsetting tax rises or spending cuts, the ageing population will cause a widening of budget deficits over time, eventually putting public sector debt on an unsustainable upward trajectory. The prevalence of long-term health conditions increases with age; and according to a 2010 estimate made by the Department of Health, such conditions account for 70% of total health and social care spending in England. https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/research/key-issues-parliament-2015/social-change/ageing-population/ Hindsight is 20/20 and some mistakes can be forgiven or at least understood. I'm an old cynic though and while I am not saying our government has purposely set out on a course to allow the most vulnerable to die, they do have 'form' for doing so.

I am holding daily 40 minute reading classes via FaceTime with my granddaughter. The website linked below allows free ebooks that are used in schools and you pick from the age/level they are on. So far we are both enjoying it, I have cut up a leather jacket and sewn leather patches on my coat. If people ask me what I'm doing for all the other time I get all huffy and tell them I'm doing marking or preparation work, but I'm actually doing sod all. https://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/for-home/find-a-book/library-page/?view=image&query=&type=book&age_group=Age+6-7&level=&level_select=&book_type=&series=#

(2017) 68% of Everton's income comes from TV money. If the tv money bubble bursts they're finished. https://www.dailystar.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league-finances-tv-money-17022263

For any of those chaps that find themselves being given a long list of jobs around the house I have this... It's anecdotal of course but some years ago I was going out with a girl that worked on a&e reception. After she had ensured me that she had never ever checked in a schoolboy with a pan stuck on his head, she did tell me that one of their busiest times was the bank holiday. Mainly injuries from DIY jobs. Now under normal circumstances this is fine, I gashed my hand open a few months ago on a ceramic sink of all things. A bit of cleansing in the deep cut and some glue was all that was needed. But of course even on a School day at a quiet time it took ages waiting to be treated. So long they had to tear the wound open to clean it. During a pandemic and with hospitals being overloaded as it is, I'd imagine the last thing they need are people turning up after having injured themselves doing a bit of DIY. Plus do you want to be there at a hospital during a pandemic, really? Tell the Mrs you're doing your bit, that you are thinking of those brave Doctors and Nurses and not loading the hospitals with unnecessary work by sitting on your arse and watching a bit of Netflix. I've already lectured my daughter on this and expect after this is all over to receive a few tins of beer from the future son in law in gratitude.

Ah Fuck, Pob on sky now.

To limit the spread of the new coronavirus that causes COVID-19, at least 27 countries on every inhabitable continent have closed their borders to certain foreign nationals. Cases of infection have surpassed 150,000, and the outbreak shows no signs of slowing down. As cases increase across the globe, countries have amplified their mitigation and containment measures to limit exposure risks, including reducing large gatherings, implementing quarantine restrictions and prohibiting people from entering. Some countries, including South Africa and the Czech Republic, banned foreign nationals from high-risk areas, and Kenya imposed a ban on foreign nationals traveling from any country with reported cases. Kenya had only one case as of Sunday, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), and along with banning foreign nationals, all citizens and those with valid residence permits who enter the country must self-quarantine for 14 days. Save for a few exceptions, El Salvador, India, Israel, Denmark, Poland, Ukraine, Croatia, Norway and Slovakia banned all foreign nationals from entering the country. Foreign nationals from Europe or Asia were also prohibited from entering Colombia, where there have been 24 cases, and officials closed the border with Venezuela. The WHO criticized countries that implemented blanket travel bans, and Dr. Mike Ryan, director of the WHO's Health Emergencies Program, said during a Friday press conference that they will do "nothing to protect individual states." "Many countries that had imposed bans ended up importing more cases anyway and may have reacted later than they should because they assumed travel bans would protect then," Ryan added. New cases in China, where the virus originated, appear to be waning, but the country still has more reported cases than every other nation combined. Large outbreaks have also been seen in Italy, South Korea and Iran, where half the cases outside China have been reported. As a result, Japan and Hungary banned foreign nationals from entering if they'd recently been in any of those four countries. After Italy, the European countries with the most cases of the new coronavirus are France, Germany and Spain, prompting Singapore to ban travelers from those nations. Malta, the smallest country in Europe, expanded that ban to include Switzerland. Turkey, Vietnam, Argentina, Austria, Russia, Jordan, Guatemala, Vietnam, Germany and South Korea have also implemented bans on travelers from certain countries where cases have been reported.

A former staff assistant to then-Senator Joe Biden claims she was sexually assaulted by the Democrat presidential candidate in 1993. Tara Reade, the former staffer who said she viewed Biden as a “champion of women’s rights,” made the allegations in an audio interview with podcaster and journalist Katie Harper. Reade explained that the entire exchange was odd. She was sent to deliver a gym bag to Biden when he allegedly, without any exchange of words, simply began kissing her. “We were alone, and it was the strangest thing. There was no, like, exchange really, he just had me up against the wall,” she recalled. “His hands were on me and underneath my clothes.” Reade proceeded to describe other more graphic actions Biden allegedly engaged in. We have no desire to enter into those details. When the assault was over, she claims Biden said, “C’mon man, I heard you liked me.” Reade claims that after the assault, Biden dismissed her rather angrily saying, “You’re nothing to me!” https://thepoliticalinsider.com/biden-accused-of-sexual-assault-by-former-assistant/ “For a woman to come forward in the glaring lights of focus, nationally, you’ve got to start off with the presumption that at least the essence of what she’s talking about is real, whether or not she forgets facts, whether or not it’s been made worse or better over time.” --Joe Biden (on Brett Kavanaugh allegations) https://www.mrctv.org/blog/biden-who-advocated-believing-all-women-now-stands-accused-sexually-assaulting-former-staffer oooof

- Rising at more or less the same rate as France - UK’s line no longer seems to be flattening - The steeper the line, the faster deaths are multiplying

Europe’s infectious disease agency says coronavirus is likely to survive warmer weather The ECDC rapid risk assessment noted that preliminary analyses of the COVID-19 outbreak in China and other countries, showed that fast-spread of the virus was also observed in tropical districts with high absolute humidity (Guangxi and Singapore). As several scientists were expressing hopes that the virus will not survive in warmer temperatures, the ECDC assessment said that so far, there is no evidence that COVID-19 will follow the pattern of other human Coronaviruses in the northern hemisphere and thus, will display a marked winter seasonality. So far, there are four coronaviruses that are endemic in human populations, and which are responsible for 10–15% of common cold infections. Those display a marked winter seasonality in temperate climates, with a peak between December and April, but are hardly detected in the summer months. According to the assessment, the seasonality of coronaviruses could be driven by environmental conditions and host susceptibility, because coronaviruses are more stable under low and midrange relative humidity (20–50%), when the defence mechanisms of the airways are suppressed. https://www.neweurope.eu/article/europes-infectious-disease-agency-says-coronavirus-is-likely-to-survive-warmer-weather/

I love Bilko and I love Seinfeld. But I voted Bilko as it's timeless. These two should have been semi finalist or in the final really.

Two pints? That's an armful

Give it a few more weeks....

Metro Mayor of the Liverpool City Region Steve Rotheram will lift all tolls on the Mersey Tunnells this evening to stop NHS workers being forced to pay to carry out lifesaving work during the coronavirus crisis. Mayor Rotheram has been negotiating the move with government in recent days and it will mean that from 8pm this evening, there will be no tolls collected at either the Kingsway or Queensway tunnel between Liverpool and the Wirral. This is being done to support NHS staff and key workers who are travelling to work to help the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. At the same time, Halton Borough Council is calling on government to suspend all tolling on the Mersey Gateway bridge that links Runcorn and Widnes. Staff working on the Mersey Tunnels are to be sent home as they are not considered key workers - but there will be skeleton staff in place alongside Mersey Tunnels Police to maintain order. From 8pm this evening, there will be no tolls charged at either tunnel. No money will be taken from Fast Tag accounts during this time. The barriers will still be in place, but will rise automatically when drivers approach.

They'll probably get away with having a tag and being stuck at home.

LONDON (Reuters) - Anyone claiming to have coronavirus who deliberately coughs at emergency workers faces being jailed for two years, Britain’s Director of Public Prosecutions said on Thursday. Max Hill said there had been reports in recent days of people coughing in the faces of police, other emergency workers and shop staff. Those responsible could face charges of common assault, he said. “Emergency workers are more essential than ever as society comes together to tackle the coronavirus pandemic,” Hill said in a statement. “I am therefore appalled by reports of police officers and other frontline workers being deliberately coughed at by people claiming to have COVID-19. Let me be very clear: this is a crime and needs to stop.” On Wednesday, a 45-year-old man admitted three counts of assaulting an emergency worker after claiming to have coronavirus and directing coughs at London police officers arresting him for another offence, the Crown Prosecution Service said. In Blackburn, northern England, a 40-year-old man was jailed after threatening to spit at officers on Monday after they had asked why he was out with two others following the government’s announcement that social gatherings should cease and that people observe strict rules on social distancing.

My son had the tight/pain chest for a while, his doctor gave him antibiotics last Friday and it took most of it away.