Let it bleed.

jb

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Big Al

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yorkshirestone
50k cases per day, likely 1% infection rate nationwide, hospital admissions doubling roughly every three weeks and the clowns in government in the uk are ditching social distancing and masks on Monday
Utterly ridiculous.
Fast track to more restrictions in autumn, and a load of avoidable illnesses and deaths in the meantime
Keep your mask on, keep your distance and get your jab

Well, that's why I think it'd be far better to keep things as they are. Another lockdown, and...

The death count in the UK is still low despite the many infections and will hopefully remain so. And this is just coming out of the many Euro football gatherings that have certainly had an effect on the number of infections. Should the deaths rise too high, restrictions will undoubtedly return.

How's the death count in LA, daspyknows...is there reason for alarm?

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CaptainCorella

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terraplane
...there is the belief by some that vaccinations could be driving the variants (at least if I understand the below correctly):

There are four major risks associated with high numbers of infections. These are an increase in hospitalisations and deaths, more ‘Long-COVID’; workforce absences (including in the NHS); and the increased risk of new variants emerging. The combination of high prevalence and high levels of vaccination creates the conditions in which an immune escape variant is most likely to emerge. The likelihood of this happening is unknown, but such a variant would present a significant risk both in the UK and internationally.

SAGE 93 Minutes 07/07/2021

Almost.

The key sentence is indeed the one you emboldened but it's a multi-factor thing, not just vaccinations...

The combination of high prevalence and high levels of vaccination creates the conditions in which an immune escape variant is most likely to emerge.

"High prevalence" refers to the vast numbers of cases. When there are huge numbers of cases, then there are huge numbers of viruses replicating, and from time to time, mutating. More cases = more chance of a mutation. Fewer cases = fewer chances of a mutation.

"Vaccination" refers to the fact that for a mutation to survive in a (human) body that has had a vaccine it has to mutate a bit. Eventually, with enough mutation, the mutated virus becomes immune to the vaccine.

To clarify a little bit more, genetic mutation is RANDOM. It's always random unless a human is engineering it in a lab. So neither living things nor viruses mutate work-arounds for difficult conditions they're encountering IN RESPONSE TO those obstacles. A vaccine doesn't DRIVE a virus to mutate a way around it.

But when many copies of a virus continue to exist (THAT's the "driver") very large numbers of mutations of course continue to occur. A few mutations damage the virus' ability to spread, most neither help nor harm its infectiousness, and a few increase its infectiousness. It's that last kind of random mutation, of course, that's the problem. (Also problems, for us: the few random mutations that increase a virus' lethality. Those, though, often are bad for the viruses as well as the hosts.)

A vaccine DOESN'T generate or spur the appearance of virus Variant X. It's the continued existencce of lots of viruses and therefore lots of mutations that generates Variant X, along with many, many other variants that turn out not to matter. Variant X EMERGES only in the sense that its random mutation happened to give it an adaptation that allows it to replicate and spread in environments where competing versions of the original virus can't get past obstacles as well... the vaccine being the big new obstacle.

Mutations occur entirely irrespective of a vaccine.

A variant virus only "emerges" in an envirnoment of vaccinated hosts -- people -- because it is able to get past the vaccine a little better, while the virus' other versions are failing at higher rates around it.

Saying vaccines are "driving variants" is a lazy and dangerous distortion, one that is very easy to turn into more of the antivaxxer disinformation that has gotten and continues to get very many people needlessly killed.

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skytrench

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Big Al

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yorkshirestone
50k cases per day, likely 1% infection rate nationwide, hospital admissions doubling roughly every three weeks and the clowns in government in the uk are ditching social distancing and masks on Monday
Utterly ridiculous.
Fast track to more restrictions in autumn, and a load of avoidable illnesses and deaths in the meantime
Keep your mask on, keep your distance and get your jab

Well, that's why I think it'd be far better to keep things as they are. Another lockdown, and...

The death count in the UK is still low despite the many infections and will hopefully remain so. And this is just coming out of the many Euro football gatherings that have certainly had an effect on the number of infections. Should the deaths rise too high, restrictions will undoubtedly return.

How's the death count in LA, daspyknows...is there reason for alarm?

Haven't seen the numbers but first cases rise, then hospitalizations rise and finally deaths. If the hospitalizations are increasing there is reason for alarm.

They were all in chartered planes, not wearing masks. Thoughts and prayers.

3 Texas Democrats test positive for COVID-19 in Washington, DC

“We have been following CDC guidelines and what we are seeing from this is that, as we've been told, the delta variant is more highly contagious, and can actually infect people who are fully vaccinated,” Howard said in an interview. “The good news is that you shouldn't have much of a problem, even if you test positive, if you're vaccinated. It also reminds us why it's so critically important that everyone gets the vaccination.”

[www.usatoday.com]

Seeing that vaccinated persons are now hosting the virus, albeit with less death, mutations will occur and it could be desirable that a less deadly mutation emerges, that is more infectious and spreads far, thereby protecting populations naturally against the more deadly strains.

(not wishing sickness upon anyone, but rather sick than dying).

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skytrench
Seeing that vaccinated persons are now hosting the virus, albeit with less death, mutations will occur and it could be desirable that a less deadly mutation emerges, that is more infectious and spreads far, thereby protecting populations naturally against the more deadly strains.

(not wishing sickness upon anyone, but rather sick than dying).

But IF it was engineered in a lab to get stronger (theoretically) as it mutated, become MORE infectious, evade vaccines, and possibly become more deadly over time, wouldn't all bets be off as to what to expect?

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skytrench
Seeing that vaccinated persons are now hosting the virus, albeit with less death, mutations will occur and it could be desirable that a less deadly mutation emerges, that is more infectious and spreads far, thereby protecting populations naturally against the more deadly strains.

(not wishing sickness upon anyone, but rather sick than dying).

Unless I'm mistaken, Covid Delta HAS proven to be less lethal than original Covid, among the unvaccinated, too. Over twice as infectious, but less lethal when you do catch it. I'm not sure, though, that that finding is controlled for our having figured out better treatment protocols for the seriously ill than we had in 2020, and the current lower mortality rate being more due to that than the differences in the Original versus Delta viruses themselves.

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bleedingman
But IF it was engineered in a lab to get stronger (theoretically) as it mutated, become MORE infectious, evade vaccines, and possibly become more deadly over time, wouldn't all bets be off as to what to expect?

Since mutations are random, how can the virus be engineered to develop in a certain direction?

The hat's on for the ones that evade and spread better/more infectious but not more deadly, that is not an advantage to it's survival.

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TheBluesHadaBaby
Unless I'm mistaken, Covid Delta HAS proven to be less lethal than original Covid, among the unvaccinated, too. Over twice as infectious, but less lethal when you do catch it. I'm not sure, though, that that finding is controlled for our having figured out better treatment protocols for the seriously ill than we had in 2020, and the current lower mortality rate being more due to that than the differences in the Original versus Delta viruses themselves.

If true, that it's less lethal, then Delta could be a step on the way to a safer future, though it caused havoc in India.

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TheBluesHadaBaby

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skytrench
Seeing that vaccinated persons are now hosting the virus, albeit with less death, mutations will occur and it could be desirable that a less deadly mutation emerges, that is more infectious and spreads far, thereby protecting populations naturally against the more deadly strains.

(not wishing sickness upon anyone, but rather sick than dying).

Unless I'm mistaken, Covid Delta HAS proven to be less lethal than original Covid, among the unvaccinated, too. Over twice as infectious, but less lethal when you do catch it. I'm not sure, though, that that finding is controlled for our having figured out better treatment protocols for the seriously ill than we had in 2020, and the current lower mortality rate being more due to that than the differences in the Original versus Delta viruses themselves.

Lower mortality is due to 3 things. I read a couple of studies indicating same severity but more transmissible.

1. Younger and originally healthier people are being hospitalized now.
2. There are treatments. When I went to hospital with it they didn't even have tests. The only treatment was a ventilator or self recovery.
3. The case counts are currently less and mortality is a trailing indicator.

Well; you couldn’t make this shite up. Here we are in the UK on the verge of “freedom day” on Monday and so what happens? Our new health secretary tests positive for COVID - and met our PM and God knows who else only yesterday. He was also visiting care homes in the past few days. No word yet as to whether the PM will be self-isolating on “freedom” day, which would be the ultimate irony, if so

ABC world news tonight just had a segment on Covid and showed a pictures of a girl getting vaccinated with a Stones shirt on. Our band is everywhere!

On the 7th day God created The Rolling Stones

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Beast
Well; you couldn’t make this shite up. Here we are in the UK on the verge of “freedom day” on Monday and so what happens? Our new health secretary tests positive for COVID - and met our PM and God knows who else only yesterday. He was also visiting care homes in the past few days. No word yet as to whether the PM will be self-isolating on “freedom” day, which would be the ultimate irony, if so

It truly beggars belief.Clowns, Charlatans and Hypocrites just about covers it. As elected politicians their first concern is the economy and retaining popularity but it's been very obvious for a long time that there are big disagreements behind the scenes between the Politicians and Scientists, many of whom have voiced their disapproval at the plans.

This ain't over yet by a long chalk unfortunately. The big, often badly behaved crowds for the football won't have helped either. I'm told the atmosphere in and around Wembley last week was pretty toxic.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2021-07-18 02:26 by grzegorz67.

There's so much misinformation, lies and opinion blowing around about what's going on. It's 10 times beyond the level it was last summer.

Getting a gargantuan bag of popcorn.

jb

Lambda COVID variant: All you need to know about the new UK coronavirus strain

The WHO is keeping a close eye on the spread of the new coronavirus strain, which is dominant in Peru and has now reached the UK. Here's what we know about the Lambda variant.

Lambda

The WHO and the UK Government are continuing to track the spread of the Lambda variant of coronavirus, which has become the dominant strain in Peru. The new variant, which has also been called C.37, accounts for 71 per cent of all COVID-19 cases in Peru from January to June 2021. Peru’s Minister of Health, Óscar Raúl Ugarte Ubilluz, said that the Lambda strain has now spread around the world. “[The Lambda variant] has been identified in the United States, Chile, Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador, Mexico, Spain, Germany, not only in Peru. 623 samples from 19 regions have been studied since April, through what is called genomic sequencing, that is, the genomic analysis in its composition, to determine the currently circulating variants.”

Some scientists have warned that the Lambda strain could be more transmissible than the Delta variant, which is currently the dominant strain in the UK. A pre-print analysis, which has yet to be peer-reviewed, of the spike proteins on the SARS-CoV-2 Lambda variant showed a two-fold increase in infectivity, which scientists say is due to a particular mutation on the virus called the L452Q mutation. The researchers at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine tested the effectiveness of mRNA vaccines – like the Pfizer and the Moderna coronavirus vaccines used in the UK – against the Lambda variant. According to their results, there was a “partial resistance to neutralisation”, however this “is not likely to cause a significant loss of protection against infection” in vaccinated individuals.

The Lambda variant was first detected in Peru in August 2020, and it was classified as a variant of interest at the global level by the World Health Organization (WHO) on 15 June 2021. This means the WHO consider it to have mutations with established, or suspected, implications for its transmissibility and severity, and has been detected in multiple countries. Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO’s technical lead on COVID-19, said that they are tracking this strain to see if it should be classified as a variant of concern. This would happen if the strain “demonstrated properties of increased transmissibility”, or “if it has increased severity,” she said. The Lambda variant will only be designated a variant of concern if it is deemed to either: increase the transmissibility of the virus; show a detrimental change in its epidemiology; increase in virulence; change the disease presentation/symptoms; or shows decrease in the effectiveness of testing, treatment, and prevention measures such as vaccinations.

How many cases of the Lambda variant have been detected in the UK?

As of 16 July 2021, there have been eight confirmed cases of the C.37 variant in the UK, all in England. This has not increased from the figure reported on 9 July. The majority of these are linked to overseas travel, according to a PHE spokesperson. A report by PHE on the variants of concern or under investigation in the UK shows that the Delta variant continues to be the prominent strain in the UK. In the week leading up to 7 July 2021, there were 36,800 new cases of the Delta variant. “There is currently limited evidence available about this variant,” Dr Alicia Demirjian, COVID Incident Director at Public Health England (PHE), told BBC Science Focus magazine. “PHE, together with academic partners, is undertaking investigations to better understand the impact of the mutations on the behaviour of the virus. We are closely monitoring the situation in those countries where this variant is prevalent and where cases are detected in the UK, we are testing contacts and will undertake targeted case finding if required.”

Will vaccines still work against the Lambda variant?

In a pre-print paper that has not yet been peer-reviewed, researchers found that mRNA vaccines are effective against the Lambda variant. Both the Pfizer and the Moderna coronavirus vaccines used in the UK are mRNA jabs, meaning they contain genetic material that instructs the body’s cells to produce coronavirus spikes, which then provokes an immune response. The results of this paper suggest that vaccines in current use will remain protective against the Lambda variant. However, in another pre-print paper, Lambda was found to have mutations that had “the ability to escape from neutralising antibodies elicited by CoronaVac“. CoronaVac is a vaccine being used in several Asian countries, and works by administering an inactive version of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which then triggers an immune response. mResearchers have stressed that further studies are required to validate the effectiveness of vaccines.

Is the Lambda variant more transmissible?

While it is not known yet whether this new variant is more transmissible, scientists say the Lambda strain does carry a number of mutations that could potentially lead to increased transmissibility or increased resistance to the antibodies provided by a COVID-19 vaccination or prior exposure to the virus. One of the mutations identified in the Lambda strain is referred to by scientists as T859N, and has been found in the so-called ‘Iota’ variant currently spreading in New York City. Another mutation, at L452Q, is reported as being “similar to the mutation reported in the Delta and Epsilon variants” which is believed to affect its susceptibility to antibodies. However, it’s important to note that research on this specific variant is all in early stages. As there is currently little evidence to show exactly how the Lambda variant is different to the other strains, scientists say that further, more robust studies, are needed before we can understand the full extent of the strain’s effect.

What are the symptoms of the Lambda variant?

At present, there is nothing to suggest that the symptoms of infection with the new C.37, or Lambda, variant are different to other coronavirus strains.

The main symptoms of COVID-19, according to the NHS, are:
- a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
- a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or three or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)
- a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – this means you’ve noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal
The NHS say that most people who have symptoms of COVID-19 will have at least one of the above.

What other variants of concern have been identified in the UK?

It is common for viruses to mutate when they replicate. Few of these small, genetic changes lead to a more harmful infection. As of 16 July 2021, there are five strains considered to be ‘of concern’ by PHE, including the Delta and Alpha variants. The UK Government has a deal with biopharmaceutical company CureVac to develop vaccines against future variants, and has pre-ordered 50 million doses.

_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2021-07-18 04:52 by Hairball.

Highly interesting report! Funny jump in the Greec alphabet. What would be interesting to find out if the "regular" flu virus also mutates so quickly. Corona has so far five mutations in a year and half. Maybe the flu virus is just as active in making mutations, but nobody cared, because it's "only a flu virus". I remember reading that flu vaccins can be cocktails of between 10 and 20 different flu virus variants. Some years ago a flu virus variant (mutation) got around the existing vaccins and caused havoc and many deaths.

Brian once said that "the future of a Rolling Stone is very uncertain". Hopefully the human race doesn't end up like Brian.
Thanks again, Hairball.

I'm a GHOST living in a ghost town

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grzegorz67

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Beast
Well; you couldn’t make this shite up. Here we are in the UK on the verge of “freedom day” on Monday and so what happens? Our new health secretary tests positive for COVID - and met our PM and God knows who else only yesterday. He was also visiting care homes in the past few days. No word yet as to whether the PM will be self-isolating on “freedom” day, which would be the ultimate irony, if so

It truly beggars belief.Clowns, Charlatans and Hypocrites just about covers it. As elected politicians their first concern is the economy and retaining popularity but it's been very obvious for a long time that there are big disagreements behind the scenes between the Politicians and Scientists, many of whom have voiced their disapproval at the plans.

This ain't over yet by a long chalk unfortunately. The big, often badly behaved crowds for the football won't have helped either. I'm told the atmosphere in and around Wembley last week was pretty toxic.

It certainly does beggar belief - and the more so now that our PM and his Chancellor are NOT going to self-isolate because, hey, they're part of a "pilot scheme" that excludes anyone pinged by the test and trace app from self-isolating. Meanwhile, public services (e.g., the London underground) and private businesses are having to close because of the sheer number of people being pinged and asked to self-isolate for 10 days, meaning they can't go to work.

As you say, the Chief Medical Officer and others have for some time been diplomatically but clearly contradicting the government line about free-dumb day and all the rest of it.

As for sports events. today 150,000 spectators will attend the British Grand Prix. Nuff said.

Strange people, like permanent lockdowns are what's in order, are you crazy, do you think lockdowns and restrictions are sustainable, please get real.

And I'll explain why its unsustainable as it is now, the track and trace system is set so high that the food industry are warning there won't be enough people working to deliver the food that's needed to the Nation at this rate.
So many workers having to self isolate for 10 days because they came in contact with someone who has tested positive.
And you guys want more restrictions, are you psychopaths, do you want anarchy and hunger.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2021-07-18 14:02 by Rocktiludrop.

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Beast

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grzegorz67

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Beast
Well; you couldn’t make this shite up. Here we are in the UK on the verge of “freedom day” on Monday and so what happens? Our new health secretary tests positive for COVID - and met our PM and God knows who else only yesterday. He was also visiting care homes in the past few days. No word yet as to whether the PM will be self-isolating on “freedom” day, which would be the ultimate irony, if so

It truly beggars belief.Clowns, Charlatans and Hypocrites just about covers it. As elected politicians their first concern is the economy and retaining popularity but it's been very obvious for a long time that there are big disagreements behind the scenes between the Politicians and Scientists, many of whom have voiced their disapproval at the plans.

This ain't over yet by a long chalk unfortunately. The big, often badly behaved crowds for the football won't have helped either. I'm told the atmosphere in and around Wembley last week was pretty toxic.

It certainly does beggar belief - and the more so now that our PM and his Chancellor are NOT going to self-isolate because, hey, they're part of a "pilot scheme" that excludes anyone pinged by the test and trace app from self-isolating. Meanwhile, public services (e.g., the London underground) and private businesses are having to close because of the sheer number of people being pinged and asked to self-isolate for 10 days, meaning they can't go to work.

As you say, the Chief Medical Officer and others have for some time been diplomatically but clearly contradicting the government line about free-dumb day and all the rest of it.

As for sports events. today 150,000 spectators will attend the British Grand Prix. Nuff said.

It looks like they’ve changed their minds and the PM and Chancellor will now be isolating after public criticism.

[www.bbc.co.uk]

They couldn’t organise a p!ss up in s brewery. Even if they could, half the brewery workers would be off self isolating.

The big problem they have is that the more they make it up as they go along and break their own rules, the more their credibility with the public is damaged and few people will take their advice seriously. The Cummings scandal last year is testament to that, and so too the circumstances of the previous Health Secretary’s departure, which the PM was willing to pass off as a closed matter!

As for today’s British Grand Prix, seemingly strict COVID protocols will be in place. Yeah, right! 150,000 people at a motor race on a hot day? Hmmmm....

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Rocktiludrop
Strange people, like permanent lockdowns are what's in order, are you crazy, do you think lockdowns and restrictions are sustainable, please get real.

And I'll explain why its unsustainable as it is now, the track and trace system is set so high that the food industry are warning there won't be enough people working to deliver the food that's needed to the Nation at this rate.
So many workers having to self isolate for 10 days because they came in contact with someone who has tested positive.
And you guys want more restrictions, are you psychopaths, do you want anarchy and hunger.

No-one’s asking for more restrictions and a permanent lockdown. That would be disastrous for the reasons you’ve mentioned yourself.

The problem is having a much published ‘Big Bang’ freedom day with all existing restrictions dropped in one go. There are far too many d!ckheads in this country to risk that. A gradualist approach would have been better, and the scientists have strongly hinted at it, with more restrictions dropped but not all just yet. Masks in shops and public transport would be s reasonable thing to keep, as well as restrictions on big crowds. Day to day living is returning to normal as it should. The shops are all open and food deliveries are continuing as normal, even though the U.K. is estimated to be short of 100,000 lorry drivers. So all you overworked lorry drivers out there, I doff my cap to you.

I totally agree about the NHS Track and Trsce app btw. £22bn and counting and it’s been an unmitigated disaster.

At least the government is getting quicker at making its U-turns. That's what practice does for you, lol...

Maybe it will eventually realize for itself that the public is increasingly fed up and angry for all sorts of reasons and is in no mood to tolerate the government's entitled attitude of believing it can get away with evading the rules while expecting everyone else to comply. So now the PM and some of his mates are in the uncomfortable position after all of having to be in self-isolation on what they like to call freedom day. What a joke!

As grzezgorz67 has explained, no one wants more restrictions or lockdowns, which is why opening up further should be more cautious than reckless, which it ain't. The government should at least be continuing to insist on masks and social distancing in certain settings, but it's washed its hands of the lot. I hope it doesn't end up with yet more mud on its face but am not holding my breath.

As it is, I haven't seen much strictness about the rules or guidance for weeks now in my area, where life seems pretty "normal" and where, as it happens, vaccination uptake is reportedly one of the lowest in London.

As from Monday, mask wearing (such as it is) will remain compulsory on London Transport - as ordered by the Mayor - but social distancing will not. People are already not wearing masks, so good luck with that. Of the eight passengers on a bus I took this morning, four were wearing masks, three might as well not have been wearing them (i.e, they were wearing them over their mouth only or as a neck adornment) and one was wearing no mask and sneezing all over the place without any attempt to cover his nose and mouth.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2021-07-18 17:14 by Beast.

The whole covid business here in UK in the past month or so has been a total shambles really.

The scientists are predicting 100,000 infections before too long and many more deaths unfortunately.

The Monster Raving Looney Party could do a better job than Bumbling Boris and his mates.

I for one will still be wearing a mask on public transport, shops and anywhere else I think appropriate.

With you there 100% on all counts. crawdaddy!

Bodge was so fast and furiously pilloried on social media today for his latest attempt to circumvent the rules that he had little choice but to reverse his stance pronto. He’s now the butt of endless jokes about pilot schemes. Unbelievable that he didn’t see it coming but hardly surprising either given how out of touch he is with your average Joe Bloggs.

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daspyknows

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skytrench

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Big Al

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yorkshirestone
50k cases per day, likely 1% infection rate nationwide, hospital admissions doubling roughly every three weeks and the clowns in government in the uk are ditching social distancing and masks on Monday
Utterly ridiculous.
Fast track to more restrictions in autumn, and a load of avoidable illnesses and deaths in the meantime
Keep your mask on, keep your distance and get your jab

Well, that's why I think it'd be far better to keep things as they are. Another lockdown, and...

The death count in the UK is still low despite the many infections and will hopefully remain so. And this is just coming out of the many Euro football gatherings that have certainly had an effect on the number of infections. Should the deaths rise too high, restrictions will undoubtedly return.

How's the death count in LA, daspyknows...is there reason for alarm?

Haven't seen the numbers but first cases rise, then hospitalizations rise and finally deaths. If the hospitalizations are increasing there is reason for alarm.

It's sort of interesting, the rationalization that go on. If the death rate isn't peaking as before (and we know that's because most older people already are vaccinated), some people don't feel the urgency to get vaccinated even though hospitalizations are going up.

I don't want to go to the hospital. Isn't that motivation enough? If getting a vaccine keeps me out of the hospital for a 2 to 8 week stint, I'm in, regardless if I was going to recover anyway. Let's not even get into 'long term COVID', or other permanent or temporary damage that can result to organs and the brain.

Two South African footballers test positive for Covid-19 in Olympic Village

Coronavirus

Just days before the Olympics are set to begin, three members from South Africa's Olympic football team have tested positive for Covid-19 after arriving at the Tokyo Olympic Village, according to the South African Football Association. "We have three positive cases of COVID-19 in the camp here, two players and an official," team manager Mxolisi Sibam said in the press release Sunday. The two athletes are footballers Thabiso Monyane and Kamohelo Mahlatsi and the official is video analyst Mario Masha, according to the association. They are the first athletes to have tested positive in the village. The team left South Africa on July 13 and arrived in Tokyo the following day and had reported negative results. The video analyst tested positive Thursday and went into isolation, while the athletes tested positive "on Friday and Saturday respectively," the association said. The whole team is now under quarantine "until cleared to train," according to the the association said. "We are now all in quarantine until we get cleared for training today, pending this morning's results. This unfortunate situation has made us miss our first intensive training session last night'' said Sibam. The first case in the village was reported on Saturday after an individual, not believed to be an athlete, tested positive. Outside the Olympic Village a third athlete tested positive on Sunday, said organizers. The names and nationalities of the positive cases were not made known by organizers. The Tokyo 2020 Olympics will begin on Friday -- but concern is growing over the danger of Covid spreading, with 55 confirmed cases now linked to the Games, including officials and contractors.

The Japanese public, as well as many international observers, have voiced alarm over the Games going forward as Japan struggles to rein in its latest coronavirus outbreak. The country saw a huge second wave in the spring, peaking in April and May with close to 6,000 new cases per day. Cases began falling in June but have risen in recent weeks, sparking fears the arrival of teams from more than 200 countries could turn the Games into a global superspreader event. As of Friday, more than 15,000 Olympic individuals had entered Japan, according to Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The Olympic Village, containing 21 residential buildings, will house about 11,000 athletes. Bach acknowledged criticisms about staging the Olympics during the pandemic, but also defended the preventative measures that had been taken.
"We are well aware of the skepticism a number of people have here in Japan," he said at a news conference on Saturday. "My appeal to the Japanese people is to welcome the athletes for their competitions."

Organizers announced this month that the Tokyo venues will not have spectators due to the city's coronavirus state of emergency -- an unprecedented move, according to an IOC spokesman. The Olympic Village is prepped with Covid testing and health centers, with signs reminding residents to wear face masks and keep at least one meter (about 3.3 feet) away from each other. Athletes will be contact-traced and tested for Covid daily; if they test positive, they will be taken to an isolation facility outside the Olympic Village, and will not be able to compete. Other measures in the village include limiting the capacity of indoor facilities, such as dining halls and training centers, where residents are separated by plastic barriers. Still, some athletes have decided against the risk and pulled out of the games, including Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios and Australian basketball player Liz Cambage. About 10,000 Olympic volunteers have also quit.


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Teen tennis star Coco Gauff tests positive for Covid, will sit out Tokyo Olympics
Gauff, 17, was expected to lead Team USA in tennis in what was going to be her very first Olympics this month.

USA Tennis

Tennis player Coco Gauff has tested positive for Covid-19 and will not be competing in the Tokyo Olympics, where she was expected to lead Team USA. Gauff, 17, announced the news through her own social media on Sunday, where she wished the rest of the team luck on the international stage. This would have been Gauff’s first Olympic appearance after a series of notable appearances in Grand Slam tournaments over the past few years. "I am so disappointed to share the news that I have tested positive for COVID and won't be able to play in the Olympic Games in Tokyo,” Gauff wrote. “It has always been a dream of mine to represent the USA at the Olympics, and I hope there will be many more chances for me to make this come true in the future."

The young tennis phenom was expected to lead the 12-person Team USA squad along with Jennifer Brady, Jessica Pegula and Alison Riske in the women’s singles division, the Olympic team announced earlier this month. She was also to be partnered with Bethanie Mattek-Sands in the doubles event. Gauff’s announcement comes only a day after it was announced an organizer of the games who was staying at the Olympic Village tested positive for Covid, and two days after an assurance from International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach that there was “zero risk” of the athletes infecting anybody outside the sealed-off section of Tokyo.


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Athletes to sleep on ‘anti-sex’ cardboard beds at Olympic Games amid COVID

Corona-Olympics

Lustful Olympic athletes should think twice before making the bed rock in Tokyo. The world’s best sports competitors are set to spend their nights on cardboard beds — allegedly designed to collapse under the weight of fornicators to discourage sex amid COVID-19. Olympic officials — who already warned 2021 Games participants to avoid two-person push-ups because of the coronavirus — have set up 18,000 of the cardboard beds in the notoriously sex-crazed athletes’ village, according to Dezeen magazine. “Beds to be installed in Tokyo Olympic Village will be made of cardboard, this is aimed at avoiding intimacy among athletes,” American distance runner Paul Chelimo tweeted. “Beds will be able to withstand the weight of a single person to avoid situations beyond sports,” Chelimo cracked. “I see no problem for distance runners, even 4 of us can do.”

Olympic athletes have never shied away from hanky panky, but officials have warned it could spell particular trouble this year amid the pandemic. The 100 percent recyclable cardboard beds were designed by the Japanese company Airweave. But officials are apparently aware it’s going to take a lot more than the makeshift berths to keep players out of the pole position. They are distributing a cache of condoms to the athletes, as they have at every Olympic Games since 1988. This year, the condom tally is 160,000. Still, that’s a far cry from the 450,000 doled out for the last summer Olympics, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 2016.

This year, Olympic officials insist the rubber is for athletes to bring home to spread the message of safe sex. “Our intent and goal is not for athletes to use the condoms at the Olympic Village, but to help with awareness by taking them back to their own countries,” the Tokyo Olympics Organizing Committee said in a statement to Japan Today. At least two athletes have already tested positive for the coronavirus at the Tokyo Olympic Village, officials said Sunday. Another resident of the Village, a visitor from abroad involved in the Games’ planning, was reported as having tested positive a day earlier.

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Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......

Six Team GB athletes forced to isolate after Covid scare before Olympics

Team GB’s preparations for the Olympics have been plunged into chaos after six athletes and two staff members from the athletics squad were forced to self-isolate after coming into close contact with a member of the public who had Covid-19 on their flight to Tokyo.

Full article here:

[www.theguardian.com]

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treaclefingers
It's sort of interesting, the rationalization that go on. If the death rate isn't peaking as before (and we know that's because most older people already are vaccinated), some people don't feel the urgency to get vaccinated even though hospitalizations are going up.

What rationalization are you talking about? The UK is very well vaxxed as you probably know. This part of the discussion was about restrictions returning in case of increased fatalities.

Do you have anything new to bring to the table besides spamming about getting vaccinated?

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TheBluesHadaBaby

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CaptainCorella


Almost.

The key sentence is indeed the one you emboldened but it's a multi-factor thing, not just vaccinations...

The combination of high prevalence and high levels of vaccination creates the conditions in which an immune escape variant is most likely to emerge.

"High prevalence" refers to the vast numbers of cases. When there are huge numbers of cases, then there are huge numbers of viruses replicating, and from time to time, mutating. More cases = more chance of a mutation. Fewer cases = fewer chances of a mutation.

"Vaccination" refers to the fact that for a mutation to survive in a (human) body that has had a vaccine it has to mutate a bit. Eventually, with enough mutation, the mutated virus becomes immune to the vaccine.

To clarify a little bit more, genetic mutation is RANDOM. It's always random unless a human is engineering it in a lab. So neither living things nor viruses mutate work-arounds for difficult conditions they're encountering IN RESPONSE TO those obstacles. A vaccine doesn't DRIVE a virus to mutate a way around it.

But when many copies of a virus continue to exist (THAT's the "driver") very large numbers of mutations of course continue to occur. A few mutations damage the virus' ability to spread, most neither help nor harm its infectiousness, and a few increase its infectiousness. It's that last kind of random mutation, of course, that's the problem. (Also problems, for us: the few random mutations that increase a virus' lethality. Those, though, often are bad for the viruses as well as the hosts.)

A vaccine DOESN'T generate or spur the appearance of virus Variant X. It's the continued existencce of lots of viruses and therefore lots of mutations that generates Variant X, along with many, many other variants that turn out not to matter. Variant X EMERGES only in the sense that its random mutation happened to give it an adaptation that allows it to replicate and spread in environments where competing versions of the original virus can't get past obstacles as well... the vaccine being the big new obstacle.

Mutations occur entirely irrespective of a vaccine.

A variant virus only "emerges" in an envirnoment of vaccinated hosts -- people -- because it is able to get past the vaccine a little better, while the virus' other versions are failing at higher rates around it.

Saying vaccines are "driving variants" is a lazy and dangerous distortion, one that is very easy to turn into more of the antivaxxer disinformation that has gotten and continues to get very many people needlessly killed.

I really hope that you are in no way implying that anything I have written here can in any way be associated with any view other than Vaccination being the primary route we have to exit from these dreadful times.

Since early March 2020 (qv) I have been writing here, and in other places, about the scourge that the Pandemic represents, and how it wasn't and isn't being taken seriously enough and how we must follow the science and how sometimes the science has some hard predictions to follow.

I can say "March 2020" with certainty because, due to a personal connection, I was sent a copy of a report (from Imperial College) that had been given to Boris 1 day earlier that predicted astonishing case numbers and astonishing death rates. Boris initially did not take it seriously and (ironically) was firm about a policy pretty much like the "Free-Dumb" policy he is now embracing. At that time, fortunately, wiser heads prevailed, and he had to act more sensibly. Sadly no longer, and Petri-Dish-England has been created.

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Captain Corella
60 Years a Fan