Corona virus, Port and the AFL.

[raptalia]

I said pressure will be applied to the Oz government - not that the government will fold.

Australia is in the position that if they keep up heavy restrictions to the end of April, have a 1% or less daily increase in cases they could get recoveries upto around 75% of total cases by the end of the month.

That will drive a lot of people to put pressure on the government to ease restrictions especially if deaths don't spike and stay at around 100 at the end of the month.

We've done our bit, look how good our numbers re, we don't want to be locked away for 3 more months so give us some our freedom back - will be the argument from individuals and business will say look its working let us make our normal living. Governments then have to balance this all up.

Germany like Oz is the only major Euro nation to hit 50% recovery, is a federated nation like Oz and has a national leaders set up like Oz and they are being lobbied to lift restrictions. Spain, Italy and France are being lobbied but only Macron has come out with a strong no bloody way.

No doubt the economy will restart and the sooner the better, I do not dispute that but I put the case that when it does restart Germany will not be a factor. I agree that there are not too many better examples of how to contain COVID-19 than Australia atm.

As for the AFL we will know more on the 27th but I am guessing that group training will re start sometime in May with a competition restart in late June. They will probably need some sort of lead in to get players fitness levels and ball skills up to scratch.

On the subject of lifting restrictions I have just received a letter from my Credit Union to say my local branch will be closing temporarily from 4pm on April 9th. They are citing the need to grant staff compassionate leave to look after kids which highlights the domino effect to all this.

From my perspective things are not opening up but closing down !

 

[rocket18]

..
Unlike some other nations the Australian Government has taken the advice of the World Heath Organisation hence Australia's rigorous testing from day 1. So when the WHO warns against lifting restrictions too early I think Morrison and Hunt will listen.

World Health Organization officials warn nations against easing coronavirus restrictions too early

"While Covid-19 accelerates very fast, it decelerates much more slowly. In other words, the way down is much slower than the way up," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a press conference Monday.

www.cnbc.com

As for the scientists, I heard one report that European scientists believe that Europe is close to 'herd immunity'. These guys in Europe are still going on as if immunity to COVID-19 is a given. The article above contains the WHO's view on immunity which is basically that it hasn't been proved. If immunity to COVID-19 hasn't been proved how can these scientists know that there is any such thing as herd immunity? It wasn't that long ago that Professor Tony Blakey from Melbourne University was recommending that Australia should practice herd immunity. I for one am sure glad we didn't listen. On that basis I would not be doing something because a bunch of scientists recommend it.

As for Germany it should be noted that Germany's restrictions are a lot more severe than those in Australia. All retail outlets except essentials are closed and there has been widespread unrest and rioting in the streets. In that context easing some restrictions probably has a different connotation in Germany than it has in Australia. Australia has not had street scenes like those below...



View attachment 857480

View attachment 857483



I think the pressure on the German Government is a lot more intense that any pressure on Morrison.

I sincerely hope things work out for countries like Spain, Italy and Germany and they do not get a sudden spike when they relax restrictions but I suspect they might find out the hard way and I certainly do not think they are examples that Australia should follow.

**** me, the WHO would be the last organisation you listen to.

They declared "there is no problem", then they bagged us when we shut our borders to China.

Now we have "wet markets are fine".

Some people have no bloody idea.

 

[raptalia]

My impression of the WHO is that they're slow reactors and trusting of China.

After next week China will probably be funding them while the world's greatest President won't.

 

[PA88]

There's a petition calling for resignation of Tedros Ghebreyesus, the WHO Director-General. Is nearing 1m signatures. The complaint is that Tedros failed to designate the coronavirus outbreak in China as a global health emergency in late January.

It was about the time of the Italy break out I watched one of the WHO doctors being asked some questions about protecting yourself whilst travelling by air and she laughed off thoughts of air travel being unsafe ... as long as you wash your hands and don't touch your face you'll be fine.

Tedros/WHO waited until by definition 100 countries had confirmed cases before announcing the world had a pandemic. The horse had bolted long before then.

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

No doubt the economy will restart and the sooner the better, I do not dispute that but I put the case that when it does restart Germany will not be a factor. I agree that there are not too many better examples of how to contain COVID-19 than Australia atm.

As for the AFL we will know more on the 27th but I am guessing that group training will re start sometime in May with a competition restart in late June. They will probably need some sort of lead in to get players fitness levels and ball skills up to scratch.

On the subject of lifting restrictions I have just received a letter from my Credit Union to say my local branch will be closing temporarily from 4pm on April 9th. They are citing the need to grant staff compassionate leave to look after kids which highlights the domino effect to all this.

From my perspective things are not opening up but closing down !

Morrison hasn't been swayed by any arguments so far. He was talking to Koch this morning

'We're in a much better place': Deputy CMO cautiously optimistic on coronavirus response

Deputy Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly says Australia has "got on top of this so far" in flattening the curve in a cautiously positive appraisal of the country's coronavirus response.

www.abc.net.au

Appearing on Channel 7's Sunrise, the Prime Minister was asked if National Cabinet would consider discussing easing the coronavirus restrictions.

Mr Morrison says patience "has to be our virtue here".

"We can't be complacent. We have seen what happened in Singapore most recently and Sweden and other countries.

"If you take your eyes off this thing, [it] gets away from you so we do need to understand what the prerequisites are and the things we need to achieve before we can start to ease some of those restrictions.

"We will be having the discussion on Thursday and a lot of scientific work is being put into that and we have looked into the experience of other countries and we are hopeful that at some point, we are hopeful that at some point, we can move from the phase we are currently into a new phase.

"But I do want to caution Australians that we're not in that phase yet and we're not in that phase yet and we're many weeks away from being in a phase like that."

And finally, when is the footy likely to come back?
Mr Morrison says he likes that people are planning to try and get Australia "back to normal", but it'll be subject to the health advice and clearances.

"The health advice has to be paramount. I have no doubt that the NRL and the other codes understand that and they will comply with that, but I welcome the fact that people are thinking ahead and working out ways they can get things back on a stronger footing.

"That is certainly what we're doing as a National Cabinet, whether it is on the economy or health or any of these issues."

Kochie might have been pushing for the footy to come back but lets say its after 31st May, but I can't see crowds being allowed in for the first few games.

 

[VineValerian]

No. I am afraid I am not. Who are they?

Ya just gotta "stop that gibbon"

 

[Ford Fairlane]

Adelaide Royal Show has been cancelled. Oh the humanity.

 

[Ford Fairlane]

AFL should relocate Brisbane and Gold Coast to Darwin and start a Western Conference. Sorry, can't help the rest of the clubs.

 

[chiwigi]

As an employer, I’ve always been of the understanding that presenting ‘salary’ as being inclusive of gst is illegal.

However, it is common practice to pitch a package (salary + super) when talking to potential employee. As long as each component is stipulated in the contract, it is legit.

The problem is the businesses rinsing the workers, not super.
Coming from somewhere that doesn’t have it, Super is one of the best thing Australia has actually implemented.
Long service leave is the craziest

 

[Holden Hillbilly]

Meanwhile, an intensive care unit nurse at the Royal Adelaide Hospital (RAH), working with COVID-19 patients, has tested positive for COVID-19.
The nurse in her 20s is in isolation at home while she recovers from the virus. The nurse became mildly symptomatic late on 10 April 2020, was tested on 12 April 2020, with the positive test result returning yesterday.

 

[Holden Hillbilly]

The federal government is credited with doing a quite good or very good job by 63% of voters, up from 58% last week. All mainland state governments are saluted by a majority of their voters, with an interesting demarcation between the major states of New South Wales and Victoria, the principal voices in the national cabinet apart from the federal government. The Victorian Labor government is rated as providing a good response by 75% of voters. The NSW Coalition government rating was just 56%. That wasn’t the lowest of the states – that went to Queensland with just 52% approval. The Western Australian government’s response was the most popular on 79%, while South Australia rated 71%.

Australians are as happy as before coronavirus lockdown, Guardian Essential poll finds

Voters report the same levels of happiness as when the pubs were open, although with more financial worries

www.theguardian.com

 

[Forzaport]

You’d have to be an absolute wood duck to not spot this when applying for a job.

Unfortunately many job ads don’t include salary and it’s not disclosed until contract offer.

It was an employer’s market before and it’ll be an even bigger employer’s market now so there’s little incentive to be honest with salary if you’re getting 300+ applications for a job ad.

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

There's a petition calling for resignation of Tedros Ghebreyesus, the WHO Director-General. Is nearing 1m signatures. The complaint is that Tedros failed to designate the coronavirus outbreak in China as a global health emergency in late January.

Taiwan 393 cases - 6 deaths, 114 recovered = 273 active cases.

There is a lot of BS about Taiwan and the WHO - but it has gone overdrive since this interview On Friday 27th March Hong Kong’s RTHK interviewed Dr Bruce Aylward, a Canadian physician and epidemiologist, and former assistant director-general at the WHO, who is now a senior advisor there.

I first saw this on Planet America a couple of weeks ago, and thought something will have to come of this. It was quiet for about 10 days then things have hit the fan.

Senior WHO adviser appears to dodge question on Taiwan's Covid-19 response

Canadian Bruce Aylward, who visited Wuhan in February, appeared to hang up or be cut off when pressed on Taipei’s record

www.theguardian.com

A senior advisor at the World Health Organization (WHO) appeared to hang up on a journalist who asked about Taiwan’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, and then did not answer further questions because they had “already talked about China”.

It comes amid continued criticism of the WHO’s approach towards both Taiwan and China. Taiwan has been excluded from participating in the World Health Assembly after heavy lobbying from China, which considers Taiwan part of its territory.






And now you are getting this shit fight as explained by this Indian news service. Out of the blue, Dr T accuses Taiwan of racism








President of Taiwan - or Republic of China as her twitter account says - hits back.




And now the Africans pile in to support their man.




Another tweet re time lines




Where is that pop corn eating gif?

 

[raptalia]

Morrison hasn't been swayed by any arguments so far. He was talking to Koch this morning

'We're in a much better place': Deputy CMO cautiously optimistic on coronavirus response

Deputy Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly says Australia has "got on top of this so far" in flattening the curve in a cautiously positive appraisal of the country's coronavirus response.

www.abc.net.au

Appearing on Channel 7's Sunrise, the Prime Minister was asked if National Cabinet would consider discussing easing the coronavirus restrictions.

Mr Morrison says patience "has to be our virtue here".


And finally, when is the footy likely to come back?
Mr Morrison says he likes that people are planning to try and get Australia "back to normal", but it'll be subject to the health advice and clearances.


Kochie might have been pushing for the footy to come back but lets say its after 31st May, but I can't see crowds being allowed in for the first few games.

Unless there is a sudden change in the numbers I doubt there will be any crowds in 2020. It only takes one infected person in a crowd of 50,000 to restart the epidemic. In this morning press there is an article about International Tennis being played in Adelaide next January in front empty stands.

In another thread I posted this...

I cannot see why the National Cabinet does not show some leadership here. Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt has immense powers under the Human Biosecurity Emergency declared last month. He has the power to say you play or you don't. Why can't he put a provisional time line on a resumption for all codes? If May is too early to restart then say so and tell V'landys and McLachlan where they stand. The Government needs to set the agenda here not the NRL or the AFL.

 

[Duckimus Prime]

I cannot see why the National Cabinet does not show some leadership here. Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt has immense powers under the Biodiversity Emergency declared last month. He has the power to say you play or you don't. Why can't he put a provisional time line on a resumption for all codes? If May is too early to restart then say so and tell V'landys and McLachlan where they stand. The Government needs to set the agenda here not the NRL or the AFL.

And be the Government that told sports they can not play? And opening themselves up to Sports codes seeking damamges for lost income.

Remember even the States with closing their borders were going to be offering exemptions for sporting bodies so they could continue.

 

[pastmyprimus]

Meanwhile, an intensive care unit nurse at the Royal Adelaide Hospital (RAH), working with COVID-19 patients, has tested positive for COVID-19.
The nurse in her 20s is in isolation at home while she recovers from the virus. The nurse became mildly symptomatic late on 10 April 2020, was tested on 12 April 2020, with the positive test result returning yesterday.

Clinical staff caring for covid-19 patients take extensive precautions. They are covered almost head to toe in protective gear. But still they get infected. Very small oversights/mistakes can cause a transmission like a soiled medical gown coming into contact with your face while you're in the process of removing the gown. There are quite a few examples like that. Because it's so infectious it only takes a small oversight/mistake for a transmission to happen.

 

[raptalia]

And be the Government that told sports they can not play? And opening themselves up to Sports codes seeking damamges for lost income.

Remember even the States with closing their borders were going to be offering exemptions for sporting bodies so they could continue.

Under the Biosecurity Act the Federal Minister has the absolute authority in the matter and as a Human Biosecurity Emergency was enacted by the Governor-General a few weeks back the Minister is within his legal right to say 'no' . I know this because Professor George Williams, Dean of the Faculty of Law at Uni NSW went through the powers of the Commonwealth on the ABC yesterday morning. Williams described Greg Hunt as, 'the most powerful man in the land at present'. The link below may help explain what George Williams was on about.

Human biosecurity emergency declared in Australia

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced a "human biosecurity emergency" in Australia in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

www.news.com.au

As for the States, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has just got through telling the NRL that there will be no exceptions for them re border closures. As a result the Gold Coast Titans have indicated they are prepared to relocate to NSW for the duration.

As I posted elsewhere as the Federal Health Minister has all this power he should come out and put a provisional time line on the resumption of national sporting competitions so the the Codes know where they are going with this. If this time line needs to change due to circumstance then so be it.

 

[Ford Fairlane]

Clinical staff caring for covid-19 patients take extensive precautions. They are covered almost head to toe in protective gear. But still they get infected. Very small oversights/mistakes can cause a transmission like a soiled medical gown coming into contact with your face while you're in the process of removing the gown. There are quite a few examples like that. Because it's so infectious it only takes a small oversight/mistake for a transmission to happen.

Or they can have a dinner party!

An “illegal dinner party” of medical workers is linked to a coronavirus outbreak in Tasmania, Australia’s Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy says.

“We thought we were doing really well in the last week, then we had a cluster of 49 cases in a hospital in Tasmania just over the weekend,” Dr Murphy told the Epidemic Response Committee, a select committee set up to run with Parliament closed.

“Most of them went to an illegal dinner party of medical workers,” he said via videolink.

https://indaily.com.au/news/national/2020/04/14/medicos-illegal-dinner-party-blamed-for-virus-spike/

 

[Chewy316]

Morrison hasn't been swayed by any arguments so far. He was talking to Koch this morning

'We're in a much better place': Deputy CMO cautiously optimistic on coronavirus response

Deputy Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly says Australia has "got on top of this so far" in flattening the curve in a cautiously positive appraisal of the country's coronavirus response.

www.abc.net.au

Appearing on Channel 7's Sunrise, the Prime Minister was asked if National Cabinet would consider discussing easing the coronavirus restrictions.

Mr Morrison says patience "has to be our virtue here".


And finally, when is the footy likely to come back?
Mr Morrison says he likes that people are planning to try and get Australia "back to normal", but it'll be subject to the health advice and clearances.


Kochie might have been pushing for the footy to come back but lets say its after 31st May, but I can't see crowds being allowed in for the first few games.

Even if fans can't go to games, just having the games back on TV will do a lot for the morale of society. Safety is imperative and paramount, but if that can be achieved, the sooner that live sport returns to screens, the better.

Interesting that German soccer teams are training again with the intent on resuming their competition in early May, whilst the premier league in England has penciled in June 6 as their restart date, with a mini pre-season to start in mid-May.

As you have previously said, once other countries begin to loosen the restrictions, pressure will follow and Australia will do the same.

 

[PowerBaz]

Even if fans can't go to games, just having the games back on TV will do a lot for the morale of society. Safety is imperative and paramount, but if that can be achieved, the sooner that live sport returns to screens, the better.

Interesting that German soccer teams are training again with the intent on resuming their competition in early May, whilst the premier league in England has penciled in June 6 as their restart date, with a mini pre-season to start in mid-May.

As you have previously said, once other countries begin to loosen the restrictions, pressure will follow and Australia will do the same.

Difference is we are heading into winter.

 

[Grave Danger]

Chairman Moi has had a bit to say today...



Port Adelaide chairman David Koch is cautiously optimistic the AFL premiership season will emerge from the coronavirus shutdown in July.

Koch has been buoyed by recent developments in the fight against the spread of COVID-19, with further progress to allow the resumption of games without fans or in quarantine hubs.

"If we're vigilant, and we keep making the progress that we are now, (playing by) the end of July is a possibility but if there's a chink in the armour and it flares up again it puts it back," Koch told SEN on Tuesday.

 

[Andre]

It's funny that the global economy can throw squillions at coronavirus at the drop of a hat(which is good), but when confronted with an equally deadly existential threat (climate change) that is beyond a four year election cycle, they just pretend it doesn't exist

I'll preface this by stating I believe in climate change and we should be spending more to mitigate.

However COVID-19 each country, heck further each state and each person can take measures to mitigate it's effect on them, their state and their country. If I wash my hands, practise social distancing etc. I can greatly reduce my odds of getting the disease or passing it on if I do get it. I could choose to go live in the bush, consuming no non-renewable resources and it won't make a difference. The same for SA or indeed really Australia. If China as the world's biggest polluter doesn't address it, then Australia could go back to living in mud huts and walking everywhere and the world may get an extra couple of days before the temp has gone up 1.5C. Woot.

The lesson we should be taking from this is countries should push back against China, that if they won't do their share (especially after they've ****ed the world over here), then they'll cop the hit of bringing industries back onshore or setting up elsewhere in countries that will take climate change into account.

 

[raman]

Good on Morrison for having a go at the WHO for supporting re-opening wet markets. fu** the WHO, what a joke they are. China must fund them in every way, legitimate and illegitimate.

Not to defend the WHO but aren’t wet markets just... fresh food markets? The problem isn’t wet markets the problem is unsanitary practices within them, surely?

 

[Burningleviathan]

Where is that pop corn eating gif?

Just to nit pick, The WHO declared a global health emergency on Jan 30.

Coronavirus declared global health emergency - BBC News

The World Health Organization calls for moves to stop the virus spreading to vulnerable countries.

www.google.com

Its in the same article he is praising China.

I'm no WHO defender but i can't help but feel people are deliberately skipping that declaration on timelines to try and create a narrative.

As far as declaring a pandemic over a global health emergency, you would think there would some thresholds but it's not like they weren't warning nations about the virus.

 

[Chewy316]

Difference is we are heading into winter.

With our increase in ICU beds and ventilators, Australia is going to be more than well equipped to handle any clusters of break outs that occur. No one is saying that society should just return to normal. But you can't keep a straight face using the weather as the primary argument for extending any kind of lockdown when you consider the low rate of new infections, the increased medical capacity etc. If we were going to remain in a lock down with everyone staying inside and doing sweet F all for the next 6 months, there would have been no need to increase the capacity of the medical system in the first place.