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Thats an opinion piece not an article based on facts. Yes mental health is an issue. Its way way more complicated than just pure lockdowns.It has been evident since the beginning of this crisis that the lockdown cure is akin to an aggressive form of chemotherapy, killing healthy cells in the hunt for sick ones. It made sense in the early stage of this crisis, as we retreated to gauge the threat and prepare our defences, but in the long run lockdowns are a disaster.
Now some of the damage is evident. Tragically, predictably, it is in the young. It is reported from Victoria that more than 340 teenagers are week have been admitted to hospital suffering mental health emergencies, a 57 percent increase on the same period last year. What did we expect from a jurisdiction now vying for the dismal title of most locked down state in the world?
The mental health catastrophe is not a product of the disease, it was decreed by government. It is the tip of the iceberg, just one element of the destruction of the lives of the young in pursuit of protecting the elderly. The effects will linger long after we have stopped reporting COVID-19 deaths.
Remember this as the next fear campaign begins; that the disease poses a major risk for the very young. On the balance of risk, all the evidence, so far, points to the fact that children are facing far greater harm from their governments’ imprisoning them than they will from the disease.
Isolation gave Mark McGowan the gift of time. He would be wise not to squander it
The WA Premier should be preparing for a surge in the disease when it inevitably comes.www.theage.com.au
Yes it is.Thats an opinion piece not an article based on facts. Yes mental health is an issue. Its way way more complicated than just pure lockdowns.
The mood is finally changing!!...
Reality bites as Victoria’s doughnut dreams turn to fantasy
The state government’s zero-case obsession has been consigned to the epidemiological dustbin.www.theage.com.au
My mood is also changing - for the worse!
It has been evident since the beginning of this crisis that the lockdown cure is akin to an aggressive form of chemotherapy, killing healthy cells in the hunt for sick ones. It made sense in the early stage of this crisis, as we retreated to gauge the threat and prepare our defences, but in the long run lockdowns are a disaster.
Now some of the damage is evident. Tragically, predictably, it is in the young. It is reported from Victoria that more than 340 teenagers are week have been admitted to hospital suffering mental health emergencies, a 57 percent increase on the same period last year. What did we expect from a jurisdiction now vying for the dismal title of most locked down state in the world?
The mental health catastrophe is not a product of the disease, it was decreed by government. It is the tip of the iceberg, just one element of the destruction of the lives of the young in pursuit of protecting the elderly. The effects will linger long after we have stopped reporting COVID-19 deaths.
Remember this as the next fear campaign begins; that the disease poses a major risk for the very young. On the balance of risk, all the evidence, so far, points to the fact that children are facing far greater harm from their governments’ imprisoning them than they will from the disease.
Isolation gave Mark McGowan the gift of time. He would be wise not to squander it
The WA Premier should be preparing for a surge in the disease when it inevitably comes.www.theage.com.au
That has long been discussed and I don't like the competition.to talk about 'the destruction of young lives' so that we can protect 'the elderly
That has long been discussed and I don't like the competition.
It's like asking me to choose my kids over my parents - which ironically, (?) I would do.
There has to be a middle ground - to date it's just been about lockdown.
Finally, (as per my next post) there's some thinking around how to live with it.
Vaccinate as many as possible - especially those that need it for health reasons or are crucial from an employment perspective.
The problem is how much longer 'much longer' is to be. I think people might be able to handle another month at a stretch, but after that we need to rely on other measures like masks, QR codes, isolation, quarantine, maybe a 25km limit, but to have so many people not working and not able to visit etc for three months or so is really pushing it.I'm on board with the notion that lockdowns can't be sustained in their current form for much longer. Total agreement.
And vaccination is how we break the cycle.
They need to release the projections of where this will go both with and without lockdown, and thus the number of lives that are likely to be saved by staying in lockdown. Remind people why they are doing it and make them feel like they are doing good.The problem is how much longer 'much longer' is to be. I think people might be able to handle another month at a stretch, but after that I we need to rely on other measures like masks, QR codes, isolation, quarantine, maybe a 25km limit, but to have so many people not working and not able to visit etc for three months or so is really pushing it.
In some ways I would have preferred the Vietnamese or Chinese method of giving people a chance to stock up on food and toilet paper, then confining everyone in doors for two weeks, denying the virus the chance to transmit beyond individual dwellings. Get someone like President Duterte from the Philippines to oversee the lockdown. What we don't have here that would make this difficult is local community leadership to ensure compliance and provide assistance to those with insufficient supplies or special needs. Realistically it would never work, but short, sharp bouts of pain seem preferable to long drawn out lockdowns.
A problem with lockdowns short or long is the fairly substantial number of people who are going to circumvent restrictions and spread the virus. And the other problem we have in Victoria is one dimensional leadership pushing the same message day after day.
If only we had ordered enough vaccine. If only Victoria had truly thrown a ring of steel around the state. If only Queensland and WA had leaders who showed more interest in reuniting the country rather than being so parochial in their thinking. There are so many 'if onlys'.
Who knows where this will go from here, but some creative thinking, greater cooperation between states and some tangible evidence that all the hardship will be worth it would certainly help people get through this unfortunate time in history.
As long as your mind is ok and you can still write!176 cases. That escalated quickly.
I wish I had cultivated a friend who could cut hair. (Not that we could meet up anyway). My dentist has cancelled my check up and my periodontist will soon cancel too. My body will be a dishevelled mess by the time this over.
The problem is how much longer 'much longer' is to be. I think people might be able to handle another month at a stretch, but after that we need to rely on other measures like masks, QR codes, isolation, quarantine, maybe a 25km limit, but to have so many people not working and not able to visit etc for three months or so is really pushing it.
In some ways I would have preferred the Vietnamese or Chinese method of giving people a chance to stock up on food and toilet paper, then confining everyone in doors for two weeks, denying the virus the chance to transmit beyond individual dwellings. Get someone like President Duterte from the Philippines to oversee the lockdown. What we don't have here that would make this difficult is local community leadership to ensure compliance and provide assistance to those with insufficient supplies or special needs. Realistically it would never work, but short, sharp bouts of pain seem preferable to long drawn out lockdowns.
A problem with lockdowns short or long is the fairly substantial number of people who are going to circumvent restrictions and spread the virus. And the other problem we have in Victoria is one dimensional leadership pushing the same message day after day.
If only we had ordered enough vaccine. If only Victoria had truly thrown a ring of steel around the state. If only Queensland and WA had leaders who showed more interest in reuniting the country rather than being so parochial in their thinking. There are so many 'if onlys'.
Who knows where this will go from here, but some creative thinking, greater cooperation between states and some tangible evidence that all the hardship will be worth it would certainly help people get through this unfortunate time in history.
Vaccination is really the only thing we have, we are fortunate that we have an effective vaccineI'm on board with the notion that lockdowns can't be sustained in their current form for much longer. Total agreement.
And vaccination is how we break the cycle.
Yeah. There's a loss of perspective amongst many journos in Australia who seem to view lockdown as being solely about getting it to zero so you don't have lockdown, as opposed to lockdowns being about curtailing covid deaths.The Age ran an interesting editorial today, in the sense that it called on the State government to conjure a vision of where we're going, and to relax restrictions (for vaccinated people, at least).
Read some of the comments of sturdy Age subscribers threatening to cancel their support of the newspaper...so cute!
The issue for me is that the lockdown is working; it's slowing the spread of Delta in a way which prevents the health system from caving in on itself. I just don't see how an easing of restrictions wouldn't cause more harm than good before we get to the promised land of 70-80% vaccinated.
I agree on the need for creative thinking, and for me that thinking needs to primarily inform our vaccination effort.
Fortunate? We are nowhere near as fortunate as we should be or could be if the effective vaccine to which you refer had been ordered with the foresight and urgency you'd expect from a supposedly switched on first world country.Vaccination is really the only thing we have, we are fortunate that we have an effective vaccine
Who might Phyllis Fu be? Is she a household name? Should I feel like I have just dropped from the moon because her name means no more to me than any of the other 25,845,641 names by which people are called in this country?
I got called Fu at one stage. Her family name means tutor.Who might Phyllis Fu be? Is she a household name? Should I feel like I have just dropped from the moon because her name means no more to me than any of the other 25,845,641 names by which people are called in this country?
I had 2 cats at different times in the third and fourth decades of my life named Fu, though spelt Foo (Foo 1 then 2). What clout does a ******* tutor have in commenting on covid, especially one named Phyliss?!I got called Fu at one stage. Her family name means tutor.
The flag is Taiwanese - they've had a good pandemic, and she wears glasses so she's smart. It all adds up.I had 2 cats at different times in the third and fourth decades of my life named Fu, though spelt Foo (Foo 1 then 2). What clout does a ******* tutor have in commenting on covid, especially one named Phyliss?!
I thought I knew why they called me Fu, but I never before understood why they called me Fu Cu.Sorry to disappoint, yours was an abbreviation