1,610 Deaths - On With The Denial

We in the UK are, as alleged Prime Minister Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson likes to tell us, world beating. And in the case of the Coronavirus pandemic, he has been proved right in spades, with the death toll officially at the 90,000 mark, and the actual number of deaths, when those dying after 28 days of a positive test are included, in excess of 100,000. And yet the denial merchants continue shamelessly on.

1,610 more deaths were recorded yesterday. This was a new record one-day total. It was as if six Lockerbie bombings had happened at once. Or 17 Hillsborough stadium disasters. Or more than 14 Harrow and Wealdstone rail crashes (the last rail accident to claim more than 100 passengers’ lives). Or something more deadly than the sinking of RMS Titanic.

Yet not only has there been little media attention paid to this grim news - the daily death toll having been bad for some days now - but those who have peddled irresponsible nonsense about the pandemic have not missed a beat, continuing to pump out misinformation while seeking to direct blame elsewhere. 1,610 deaths, remember.

The grim number (did I mention it was 1,610 deaths, a new daily record?) can be explained very easily: Bozo relaxed household mixing rules for Christmas. Count the time for infections to occur, positive Covid-19 test results to be confirmed, symptoms to worsen, hospitalisations to occur, condition of patients to deteriorate, and there you are. Dead.

Was this now time for the denial mob to stop? As if you need to ask. Enter the loathsome Toby Young, accompanied by no self awareness whatsoever. “Today’s update on Lockdown Sceptics is here. Includes a look at the wildly inaccurate predictions of the lockdown zealots about the risks of mixing over Christmas - it caused no uptick in infections - and a moving plea from a depressed university student”. There are no words.

1,610 deaths. But no uptick here guv, honest. And Tobes is not alone: over at the increasingly desperate and downmarket Telegraph, they’re at it too. “In a new episode of 'Planet Normal' [Liam Halligan] and [Allison Pearson] interview [MP Graham Brady] who says lockdown causes as much harm as it solves and restrictions should be lifted once the top four 'at risk' groups are vaccinated”. Lift restrictions. What could possibly go wrong?

It’s true that pushback against the so-called Lockdown Sceptics has increased. But there are, in turn, those willing to defend them. Like the beings from the planet Spiked. “We’ve had three lockdowns and Covid is still spreading. Yet instead of questioning the efficacy of lockdown, the media elites are witch-hunting lockdown sceptics, blaming them for everything. The intellectual dishonesty is staggering, says Brendan O’Neill”. Ri-i-ight.

Lockdowns, let us not drive this around the houses for too long, reduce transmission of the virus. That in turn brings down the number of infections, which in turn reduces the number of hospitalisations. AND DEATHS. Yes, Bozo and his pals are beyond inept in delaying their introduction when they are needed. But the behaviour of people like Tobes, Brendan O’Neill, Allison Pearson (and not forgetting their hangers-on) is beyond the pale.

It’s not just scepticism. It’s not just “having a debate”. It’s not just FREEZE PEACH. It’s thousands upon thousands of deaths. It’s about a pandemic made worse by a tsunami of misinformation. 1,610 dead. And damn every one of these selfish imbeciles to hell.

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