ExRes
Established Member
Belgian police using tear gas and water cannon again today to save the EU HQ from nasty protestors, if the UK had voted Remain would we have had to use them as well?
Wrong on many accounts. I fail to see what the Brexit vote has to do with this.Belgian police using tear gas and water cannon again today to save the EU HQ from nasty protestors, if the UK had voted Remain would we have had to use them as well?
Not for much longer now that HERA is being set up, and they already interfere in vaccine procurement.Wrong on many accounts. I fail to see what the Brexit vote has to do with this.
1) Belgium is a sovereign state. Laws and restrictions on Covid in Belgium are set by the Belgian Government - not the EU
What is HERA?Not for much longer now that HERA is being set up, and they already interfere in vaccine procurement.
The goddess of women in Greek mythology.What is HERA?
What is HERA?
If I was being really cynical, I would note that the word 'preparedness' is afforded neither a capital letter, nor a place in the acronym.It's the European Health Emergency preparedness and Response Authority and some EU member countries are said to be highly suspicious of it
I read things like this and think, "Thank heavens we left before we got integrated any further and proto authoritarians like that could impose things like that on us".Italy have now changed their 'green pass', needed for pretty much eveything, to exclude negative test results.
Odd how - once again - everyone keeps doing the same things, even though they make no sense whatever for the purpose they are supposedly for.
We know that vaccination doesn't stop catching or spreading the disease, and so a negative test result is presumably rather a better indicator of whether someone has covid or not than whether someone is vaccinated or not.
So why do this? It appears rather more about 'punishment' for not doing what you were told, rather than a public health measure......
If I was being really cynical, I would note that the word 'preparedness' is afforded neither a capital letter, nor a place in the acronym.
Being equally cynical I would say that it's because 'preparedness' isn't considered a sufficiently macho word such as 'Emergency' and 'Response'
Those even more cynical may question inclusion of the word 'response' in the context of EU institutions. Although I suppose they don't put a date on the time taken to respond.If I was being really cynical, I would note that the word 'preparedness' is afforded neither a capital letter, nor a place in the acronym.
I read those news reports and didn't appreciate the imminent departure of the current Mayor - well noted. Perhaps he should concentrate on his leaving party instead of stirring the 'stuff'.Some papers are reporting that the mayor of New York, Bill De Blasio, has introduced a vaccine mandate for private employers in the city. starting on December 27th.
What they unaccountably forget to mention is that Mr De Blasio's term of office ends at midnight on December 31st, and the incoming mayor, Eric Adams, has said that he won't commit to enforcing the vaccine mandate.
So introducing a vaccine mandate four days before you leave office is pure and utter virtue signalling, as well as deliberately trying to make things awkward for the incoming mayor, who will get flak from all the COVID bedwetters if he rescinds the mandate.
Given that the US is generally pretty sharp on religious exemptions, he might just be able to concede to a lawsuit and make it look like it was out of his hands.Some papers are reporting that the mayor of New York, Bill De Blasio, has introduced a vaccine mandate for private employers in the city. starting on December 27th.
What they unaccountably forget to mention is that Mr De Blasio's term of office ends at midnight on December 31st, and the incoming mayor, Eric Adams, has said that he won't commit to enforcing the vaccine mandate.
So introducing a vaccine mandate four days before you leave office is pure and utter virtue signalling, as well as deliberately trying to make things awkward for the incoming mayor, who will get flak from all the COVID bedwetters if he rescinds the mandate.
Tens of thousands of people have staged a protest in Austria against measures to curb the spread of Covid-19, including mandatory vaccinations.
Police say about 44,000 people rallied in the capital, Vienna, the fourth straight weekend of demonstrations.
Last month Austria became the first western European country to reimpose a lockdown for those who are vaccinated, which ends on Sunday.
But restrictions will continue for unvaccinated people.
The protesters, backed by the far-right Freedom Party, are against the government's decision to make Covid-19 jabs mandatory from February.
The country is the first in the EU to adopt such a measure, which applies to all residents older than 14, except in the case of a dispensation for health reasons.
Opponents say people should have the freedom to decide for themselves whether to be vaccinated. The government says nobody will be vaccinated by force but those who refuse the jab will receive fines of up to €3,600 (£3.070; $4,000).
Protesters carried banners saying "No to compulsory vaccination" and chanted "We are the people," and "resistance". Smaller demonstrations were held in the cities of Klagenfurt and Linz.
Austria, with a population of 8.9 million people, has confirmed 1.2 million infections and more than 13,000 deaths since the start of the pandemic, according to Johns Hopkins University.
- CONTEXT: Mandatory jabs: Three reasons for and against
- REALITY CHECK: Is low vaccination a factor in the rise of Omicron?
- IN CHARTS: Tracking the pandemic
About 68% of the country's population is fully vaccinated, one of the lowest rates in Western Europe.
I can see what you are getting at, but there is a difference with ‘backed by’ and ‘organised by’. Nowhere suggests that you have to agree with all the Freedom Party’s aims to protest against the measures.
What caught my eye is how the far right Freedom Party backs the protests and is the only party in Austria to be opposed to many of the measures being brought in. We should be highlighting how marginalising a key demographic risks populists exploiting their grievances to gain support, and if they ever gain power, well, history will tell us the rest.
This is one of the main flaws of democracy - politicians only think about the next election at most, not the long term. Same with many voters, to be honest.Do they honestly not understand how to think long term?
Police in Germany's eastern state of Saxony have launched a series of raids after death threats were made against Premier Michael Kretschmer for backing coronavirus measures.
Far-right anti-vaccination activists are suspected of plotting violence with crossbows or other "piercing weapons".
Saxony has the lowest Covid vaccine take-up in Germany.
Last year Mr Kretschmer warned of Covid "hysteria" but he later apologised and has since backed strict measures.
Germany's new chancellor, Olaf Scholz, told MPs on Wednesday that "this tiny minority of uninhibited extremists" would be not be allowed to impose their will on society.
Police in Saxony said security forces including the special Soko Rex anti-extremist unit were raiding a number of locations, in response to the threats made against the state premier highlighted by a German TV documentary a week ago.
The plot against Mr Kretschmer was first exposed by the Frontal programme whose journalists had infiltrated a group of some 100 people communicating via the Telegram messaging app.
Calling themselves Dresden Online Networking, members would discuss ideas and even meet up in parks, public broadcaster ZDF reported. The programme monitored one conversation in which one man spoke of being armed and ready.
Police said statements had been made on plans to kill the state premier as well as other state representatives.
The revelations prompted an outcry in Germany. Mr Kretschmer said all legal means should be used against such threats.
"People in public office should have no fear of speaking their mind and doing their job," he said.
Mr Kretschmer, a member of the centre-right Christian Democrats who were in government nationally until last week, was initially hostile to tight Covid restrictions.
But since Saxony became one of the German states hit hardest by coronavirus he has changed his mind.
Looks like we now might have to start worrying about "covid terrorism":
German raids on Covid extremists over Saxony leader death plot
Far-right anti-vaccination activists are suspected of plotting to kill Saxony leader Michael Kretschmer.www.bbc.co.uk
Germany's new chancellor, Olaf Scholz, told MPs on Wednesday that "this tiny minority of uninhibited extremists" would be not be allowed to impose their will on society.
Indeed, also the abrupt shift from one end of the hysterical spectrum to the other. Sensible people would at least row back from extremism and stop in the moderate middle, at least for a breather.The irony!
Last year Mr Kretschmer warned of Covid "hysteria" but he later apologised and has since backed strict measures.
The last thing we need is another lockdown, it will kill a lot of sectors stone dead even if they bring back furloughI was chatting to a copper yesterday here in the UK, and he told me they are planning for a January lockdown.
With the recent ‘socialise carefully’ rhetoric, it seems they are getting ready to tell the public that they didn’t behave themselves and that we now need a January lockdown. January is probably the softest month to implement a lockdown for the government as even though people are fed up of lockdowns, many are skint in January and the weather isn’t great, so it’s the best opportunity for the government to implement one without too much fuss.
I quite agree, and it would be irresponsible without a furlough scheme in place. On the BBC website this morning there are already sectors crying out for government support again.The last thing we need is another lockdown, it will kill a lot of sectors stone dead even if they bring back furlough
I quite agree, and it would be irresponsible without a furlough scheme in place. On the BBC website this morning there are already sectors crying out for government support again.
I agree, everything seems to be falling into line for it already. Schools are now saying they are ready to teach online next term (BBC News).I’m expecting a January lockdown unfortunately. I think the next couple of weeks will be used to scare people, divide the population and generally set the scene.
Who knows what they’ll do in regard to furlough; part of me thinks we may see employers expected to pick up the bill. In struggling sectors that will be catastrophic but nothing would surprise me at this point, as the only thing that seems to matter is the perpetual war.
Read beyond the headline on that one. Schools are planning remote learning in the event of teacher shortages or mass class absences. With Omicron this is a real possibility. Lots of people off simultaneously with mild illness. My mother told me yesterday that during Hong Kong flu, one week she was in a class of 3.I agree, everything seems to be falling into line for it already. Schools are now saying they are ready to teach online next term (BBC News).
Read beyond the headline on that one. Schools are planning remote learning in the event of teacher shortages or mass class absences. With Omicron this is a real possibility. Lots of people off simultaneously with mild illness. My mother told me yesterday that during Hong Kong flu, one week she was in a class of 3.
I’m expecting a January lockdown unfortunately. I think the next couple of weeks will be used to scare people, divide the population and generally set the scene.
Who knows what they’ll do in regard to furlough; part of me thinks we may see employers expected to pick up the bill. In struggling sectors that will be catastrophic but nothing would surprise me at this point, as the only thing that seems to matter is the perpetual war.