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Post by slowcoach on Mar 26, 2020 18:12:28 GMT 2
I am not sure whether here could be anymore different.
Very civilized, more so than normal, no issues with the stock, with only the marks on the floor to encourage separation, and almost universal wearing of facemasks to indicate the proximity of the apocalypse at hand.
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Post by rikita on Mar 26, 2020 20:58:16 GMT 2
didn't go shopping today, but a. and i cycled in the late afternoon - it was busier outside than i expected, the weather is nice, of course, so everyone is doing the permitted exercise. attitudes vary, though, very few people with face masks, many just alone or small group/family - but then there were also several groups that were clearly not families, were sitting on benches or similar rather than exercising/walking, and some playgrounds had the barrier tape removed, in a few cases there was a kid playing there, more often adults using the ping pong tables or similar. a few days ago i also saw someone lying on a wavy slide in the sun - thought that was mean mainly as it is much more difficult to explain to kids that they can't use the slide, when they see grown ups there ... actually found an ice cream place that was open (an outside place where you just get your ice cream cone, no seats), much too a's joy. in part, the atmosphere was so relaxed, you could almost forget anything is different - but then again, as my nose started itching (it's spring and i have allergies), i got worried as i thought i can't start sneezing or coughing now - actually saw no one doing that, or cleaning their nose or anything ...
well, will see if the people breaking the rules will lead to stricter rules so that walking or cycling to get exercise will end up being forbidden, too ... hope not, because even if a. doesn't believe me (she protested for the first part of the cycling route, until we found the ice cream place), i think exercise and fresh air really do her good ...
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Post by auntieannie on Mar 26, 2020 21:35:18 GMT 2
and topping up your vitamin D levels is always good
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Post by tzarine on Mar 28, 2020 22:51:49 GMT 2
haven't left the casa in days there's music, good food, the company of lads, movies, reading
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Post by auntieannie on Mar 29, 2020 10:46:38 GMT 2
I topped my vit D levels yesterday. it was so nice on the terrace in full sun! In the end, I did one more shopping trip for the building before I start volunteering next week. My flat is a mess. I haven't tidied up at all. I allowed myself to take a few days off the anxiety being too much when I let myself think about what is happening. A friend of mine has had the virus and described the sensations and it is not nice. Glad he was able to stay home. Hospitals are not where you want to be in a pandemic.
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Post by shrjeff on Mar 29, 2020 13:10:59 GMT 2
we are under siege... rigid rules... however, the students manage to get to us to get a laptop and we are succeeding in distributing supermarket purchase cards to our families... all good, and it's keeping us busy...
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Post by auntieannie on Mar 29, 2020 13:12:31 GMT 2
yes, keeping busy to stop the mind wandering around dark corners... this is very important.
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Post by Baz Faz on Mar 29, 2020 19:28:47 GMT 2
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Post by auntieannie on Apr 1, 2020 22:29:51 GMT 2
It is all a question of balance, isn't it? knowing I'm going to stress eat and organising light snacks. exercising a little before spending too much time on the computer. Working and faffing about.
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Post by kuskiwi on Apr 1, 2020 23:53:51 GMT 2
The grizzles and gripes have started here: Comment from one of the investigative reporters
"Few people have such selective hearing as the morally righteous"
While obviously the Govt would have preferred not to have this to deal with, they have opened the cheque book super wide and tried to cover as much as possible in a short time and are now refining how to make sure those in need don't get lost in the systems but still it's not enough for some, and others can't be bothered watching the news or the dedicated website to see what is available. It's easier to complain on social media.
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Post by auntieannie on Apr 2, 2020 10:14:17 GMT 2
I worry for one of the ladies who wanted to volunteer on Monday. She's an independent singer so had no income whatsoever. But because she used to work in healthcare, she has applied to work in a local hospital. However, she has an immune condition, which she hasn't mentioned to her prospective employer. She told me she had no option.
I just hope that the government's plans to support artists is going to turn up anytime now. They are still working on it.
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Post by kuskiwi on Apr 2, 2020 21:08:33 GMT 2
I take my hat off to the speed we've worked with that here but obviously some haven't sorted things out. Through the inland revenue all the businesses who have applied and filed online have been paid the wage subsidy already as have a big percentage of self employed. Big penalties if not passed on to employees.
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Post by kuskiwi on Apr 3, 2020 4:58:53 GMT 2
The stats for the early wage supplements have just been released (day 8 of the full lockdown) and 800,000 payments have been made. $4.8 b) Bearing in mind that a lot of these have gone to sole traders, self employed or small restaurants, hairdressers - all those who one day were at work, the next the doors were shut it's a great achievement. If it's paid to a company it has to be redistributed to the employees within a certain period so it's helping a lot of people survive to basic level. Every session there are more announcements re the changing times. I'm surprised and pleased at the depth and breath of them all aimed at keeping people financially ticking over in a hold pattern until Level 4 can be relaxed a little and some of those businesses can emerge in reasonable shape with a trained workforce to start the economy moving again - and more to the point they are encouraging people to apply rather than just fold. One of the media outlets here folded and didn't ask for help, however it had been unsuccessful over a few years in finding a buyer so this was a good excuse.
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Post by slowcoach on Apr 3, 2020 5:50:44 GMT 2
I think that restarting national economies may prove to be much hard work. Just one missing link in a chain and enterprises will restart, stutter and shut back down, and perhaps permanently.
I think they are going to need a plan and impose it, which for many governments will go against their ideological grain.
Still, in the UK, as at least one wag has put it: Empty supermarket shelves, mass unemployment, hoarding. It is but a Brexit Dry Run. So not nearly as daunting as what is coming down the tracks, or rather isn't coming down the tracks.
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Post by kuskiwi on Apr 3, 2020 6:14:41 GMT 2
Supply chains for industry will be our major problem as it was before. Things like copper. We mined iron from the sand round our area for while but that caused environmental issues and like so many others gave up our self sufficiency in exchange for cheapness and mass production.
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Post by slowcoach on Apr 3, 2020 6:36:39 GMT 2
I hear you, I tried to neatly sidestep that by referring to just the national level, at the international level, it could I suppose take years restore or perhaps rather than putting humpty back together again it will move on in another guise.
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Post by auntieannie on Apr 3, 2020 8:19:21 GMT 2
Ah, the Swiss government had scientists advise them all along, but now they've got teams of scientists working on recommendations for the public, on such questions as masks, etc... Good things, because misinformation is spreading fast via social networks when people have nothing better to do.
Thinking of England where it's all good to applaud the NHS workers, but they don't have enough PPE as it is, so grabbing PPE from essential workers is defeating the purpose.
I think the Swiss are starting to realise how many small businesses are going to suffer and may have to close doors once all is said and done. I hope not, but we've been a bit too much to the right of late, to make it easy for a sudden U-turn to the left. even if this had already been engaged at last autumn's elections.
I am selfishly deciding I can only cope with so much worries and leaving the rest to later.
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Post by slowcoach on Apr 3, 2020 9:08:29 GMT 2
If the impact can be compared to something like a works fire bad enough to shut the manufactory/depot/shop down until the insurance pays out then the outlook for small businesses may be bleak. In normal times, facing weeks or months of closure during the rebuilding many just pay the bills sack the staff and put up the To Let signs and call it a day. It just needs one extra thing, like being close to retirement, close to lease renewal, or already struggling to borrow and repay, and return an income, and closure seems the right option with a bulletproof excuse.
Online would be more likely to hold on compared to high street retail.
It will be a good time to be an emergency plumber, we will always need emergency plumbers.
For now, the governments can keep commerce on ice and people fed but the big spend may come when they need to restart the economy. A strategy favoured by many is the so called "Helicopter Money", printing money and giving it away, or rather creating reserves and transferring cash to personal bank accounts. First you need everyone to have a bank account and that may require a national bank.
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Post by kuskiwi on Apr 3, 2020 9:39:59 GMT 2
We have very little other than drug dealers in cash economy here. If you run a business, get paid wages collect benefits it's via a bank. Will be interesting to see how much cash comes out from cashie jobs by trades people or others such as dealers as contactless credit cards are king even at markets. The cash under the mattress days are almost over and paying big suns invite scrutiny. .
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Post by slowcoach on Apr 3, 2020 10:26:48 GMT 2
The UK is reckoned to have about a million "unbanked" individuals. It includes people from groups like the homeless, unemployed, bloody awkwards, etc.. The homeless are perhaps likely to be a big group as there are a lot of homeless, e.g. families in hostals, temporary accommodation, plus rough sleepers, etc.. Lacking a permanent address and a credit record it ain't easy getting a bank account.
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Post by kuskiwi on Apr 10, 2020 11:48:00 GMT 2
One of our banks who advertise as for kiwis by kiwis started closing accounts for people who were beneficiaries or who had managed to mess up. Got told quick smart by the banking ombudsmen to stop it. We too have homeless and bloody awkwards but if they want a benefit they have an account opened for them and given a cash only card and shown how to use it.
I was really surprised to see photos of a big line up outside our local bank. Even more so when I recognised three of them. They run businesses and have all the facilities to do this remotely and the banks all have auto deposit facilities even for cash.
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Post by shrjeff on Apr 11, 2020 7:58:07 GMT 2
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Post by shrjeff on Apr 11, 2020 12:13:16 GMT 2
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Post by slowcoach on Apr 11, 2020 13:05:38 GMT 2
I found the second article more useful than the first.
The AI predictive part is interesting but the data acquisition prior to its assimilation is crucial and a long term benefit.
It doesn't say but I got the impression that the AI was likely to be part machine learning but with a considerable input of theory from Operations Research analysts.
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Post by shrjeff on Apr 11, 2020 18:50:10 GMT 2
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Post by slowcoach on Apr 12, 2020 4:38:21 GMT 2
Dr. Sarah Gilbert at Oxford University did break ranks with the could be ready in five months quote, so September 2019 as opposed to a whole year later.
As I understand it, from other sources, the vaccine manufacturers will be looking to government to indemnify them against possible litigation should there be some harmful or lethal complications.
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Post by Baz Faz on Apr 13, 2020 12:27:24 GMT 2
A little personal observation. Chipping Sodbury is a small town (about 5000) but with a siamese twin town Yate (about 25000). Our cottage is in the centre of CS so we normally have a steady flow of buses, cars, lorries and white vans. I have just stood for a minute at the window and not a single vehicle has passed. The only human I have seen is a man pushing a pram.
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Post by shrjeff on Apr 13, 2020 13:13:17 GMT 2
we decided to check out on-line ordering from a supermarket... we had tried a couple of weeks ago and the wait for a delivery time was over two weeks! today we made the order and the delivery is scheduled for tomorrow at 1pm!!! yay!!! won't have to endanger ourselves again by going to markets...
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Post by Baz Faz on Apr 13, 2020 13:25:11 GMT 2
Getting home delivery was difficult but we have something nearly as good. We have a click-and-collect slot. We have offered our neighbours the opportunity of adding their order onto ours - and they go to collect it.
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Post by kuskiwi on Apr 13, 2020 20:50:12 GMT 2
I love my home delivery and am lucky to have used it for sometime so have a priority code also linked to my loyalty card which has date if birth. Occasionally something I order doesn't turn up but not a problem. I can change or add items up to 24 hrs before.
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