Outbreak overreaction II...

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A follow-up to the post last week. As before, graphs from InProportion2. And as I said before, still not breaking any records, considering that since the turn of the century we have 5 million more people in the country.

"For most of 2020 so far, the overall number of people dying has been less than it was in 2018 (a bad year for flu/respiratory disease). The chart below shows that the number of deaths in 2020 has now started to exceed those in 2018 for the same time period - so far by about four per cent.

Much of the media provides a continual stream of sensational headlines about Covid such as "Death tolls soar as ..." or "Worst week since records began for..." but it must be asked if such fear generating approach is justified or helpful."...



Well, we know the fucking answer to that, don't we? A big fat NO!

Note: Updated 2020-04-28 using the latest data released by the Office for National Statistics and Public Health England, complete to 2020-04-17. Numbers will be lower than those given in daily government press releases as all figures here exclude Scotland and Northern Ireland. They also exclude estimated deaths between 2020-04-17 and the most recently announced. Numbers after 2020-04-17 are from Public Health England

Outbreak overreaction II...

---

A follow-up to the post last week. As before, graphs from InProportion2. And as I said before, still not breaking any records, considering that since the turn of the century we have 5 million more people in the country.

"For most of 2020 so far, the overall number of people dying has been less than it was in 2018 (a bad year for flu/respiratory disease). The chart below shows that the number of deaths in 2020 has now started to exceed those in 2018 for the same time period - so far by about four per cent. Much of the media provides a continual stream of sensational headlines about Covid such as "Death tolls soar as ..." or "Worst week since records began for..." but it must be asked if such fear generating approach is justified or helpful."...

Well, we know the fucking answer to that, don't we? A big fat NO!

Note: Updated 2020-04-28 using the latest data released by the Office for National Statistics and Public Health England, complete to 2020-04-17. Numbers will be lower than those given in daily government press releases as all figures here exclude Scotland and Northern Ireland. They also exclude estimated deaths between 2020-04-17 and the most recently announced. Numbers after 2020-04-17 are from Public Health England

Outbreak overreaction...

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So many numbers and figures abound and the hysterics of the press do not help but are we really seeing what the media and government are trying to make us believe we are seeing? Naturally there are many sceptics; we may yet have to eat our words but more and more it is looking like a massive overreaction that our grandchildren's children will still be paying for:

Note: Updated 2020-04-21 using the latest data released by the Office for National Statistics and Public Health England, complete to 2020-04-17. Numbers will be lower than those given in daily government press releases as all figures here exclude Scotland and Northern Ireland. They also exclude estimated deaths between 2020-04-17 and the most recently announced.

Bear in mind that since 1996 there are FIVE MILLION MORE PEOPLE in the country. Since 1999/2000 4 million more people etc.

"For overall mortality, recent weeks have not been as bad as some previous flu seasons. The week ending 2020-04-10, was a bad week 18,516 people died. However, since 1996 there have been three weeks in previous years which were worse."

Both images and quotes from COVID-19 in Proportion?, Inproportion2. 

Hat-tip: Lockdown Sceptics.

Outbreak overreaction...

---

So many numbers and figures abound and the hysterics of the press do not help but are we really seeing what the media and government are trying to make us believe we are seeing? Naturally there are many sceptics; we may yet have to eat our words but more and more it is looking like a massive overreaction that our grandchildren's children will still be paying for:

Note: Updated 2020-04-21 using the latest data released by the Office for National Statistics and Public Health England, complete to 2020-04-17. Numbers will be lower than those given in daily government press releases as all figures here exclude Scotland and Northern Ireland. They also exclude estimated deaths between 2020-04-17 and the most recently announced.

Bear in mind that since 1996 there are FIVE MILLION MORE PEOPLE in the country. Since 1999/2000 4 million more people etc.

"For overall mortality, recent weeks have not been as bad as some previous flu seasons. The week ending 2020-04-10, was a bad week 18,516 people died. However, since 1996 there have been three weeks in previous years which were worse."

Both images and quotes from COVID-19 in Proportion?, Inproportion2. 

Hat-tip: Lockdown Sceptics.

Oblocutors' obloquy; our obvious odium...

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Our thoughts about the media were dire but are deteriorating. 'Journalists' get a bad name in general but today's churnalism is getting worse. 24-hour news and hundreds of TV channels mean bullshit is recycled and repeated ad nauseam and the 'talent pool' is spread so thin that brain-dead fuckwits can become 'slebs'.



The MSM's clear agenda-driven objectives of causing polemic, raising their own profile and getting sound-bites to report rather than the actual news is reaching record levels. The images below are surveys from (top) Kekst CNC [part of the Publicis Groupe, the world's third largest communications group] and (bottom) the 2019 Ipsos MORI veracity Index, Trust in Professions Survey.



The media are lucky that in the past there have been other professions slightly less liked than them but - as we see from the Kekst CNC info - that is changing: both local and national government (admittedly not "politiicans" per se) are on positive numbers; especially in times of national calamity what we don't need is shit slingers broadcasting to every home, every minute of every day.

Image above: Kekst CNC (UK, USA, Germany and Sweden)

Oblocutors' obloquy; our obvious odium...

---

Our thoughts about the media were dire but are deteriorating. 'Journalists' get a bad name in general but today's churnalism is getting worse. 24-hour news and hundreds of TV channels mean bullshit is recycled and repeated ad nauseam and the 'talent pool' is spread so thin that brain-dead fuckwits can become 'slebs'.

The MSM's clear agenda-driven objectives of causing polemic, raising their own profile and getting sound-bites to report rather than the actual news is reaching record levels. The images below are surveys from (top) Kekst CNC [part of the Publicis Groupe, the world's third largest communications group] and (bottom) the 2019 Ipsos MORI veracity Index, Trust in Professions Survey.

The media are lucky that in the past there have been other professions slightly less liked than them but - as we see from the Kekst CNC info - that is changing: both local and national government (admittedly not "politiicans" per se) are on positive numbers; especially in times of national calamity what we don't need is shit slingers broadcasting to every home, every minute of every day.

Image above: Kekst CNC (UK, USA, Germany and Sweden)

Ocean's olisbos...

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No, not Oceans's Eleven the cheesy all-star-cast Hollywood heist flick but something far more filling: I guess it could be Ocean's Eight, or twelve, or nine or just however many inches as you want in your dildo...if that's your thing. Not just olisbos, toys for him and her and couples.



Olivia Ocean "aims to offer premium products at affordable prices"; the sex toy industry is a booming business for quarantined nations. This company "have seen sales soar by 38 per cent since lockdown, and they're expecting it to hit 50 per cent by the weekend." [The Mirror...think that's the first time I have ever linked to them!]



Think long and hard...before you buy...they're made in China ;-)

And go to the right place because this Olivia Ocean may make you think of getting wet but it's for you to relax and sleep...and even worse, please don't go to Olivia + Ocean to order a sex toy, it's a '(cool) moms'' swimwear store. Ah crap, I should never have started this blogpost...

Ocean's olisbos...

---

No, not Oceans's Eleven the cheesy all-star-cast Hollywood heist flick but something far more filling: I guess it could be Ocean's Eight, or twelve, or nine or just however many inches as you want in your dildo...if that's your thing. Not just olisbos, toys for him and her and couples.

Olivia Ocean "aims to offer premium products at affordable prices"; the sex toy industry is a booming business for quarantined nations. This company "have seen sales soar by 38 per cent since lockdown, and they're expecting it to hit 50 per cent by the weekend." [The Mirror...think that's the first time I have ever linked to them!]

Think long and hard...before you buy...they're made in China ;-) And go to the right place because this Olivia Ocean may make you think of getting wet but it's for you to relax and sleep...and even worse, please don't go to Olivia + Ocean to order a sex toy, it's a '(cool) moms'' swimwear store. Ah crap, I should never have started this blogpost...

Obiter: oligopoly opininion...

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When two cents is worth a million...read the thread and the replies/comments:

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I’m fed up of reading drivel about PPE so thought I’d do a thread with my two cents.



For information, I worked in the PPE for many years (admittedly over 15 years ago) today work with a number of importers of safety products getting their products online.

1?

— During The War! (@Uncle_Albert_) April 12, 2020

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Hat-tip: Raedwald.

Obiter: oligopoly opininion...

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When two cents is worth a million...read the thread and the replies/comments:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I’m fed up of reading drivel about PPE so thought I’d do a thread with my two cents.

For information, I worked in the PPE for many years (admittedly over 15 years ago) today work with a number of importers of safety products getting their products online.
1?

— During The War! (@Uncle_Albert_) April 12, 2020

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Hat-tip: Raedwald.

Outbreak overtures...

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Did you ever notice that the word 'PANDEMIC' is 'PANIC' with 'DEM' in the middle? Anyhooo...

They are largely vilified now for wrong or delayed action and China-protecting messages but they were at least on the right track with this doc (last year's annual report) by the GPMB; the WHO acting as the host organization for the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board, although the publication does claim "This publication contains the collective views of the members of the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board and does not necessarily represent the views and policies of WHO or the World Bank".  



Preparing for the worst:a rapidly spreading, lethal respiratory pathogen pandemic: [LINK]

"High-impact respiratory pathogens, such as an especially deadly strain of influenza, pose particular global risks in the modern age. The pathogens are spread via respiratory droplets; they can infect a large number of people very quickly and with today’s transportation infrastructure, move rapidly across multiple geographies. In addition to a greater risk of pandemics from natural pathogens, scientific developments allow for disease-causing microorganisms to be engineered or recreated in laboratories. Should countries, terrorist groups, or scientifically advanced individuals create or obtain and then use biological weapons that have the characteristics of a novel, high-impact respiratory pathogen, the consequences could be as severe as, or even greater, than those of a natural epidemic, as could an accidental release of epidemic-prone microorganisms."

They're definitely way off with their GDP loss predictions (page 14)...



[Edit] Again: did you ever notice that the word 'PANDEMIC' is 'PANIC' with 'DEM' in the middle? "If you want to create a totally false panic about a totally false pandemic – pick a coronavirus." [LINK] "They can not 'confirm' something for which there is no accurate test."

Outbreak overtures...

---

Did you ever notice that the word 'PANDEMIC' is 'PANIC' with 'DEM' in the middle? Anyhooo...

They are largely vilified now for wrong or delayed action and China-protecting messages but they were at least on the right track with this doc (last year's annual report) by the GPMB; the WHO acting as the host organization for the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board, although the publication does claim "This publication contains the collective views of the members of the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board and does not necessarily represent the views and policies of WHO or the World Bank".  

Preparing for the worst:a rapidly spreading, lethal respiratory pathogen pandemic: [LINK]

"High-impact respiratory pathogens, such as an especially deadly strain of influenza, pose particular global risks in the modern age. The pathogens are spread via respiratory droplets; they can infect a large number of people very quickly and with today’s transportation infrastructure, move rapidly across multiple geographies. In addition to a greater risk of pandemics from natural pathogens, scientific developments allow for disease-causing microorganisms to be engineered or recreated in laboratories. Should countries, terrorist groups, or scientifically advanced individuals create or obtain and then use biological weapons that have the characteristics of a novel, high-impact respiratory pathogen, the consequences could be as severe as, or even greater, than those of a natural epidemic, as could an accidental release of epidemic-prone microorganisms."

They're definitely way off with their GDP loss predictions (page 14)...

[Edit] Again: did you ever notice that the word 'PANDEMIC' is 'PANIC' with 'DEM' in the middle? "If you want to create a totally false panic about a totally false pandemic – pick a coronavirus." [LINK] "They can not 'confirm' something for which there is no accurate test."

Obfuscating Obama...

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Not an April Fool, not a paraody account, Obama really did Tweet this yesterday. Must be on par with THIS (Tom Elliot highlights MSNBC's Joe Sacrborough demostrating still strong and acute Trump Derangement Syndrome with "Everybody saw [COVID-19] coming in early January" for the dumbest comment of the day. Guess he's so still very sore about THIS Obstrobogulous obtenebration.. :-)

Hat-tip: WUWT

Obfuscating Obama...

---

Not an April Fool, not a paraody account, Obama really did Tweet this yesterday. Must be on par with THIS (Tom Elliot highlights MSNBC's Joe Sacrborough demostrating still strong and acute Trump Derangement Syndrome with "Everybody saw [COVID-19] coming in early January" for the dumbest comment of the day. Guess he's so still very sore about THIS Obstrobogulous obtenebration.. :-)

Hat-tip: WUWT