The COVID-2019 Thread

[panama hat]

A bit of a challenging accent . . . but worth a watch

[harrybarracuda]

TBH even if it was a lab accident it's not that big a deal.

What is a big deal is the obnoxious little shits covering it up for so long.

[panama hat]

^ Precisely.

[harrybarracuda]

And yet more proof that they don't have a brain cell between them.

The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) has put brakes on City Hall's plan to allow five types of businesses, including spas and beauty clinics, to open on Tuesday.

City Hall announced on Monday morning it allowed some places with no reports of Covid clusters to open from Tuesday, including spas and beauty clinics.

Its communicable disease committee met on Monday to consider easing Covid-19 measures for businesses. The panel decided that since the Covid clusters to date were found in communities, markets and construction workers’ camps, measures for other places should be eased to help operators.

But in the afternoon, it said the CCSA had delayed the decision by 14 days from June 1. It did not give reasons for the sudden change.

CCSA puts brakes on City Hall relaxation

[panama hat]

Jokes about rubber chickens?

Thailand's CP Foods closes poultry factory after COVID-19 found among workers

BANGKOK: Thailand's largest agribusiness firm Charoen Pokphand Foods said on Sunday (May 30) it had closed one of its factories for five days after several workers tested positive for COVID-19.
The company's poultry processing plant in Saraburi province will be shut from Sunday to Thursday, the company said in a statement. Operations at its 18 other food-processing and feed factories will remain normal, it said.

Out of 5,800 workers at the closed plant, 245 have tested positive, while others are still waiting to be tested or to receive test results, said the Saraburi provincial administration.
Thailand has reported 154,307 coronavirus cases since last year, with total casualties topping 1,000 on Sunday.
On Friday, Sri Trang Gloves also closed glove factories in Trang and Surat Thani provinces for three days from Friday, after dozens of workers tested positive.
Earlier this month, Cal-Comp Electronics Thailand closed a factory in Phetchaburi province for 14 days until this coming Thursday to stem infections among its workers.

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/business/thailand-cp-foods-closes-poultry-factory-covid-19-workers-14914894?cid=FBcna&fbclid=IwAR11yjkqJVWLKrc7I6d9cO yHBIukFtIE9VuvUDMgRwTbA-CZNW_QbEjeJF0

[HermantheGerman]

I'd suggest that symptoms such as shortness of breath, sleep disorders and 'brain fog' would be fairly common, if not almost inevitable, after any illness preceded and followed by a lengthy period of physical inactivity.

Especially if the patient is in the age group most susceptible to the COVID virus.

Nonsense!
I give you a hint:

SARS- Severe-Acute-Respiratory- Syndrome

brain fog---oxygen--Brain---Respiratory

shortness of breath---respiratory

sleep disorder--oxygen---repiratory

think you can make the connection

[HermantheGerman]

SARS-CoV-2 Severe-Acute-Respiratory- Syndrome

It takes good equipment and a well trained medical staff to operate those lung machines (medical ventilators).
They can safe or ruin your life.

[Shutree]

TBH even if it was a lab accident it's not that big a deal.

I agree. Other labs in other countries have suffered leaks, fortunately not as serious as Covid.

This really should not be a political game. Over 3 million people have died already, the world needs to know as accurately as possible what happened so that it doesn't happen again.

Maybe one good thing can come of this. There are about 3,000 labs worldwide working with viruses at the Wuhan level of risk and another 50 working with the most dangerous. Perhaps there will be some security reviews now.

[harrybarracuda]

A new naming convention for variants of the Wuhan virus. E.g., the UK variant is now Wuhan virus Alpha.

Global health leaders have announced new 'easy-to-say' names for Covid-19 variants using letters of the Greek alphabet.

Experts working with the World Health Organisation (WHO) developed the labels for variants which are often colloquially named after the places where they are first detected.

Many variants of Sars-CoV-2 - the virus that causes Covid-19 - have been identified around the world.

They include B.1.1.7, known in the UK as the Kent variant and around the world as the UK variant - but now labelled by the WHO as Alpha.

The B.1.617.2 variant, often known as the Indian variant, has been labelled Delta, while B.1.351, often referred to as the South African variant, has been named Beta.

The WHO said: "While they have their advantages, these scientific names can be difficult to say and recall, and are prone to misreporting.

"As a result, people often resort to calling variants by the places where they are detected, which is stigmatising and discriminatory.

"To avoid this and to simplify public communications, WHO encourages national authorities, media outlets and others to adopt these new labels."

Health officials hope the new names which are easy to say and remember will help public discussion, Sky News reports.

The P.1 Brazilian variant will now become Gamma, under the new naming system.

The WHO said these labels were chosen after wide consultation and a review of many naming systems.

The organisation said the labels do not replace existing scientific names, which convey important scientific information and will continue to be used in research.

UK minister backs new Covid variant names based on Greek alphabet to beat 'stigma' - Mirror Online

[panama hat]

A new naming convention for variants of the Wuhan virus. E.g., the UK variant is now Wuhan virus Alpha.

Expect the usual whiny, bitchy complaints from China

[harrybarracuda]

Expect the usual whiny, bitchy complaints from Ohoh

FTFY.

[harrybarracuda]

Canada to receive 2.9M vaccine doses this week as Pfizer-BioNTech increase deliveries

Coronavirus: Canada to receive 2.9M vaccine doses this week as Pfizer-BioNTech increase deliveries | CTV News

[harrybarracuda]

Poor old Thailand, even the Banglas have a decent vaccine!



Pfizer vaccine arrives in Dhaka

[panama hat]

Poor old Thailand, even the Banglas have a decent vaccine!



Pfizer vaccine arrives in Dhaka

NZ lags even behind Bangladesh as well now . . .

[cyrille]

Poor old Thailand

Insularity, poor English, ego-driven decisions ...Thailand did pretty well until it needed to co-ordinate with other countries.

That has shown up a lot of limitations.

Initially turning their noses up at AZ was the first sign of it.

[harrybarracuda]

Insularity, poor English, ego-driven decisions ...Thailand did pretty well until it needed to co-ordinate with other countries.

That has shown up a lot of limitations.

Initially turning their noses up at AZ was the first sign of it.

Turning their snobby little noses up at COVAX was their first terminally stupid decision.

[Shutree]

Ironically, Hong Kong has an excess of Pfizer, one friend reckons maybe 2 million doses that will expire in a few days. There is such a deep distrust of the current government that many people are refusing to cooperate, being the only way they can demonstrate their feelings.

[harrybarracuda]

Heathrow Airport has devoted an entire terminal building to arrivals into the UK from countries with an elevated risk of coronavirus.

Terminal 3 will deal exclusively with travellers from 43 countries on Britain’s red list, including India, Kenya and Brazil.

The terminal was closed in April 2020 to save money after a dramatic drop in passenger numbers caused by the Covid-19 outbreak.

Under the UK's traffic light system, people arriving from red list countries must enter into hotel quarantine for 11 nights, costing up to £1,750 ($2,480) for solo travellers.

The move was designed to protect passengers arriving from amber and green list countries from infection as they passed through the UK's busiest airport.

Passengers at the London airport had previously complained about bottlenecks after being forced to queue for up to six hours in poorly ventilated, overcrowded immigration halls. This congestion was made worse, they said, because people from red list and non red list places were mixing in close proximity.

Only British citizens or those with residency rights are allowed to enter the UK from red list countries, and must provide a recent negative Covid-19 test. Arrivals from the UAE, Qatar and Oman are required to stay in mandatory hotel quarantine.

Heathrow bosses insisted there were “several layers of protection to keep passengers and colleagues safe”, such as mandatory testing for all arrivals, segregation and ventilation.

“Red list routes will likely be a feature of UK travel for the foreseeable future as countries vaccinate their populations at different rates,” an airport representative said. “We’re adapting Heathrow to this longer-term reality.”

Heathrow plans to move its new centre for processing red list arrivals to Terminal 4 “as soon as operationally possible”.
There is mounting speculation that the red list will be expanded in the coming days.

Robert Boyle, former director of strategy at British Airways’ parent company IAG, questioned why the list had not been extended earlier amid Covid-19 variants and rising global infections.

In a blog post, he said UK ministers were under pressure from beleaguered airlines and travel companies to allow foreign holidays.

Heathrow devotes terminal to processing arrivals from red list countries | The National

[russellsimpson]

"As a result, people often resort to calling variants by the places where they are detected, which is stigmatising and discriminatory.

No it the fuck isn't.

"To avoid this and to simplify public communications, WHO encourages national authorities, media outlets and others to adopt these new labels."

F off already.

A real head shaker this baby.

[russellsimpson]

There is such a deep distrust of the current government that many people are refusing to cooperate, being the only way they can demonstrate their feelings.

That's very unfortunate indeed.

Terminal 3 will deal exclusively with travellers from 43 countries on Britain’s red list, including India, Kenya and Brazil.

“Red list routes will likely be a feature of UK travel for the foreseeable future as countries vaccinate their populations at different rates,” an airport representative said. “We’re adapting Heathrow to this longer-term reality.”

Heathrow plans to move its new centre for processing red list arrivals to Terminal 4 “as soon as operationally possible”.
There is mounting speculation that the red list will be expanded in the coming days.

So basically natives of 43 of the world's poorest countries can now, and for the forseeable future, fvck off.

[cyrille]

F off already.

A real head shaker this baby.

It's absolutely straightforward and sensible.

You on the other hand...

[tomcat]

Thai COVID-19 vaccine rollout will go ahead on time - minister



FILE PHOTO: Thai health minister Anutin Charnvirakul attends a meeting to address the measures against coronavirus in Bangkok

Tue, June 1, 2021, 6:27 PM

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand's health minister on Tuesday sought to reassure the public that a mass-immunisation programme would start as planned next week, amid anxiety over vaccine supplies and no relent in its deadliest COVID-19 outbreak yet.

Thailand is struggling to contain its current, most severe outbreak and authorities have been scrambling to secure vaccines from more manufacturers, accompanied by mixed messages about how the mass vaccinations will be carried out.

"On June 7 there will be vaccine for everyone, those that already have appointments for the vaccine will get it as scheduled," Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said.
Thailand has 6 million doses of AstraZeneca's vaccine available, among 61 million doses ordered, which are to be manufactured locally by Siam Bioscience, a company owned by Thailand's king.

A Philippine presidential adviser on Tuesday said he had been informed by AstraZenca that its first batches of a promised 17 million doses has been held up by several weeks due to delays in Thai production.

Thailand's government has made no mention of delays and AstraZeneca and Siam Bioscience did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Anutin did not specify the source of the 6 million AstraZeneca doses. The government had earlier said there would be 3 million doses of Sinovac vaccines available for the public in June.

So far, only 2.5 million of the more than 66 million population have received at least one dose of a vaccine, mostly Sinovac's.
Thailand's mass-vaccination strategy had been widely criticused for relying heavily on AstraZeneca and for a chaotic lead-up to the rollout.

Authorities recently said they would extend gaps between doses to expedite vaccinations and prioritise the capital Bangkok and surrounding provinces, raising concern about wider availability.

The government has previously said it would order 20 million doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.

Anutin on Tuesday said he was talking to Pfizer and Thailand could also order five million doses of Johnson & Johnson's vaccine for the fourth quarter of this year.
(Reporting by Panu Wongcha-um and Panarat Thepgumpanat; Editing by Martin Petty)

[harrybarracuda]

This bloke is beyond embarrassing.

[tomcat]

Americans plead for vaccines as top US diplomat visits

PUBLISHED : 2 JUN 2021 AT 19:44

WRITER: DAVE KENDALL (Bangkok Post)

US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman greets Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha at Government House on Wednesday. (Government House photo)

A group of prominent US citizens in Thailand has submitted an open letter to visiting US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman asking the US government to arrange Covid-19 vaccinations for its expatriate citizens.
“Don’t abandon us!” was the plea.

“The US continues to have a growing vaccine surplus, yet many Americans abroad are still without access to vaccines and their lives are at risk,“ said the letter, written by Democrats Abroad Thailand chair Paul Risley, Republicans Overseas Asia VP Tony Rodriguez, Veterans of Foreign Wars commander Carl Manchester and American Women’s Club of Thailand president Ambreen Miraly.

With a third wave of coronavirus proving by far the most potent — Thailand has logged a daily average of nearly 3,800 new cases and 34 deaths per day over the past week — concerns have risen over the kingdom’s slow and chaotic vaccine rollout. While more than half the US population has now received at least one dose of the vaccine, that was true for just 3.58% in Thailand by the end of May, according to Oxford University-affiliated ourworldindata.org.

The letter noted that during her talks with Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and other senior officials, the senior diplomat is likely to discuss donating surplus coronavirus vaccines in the US to Thailand. “We urge that any agreement include enough donated vaccines to cover all American citizens residing in the Kingdom,” the letter said. “The Chinese government has agreed to a similar arrangement with Thailand for its citizens as part of its vaccine donation programme.”

• 
  The letter pointed out that unlike almost all other countries, the US required its citizens to pay taxes regardless of where they live. “Overseas Americans should be afforded the same taxpayer-funded vaccines that Americans in the US are receiving now, to fulfil President Biden’s commitment that every American is eligible for a vaccination provided by the US government.”

Screenshot from COVID-19 vaccine doses administered per 100 people - Our World in Data

• 

[Norton]

The letter pointed out that unlike almost all other countries, the US required its citizens to pay taxes regardless of where they live. “Overseas Americans should be afforded the same taxpayer-funded vaccines that Americans in the US are receiving now, to fulfil President Biden’s commitment that every American is eligible for a vaccination provided by the US government.”

Of couse we should but unless there are major staff changes to rid the Embassy with it's work avoidance fuckwits services for expats will remain dismal.

So, my guess getting a jab at the Embassy will be deened to lay in the too hard box right next to income verification.

Useless bunch of messengers living large and just blah, blah, blah pretending to provide decent services to expats.