Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK • Hacker News Board

Re: Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK

#761

Post by dafoex » Sat, Dec 05, 2020, 11:30 AM UTC

hermitcrab wrote: post #155

VBprogrammer wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a fairly stereotypical British trait to be self deprecating. If we were singlehandedly saving the world from a rogue asteroid the general sentiment would probably be "let's hope we don't mess this up".

Sadly, they are being realistic. The current UK government is riven with incompetence and cronyism. They couldn't organize a piss up a brewery.

Opinion, not necessarily fact, but my understanding of the "piss up in a brewery" outlook comes from Parliament, not the government. The structure of Parliament is that the opposition has to challenge everything the government in power says and does in order to keep them in check, even when the opposition has exactly the same views on the policy being discussed; this leads to arguing for the sake of arguing even when common sense would say "this is entirely agreeable to practically everyone".

I'm not saying that the government shouldn't be kept in check, but the fact that the UK government appears to move with all the speed of a striking slug appears to be the fault of the system they are required to follow, not the government itself.

Re: Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK

#762

Post by dafoex » Sat, Dec 05, 2020, 11:36 AM UTC

kmlx wrote: post #246

samdamsamma wrote: post #186

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Actually the UK government is an absolute wreck.

it really depends. they're pushing for more cycling, more climate measures, more taxes on IT giants etc and these are Conservatives, the opposite of left-leaning. on the other hand, their Covid response was the same as Spain, Italy, France etc i.e. pretty bad. but they also approved the vaccine really quick, and we're getting that next week. so overall, a meh, like most other countries where I lived. as a point of re…

To me the Conservative party feels fairly centrist at the moment, or at least they certainly aren't as right-leaning as our Big Media seems to portray them. Just a personal thought.

Re: Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK

#763

Post by dafoex » Sat, Dec 05, 2020, 11:47 AM UTC

arethuza wrote: post #121

DanBC wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Developed country with great logistics. Please don't under-estimate our ability to fuck this up, probably by giving the distribution contracts to a crony.

Scotland seems to be using the Army to help plan the logistics side of things - don't know if this applies to the rest of the UK (I hope it does!): https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/coronavirus-in-scotland-a...

The MOD has been heavily involved in logistics from the start; they were the ones delivering the PPE to the NHS stockpiles (my understanding is that the biggest hospital in the region acts as storage and a distribution centre for the smaller, more rural hospitals that don't have storage space). They weren't involved with taking PPE from those local distribution centres to the actual hospitals, however, that was up to the NHS to do what they had always done, and for some areas this was the bottleneck where shipments slowed or were even lost.

Re: Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK

#764

Post by dafoex » Sat, Dec 05, 2020, 11:56 AM UTC

Asraelite wrote: post #708

dane-pgp wrote: post #660

Earlier quoted context omitted.

While you're right that it is called that (by many), some people object to it: > In Ireland, the term "British Isles" is controversial, and there are objections to its usage. The Government of Ireland does not officially recognise the term, and its embassy in London discourages its use. Britain and Ireland is used as an alternative description, and Atlantic Archipelago has also seen limited use in academia. https://e…

I'm Irish and I've always found the controversy a bit ridiculous; it's a classic example of Irish people's distaste for all things English being taken to a nonsensical extreme. You never hear Brits complaining about the Irish Sea being called such.

I don't know, given the Isle of Man is in the middle of it, maybe it should be The Manx Sea? If we don't want anyone to own it, maybe call it The Sea of Sodor?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodor_(fictional_island)

Re: Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK

#765

Post by johnisgood » Sat, Dec 05, 2020, 8:41 PM UTC

svrb wrote: post #737

johnisgood wrote: post #723

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I dunno. I have an autoimmune disease. I was COVID-19 positive without any symptoms. It has been some time now. Everything is fine. With regarding to the vaccine: I do not want to risk it, when I know that I went through COVID-19 without symptoms and may just do it again and again after 6 months? They say I have 6 months of immunity.

What if you're required to take it to re-enter normal society, like going to restaurants and such?

It is quite possible. I do not know. I sometimes do not leave the house for months. I have to now because I have a health issue.

It is still risky, and I hope it will not be mandatory.

Re: Pfizer Covid vaccine approved for use next week in UK

#766

Post by johnisgood » Sat, Dec 05, 2020, 8:45 PM UTC

vkou wrote: post #740

johnisgood wrote: post #711

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Look, I know for a fact that I was positive before. I was asymptomatic. I have an autoimmune disease. I do not want the vaccine for myself. Does the vaccine actually stop the spreading of COVID-19? Because according to other posts, we do not know that it does, all we know is that people would take it for their own safety, but do not know if it actually stops transmission, in which case we are just talking about wheth…

I ask for numbers... And I get an anecdote, and a personal opinion. You are doing a fantastic job of proving my point.

Are you meant to reply to me? It seems quite odd. What numbers do you want from me? I think it is quite useful to know that 1) I have an autoimmune disease, 2) the vaccine has unknown side-effects especially for me, 3) I have been through COVID-19 without any issues, and 4) we do not know if it actually stops transmission. To get the vaccine is risky for me, regardless of your imaginary numbers.

Show me evidence it stops transmission, and show me evidence it is safe for people with autoimmune diseases. If they come back good, I might take that particular vaccine. If not, then get off my back. If it does not stop transmission, it should be my choice, and you are just giving me a selfish opinion. I am NOT going to risk my health, period. Risk yours if you wish.