Coronavirus

[i-Ram]

23 minutes ago, Angry Ram said:

Struggling with this working from home malarkey. 
 

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=3&ved=2ahUKEwjin_7K6cTpAhXOiVwKHblNAFIQFjACegQIAhAB&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wickes.co.uk%2FProducts%2FGardens%2FExterior-Paint%2BWood-Treatment%2FShed%2BFence-Treatment%2Fc%2F1000772&usg=AOvVaw082n7gmTJmoFLbXF-iHJw3

[Angry Ram]

17 minutes ago, reverendo de duivel said:

Are the flagstones still shiny black?

Yep pretty much, we are south facing and the sun bleaches everything, even the carpet in the lounge.. Nightmare.. ?

[Angry Ram]

13 minutes ago, i-Ram said:

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=3&ved=2ahUKEwjin_7K6cTpAhXOiVwKHblNAFIQFjACegQIAhAB&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wickes.co.uk%2FProducts%2FGardens%2FExterior-Paint%2BWood-Treatment%2FShed%2BFence-Treatment%2Fc%2F1000772&usg=AOvVaw082n7gmTJmoFLbXF-iHJw3

Ho ho ho, she has been hassling me.. Your name is Lynne I claim my fiver. ?

[B4ev6is]

5 hours ago, SIXTEEN AGAIN said:

Holidays in the uk are no cheaper B4 in fact like for like they are more expensive.

 

Depands if you know people who own the place they can often cut you a deal.

[GboroRam]

[Comrade 86]

5 hours ago, Squid said:

not left the house in about 3 weeks.

feeling absolutely awful today, happy 20th birthday to me.

better not be covid, what a poo present that would be

Happy birthday mate. Sorry to hear your poorly. 

[Bob The Badger]

6 hours ago, Squid said:

not left the house in about 3 weeks.

feeling absolutely awful today, happy 20th birthday to me.

better not be covid, what a poo present that would be

Good luck mate and happy birthday!

[i-Ram]

Wasn’t it nice to see the Secretary of State being so appreciative that an ex Captain of The Rams could give up his time to ask some questions. 

[A Ram for All Seasons]

Good news from Germany! Researchers at Frankfurt University have apparently discovered a couple of weak spots in the virus, and they have started trials with a substance called WP112, which is aleady used to treat malignant brain tumours and pancreatic cancer, and an antiviral agent called Ribavirin which is used to treat Hepatitis C.

Its probably more effective than injecting disinfectant, and Trump won't be allowed to buy up exclusive rights for the Land of the Free.

https://phys.org/news/2020-05-potential-covid-therapy.html

[ramit]

Oh no, i think i'm a remain-at-homer conspiracist

 

"Times of crisis bring people together under a common cause – says the propaganda of the blind optimist. What we’ve actually seen during the coronavirus pandemic is society divide into different tribes; here are five of them."

Has a video of a lovely lady acting out the different types.  Granted, it's an RT piece, but come on, which is more important, a pleasant view or Russian Covid19 meddling?

https://www.rt.com/op-ed/489356-coronavirus-divided-society-surprising-ways/

 

[RamNut]

On 09/05/2020 at 10:00, RamNut said:

The current testing regime will not deliver results quickly enough to ever be meaningful, and without widespread testing the app is pretty much worthless. And with new passengers arriving every day, we just haven’t got a grip on this at all. Anything else is spin, and bs.

As @Eddie pointed out, with testing even at 100k per day, it would take 2 years to test everyone just once.

The current test is too complex and too slow for mass screening, and the numbers are limited by laboratory capacity. 

as @B4ev6is said, we need something faster with almost instant results.

Good news story

Quote

A coronavirus test that gives results in 20 minutes is being trialled, Health Secretary Matt Hancock has announced.
The new swab test - which would show whether someone currently has the virus - does not need to be sent to a lab.
Mr Hancock also said more than 10 million antibody tests - that check if someone has had the virus in the past - will start being rolled out next week.

 

[Van der MoodHoover]

13 hours ago, Paul71 said:

You are right, we have a farmhouse in france booked beginning of september, 3 bedrooms, hot tub, pool, stunning location, even with the cost of fuel, the tunnel etc its still loads cheaper than what we have been looking at as a possible alternative over here should we not be able to go.

Still got my fingers crossed for that trip.

 

We have an Airbnb booked in France last week of Aug to 1st week of September. 

The owner got in touch today to ask if we would consider moving to next year as they "hoped we wouldn't go". 

They weren't offering a refund though - Airbnb standard terms are to only offer 50%.

We're thinking about it....

[sage]

2 hours ago, Van der MoodHoover said:

We have an Airbnb booked in France last week of Aug to 1st week of September. 

The owner got in touch today to ask if we would consider moving to next year as they "hoped we wouldn't go". 

They weren't offering a refund though - Airbnb standard terms are to only offer 50%.

We're thinking about it....

Move it to next year. No brainer. Gambling on your health but also how much will be open if you go.

If the property is attached to there house I would defer out of respect.

 

[Gee SCREAMER !!]

Think we've been here before.  The similarities are striking

The strain of virus that caused the pandemic, influenza A virus subtype H2N2, was a recombination of avian influenza (probably from geese) and human influenza viruses.[2][3] As it was a novel strain of the virus, there was minimal immunity in the population.[2][4]

The first cases were reported in Guizhou in late 1956[2] or February 1957,[5][6][7] and were reported in the neighboring province of Yunnan before the end of February.[8] On 17 April, The Times reported that "an influenza epidemic has affected thousands of Hong Kong residents".[4] By the end of the same month, Singapore also experienced an outbreak of the new flu, which peaked in mid-May with 680 deaths.[9] In Taiwan, 100,000 were affected by mid-May and India suffered a million cases by June. In late June, the pandemic reached the United Kingdom.[4]

By June 1957 it reached the United States, where it initially caused few infections.[3] Some of the first affected were United States Navy personnel at destroyers docked at Newport Naval Station, as well as new military recruits elsewhere.[10] The first wave peaked in October (among children who returned to school) and the second wave, in January and February 1958 among elderly people, which was more fatal.[3][11] Microbiologist Maurice Hilleman was alarmed by pictures of those affected by the virus in Hong Kong published in The New York Times. He obtained samples of the virus from a United States Navy doctor in Japan. The Public Health Service released the virus cultures to vaccine manufacturers on 12 May 1957, and a vaccine entered trials at Fort Ord on 26 July and Lowry Air Force Base on 29 July.[10] The number of deaths peaked the week ending 17 October with 600 reported in England and Wales. The vaccine was available in the same month in the United Kingdom.[4] Although it was available initially only in limited quantities,[11][4] its rapid deployment helped contain the pandemic.[3]

H2N2 influenza virus continued to circulate until 1968, when it transformed via antigenic shift into influenza A virus subtype H3N2, the cause of the 1968 influenza pandemic

In early 1958, it was estimated that 14,000 people had already died of the flu in the United Kingdom of the 9 million who became sick.[4] It caused many infections in children, spreading in schools and leading to many school closures, but was rarely fatal in children. The virus was most deadly in pregnant women, the elderly, and those with pre-existing heart and lung disease.

The first recorded instance of the outbreak appeared on 13 July 1968 in Hong Kong. (There is a possibility that this outbreak actually began in mainland China before spreading to Hong Kong, but this is unconfirmed.[6][7]) By the end of July 1968, extensive outbreaks were reported in Vietnam and Singapore. Despite the lethality of the 1957 Asian Flu in China, little improvement had been made regarding the handling of such epidemics. The Times newspaper was the first source to sound the alarm regarding this new possible pandemic.

By September 1968, the flu had reached India, the Philippines, northern Australia, and Europe. That same month, the virus entered California, carried by returning troops from the Vietnam War, but did not become widespread in the United States until December 1968. It reached Japan, Africa, and South America by 1969.[8]

In Berlin, the excessive number of deaths led to corpses being stored in subway tunnels, and in West Germany, garbage collectors had to bury the dead due to insufficient undertakers. In total, East and West Germany registered 60,000 estimated deaths. In some areas of France, half the workforce was bedridden, and manufacturing suffered large disruptions due to absenteeism. The British postal and train services were also severely disrupted.[9]

The outbreak in Hong Kong, where population density was greater than 6,000 people per square kilometre, reached maximum intensity in two weeks; it lasted six months in total from July to December 1968. Worldwide deaths from this virus peaked in December 1968 and January 1969. By that time, public health warnings[10] and virus descriptions[11] were widely issued in the scientific and medical journals.

In comparison to other pandemics of the 20th century, the Hong Kong flu yielded a low death rate.[8] The disease was allowed to spread through the population without restrictions on economic activity, until a vaccine became available four months after it started.[9]

The H3N2 virus returned during the following 1969/1970 flu season, resulting in a second, deadlier wave of deaths.[12] It remains in circulation today as a strain of the seasonal flu

 

 

[Norman]

Hong Kong flu???

I told you all Chinese flu would catch on. 

[B4ev6is]

3 hours ago, Van der MoodHoover said:

We have an Airbnb booked in France last week of Aug to 1st week of September. 

The owner got in touch today to ask if we would consider moving to next year as they "hoped we wouldn't go". 

They weren't offering a refund though - Airbnb standard terms are to only offer 50%.

We're thinking about it....

Wait a secound I saw something on bbc 1 this morning same sition person anwser it said yes you can still go.

If cant fly you could go by big ships or by trains by euro star but I would hold fire.

[GB SPORTS]

5 hours ago, Gee SCREAMER !! said:

Think we've been here before.  The similarities are striking

The strain of virus that caused the pandemic, influenza A virus subtype H2N2, was a recombination of avian influenza (probably from geese) and human influenza viruses.[2][3] As it was a novel strain of the virus, there was minimal immunity in the population.[2][4]

The first cases were reported in Guizhou in late 1956[2] or February 1957,[5][6][7] and were reported in the neighboring province of Yunnan before the end of February.[8] On 17 April, The Times reported that "an influenza epidemic has affected thousands of Hong Kong residents".[4] By the end of the same month, Singapore also experienced an outbreak of the new flu, which peaked in mid-May with 680 deaths.[9] In Taiwan, 100,000 were affected by mid-May and India suffered a million cases by June. In late June, the pandemic reached the United Kingdom.[4]

By June 1957 it reached the United States, where it initially caused few infections.[3] Some of the first affected were United States Navy personnel at destroyers docked at Newport Naval Station, as well as new military recruits elsewhere.[10] The first wave peaked in October (among children who returned to school) and the second wave, in January and February 1958 among elderly people, which was more fatal.[3][11] Microbiologist Maurice Hilleman was alarmed by pictures of those affected by the virus in Hong Kong published in The New York Times. He obtained samples of the virus from a United States Navy doctor in Japan. The Public Health Service released the virus cultures to vaccine manufacturers on 12 May 1957, and a vaccine entered trials at Fort Ord on 26 July and Lowry Air Force Base on 29 July.[10] The number of deaths peaked the week ending 17 October with 600 reported in England and Wales. The vaccine was available in the same month in the United Kingdom.[4] Although it was available initially only in limited quantities,[11][4] its rapid deployment helped contain the pandemic.[3]

H2N2 influenza virus continued to circulate until 1968, when it transformed via antigenic shift into influenza A virus subtype H3N2, the cause of the 1968 influenza pandemic

In early 1958, it was estimated that 14,000 people had already died of the flu in the United Kingdom of the 9 million who became sick.[4] It caused many infections in children, spreading in schools and leading to many school closures, but was rarely fatal in children. The virus was most deadly in pregnant women, the elderly, and those with pre-existing heart and lung disease.

The first recorded instance of the outbreak appeared on 13 July 1968 in Hong Kong. (There is a possibility that this outbreak actually began in mainland China before spreading to Hong Kong, but this is unconfirmed.[6][7]) By the end of July 1968, extensive outbreaks were reported in Vietnam and Singapore. Despite the lethality of the 1957 Asian Flu in China, little improvement had been made regarding the handling of such epidemics. The Times newspaper was the first source to sound the alarm regarding this new possible pandemic.

By September 1968, the flu had reached India, the Philippines, northern Australia, and Europe. That same month, the virus entered California, carried by returning troops from the Vietnam War, but did not become widespread in the United States until December 1968. It reached Japan, Africa, and South America by 1969.[8]

In Berlin, the excessive number of deaths led to corpses being stored in subway tunnels, and in West Germany, garbage collectors had to bury the dead due to insufficient undertakers. In total, East and West Germany registered 60,000 estimated deaths. In some areas of France, half the workforce was bedridden, and manufacturing suffered large disruptions due to absenteeism. The British postal and train services were also severely disrupted.[9]

The outbreak in Hong Kong, where population density was greater than 6,000 people per square kilometre, reached maximum intensity in two weeks; it lasted six months in total from July to December 1968. Worldwide deaths from this virus peaked in December 1968 and January 1969. By that time, public health warnings[10] and virus descriptions[11] were widely issued in the scientific and medical journals.

In comparison to other pandemics of the 20th century, the Hong Kong flu yielded a low death rate.[8] The disease was allowed to spread through the population without restrictions on economic activity, until a vaccine became available four months after it started.[9]

The H3N2 virus returned during the following 1969/1970 flu season, resulting in a second, deadlier wave of deaths.[12] It remains in circulation today as a strain of the seasonal flu

 

 

Like many other people my age I caught HK Flu in 1969 Quite poorly for a week or two No lock down then either. 

They estimate that 80000 people died in the UK alone. 

Still a great year to be a Ramsfan though 

[Mucker1884]

10 hours ago, Van der MoodHoover said:

We have an Airbnb booked in France last week of Aug to 1st week of September. 

The owner got in touch today to ask if we would consider moving to next year as they "hoped we wouldn't go". 

They weren't offering a refund though - Airbnb standard terms are to only offer 50%.

We're thinking about it....

 

8 hours ago, sage said:

Move it to next year. No brainer. Gambling on your health but also how much will be open if you go.

If the property is attached to there house I would defer out of respect.

 

I'm no expert but I would imagine that 50% refund thing would be based on you cancelling.  I bet their T&C's don't even state what happens if THEY cancel!  Worth looking into, if you aren't keen on deferring until next year?
It's clear they don't want you to go, but they don't appear to want to been seen to be the one's doing the cancelling either!
Of course, neither of you may have a choice, if travel restrictions/lockdowns etc are in place.

Obviously, if you are ok with deferring, then I'd imagine that's the best solution for all.

Ensure it's the "product" you are deferring, and not the sum paid.  No good deferring your sum paid towards next year's stay, only to find they have whacked their prices up, and expect you to pay the difference!
Equally, if YOU choose to go lower season, you may have to accept not getting a part refund?  
Also ensure you are happy with any suggested dates for next year.  Same time of year seems fair to all, but if they say you have to take it before May 21 (eg), that may not suit you.  Equally, if you want to go, or can only go, peak July/August '21, be prepared to pay a bit more purely because of the time of year/peak season.

Oh... and if you defer for a year, and Covid is still around and affecting things similar to now, make sure you will be allowed to defer your deferral... if you see what I mean!  You may not be able to go for 2 years!  

For me, a straightforward deferral for the same weeks next year... at the same price... seems the best option for all... but only if it suits all.
Second option would be to say "At this early stage, we are still hopeful, and are still intending to go ahead with the booking" (even if you don't really fancy it!) and try to "force" them into cancelling, which must surely come with a 100% refund?  It's their business, and the onus is up to them to ensure they have the necessary insurances in place for when they have to refund their customers.

Best of luck... and keep us updated.  ?

 

 

[Tamworthram]

7 hours ago, B4ev6is said:

Wait a secound I saw something on bbc 1 this morning same sition person anwser it said yes you can still go.

If cant fly you could go by big ships or by trains by euro star but I would hold fire.

As I understand it, currently, you could travel on euro star or get to France by some other means but, you would be turned back by the French authorities upon arrival. Personally, unless there is some kind of second peak or even just a slow but sustained increase in infections, this will change by late August/September IMO.

[Tamworthram]

11 hours ago, Van der MoodHoover said:

We have an Airbnb booked in France last week of Aug to 1st week of September. 

The owner got in touch today to ask if we would consider moving to next year as they "hoped we wouldn't go". 

They weren't offering a refund though - Airbnb standard terms are to only offer 50%.

We're thinking about it....

Personally, I’d sit tight and wait unless they have given you a deadline regarding moving it to next year.

Depending on whereabouts in France it is (city centres are probably not a good idea) I personally wouldn’t be surprised if France is open for business again by then and the more rural areas just as safe as staying in the UK. I’m hopeful that we can get over there end of August.

i don’t know anything about Airbnb’s terms and conditions but I would imagine that if they cancel you are entitled to a full refund. 
 

Obviously, if the FCO essential travel only advice remains in force (I doubt it by then) you couldn’t go anyway but could claim on your travel insurance.