Huntergreed said:
In order for the pandemic to end, we need to reach a state of herd immunity, this is when a sufficient % of the population are immune to the point where transmission falls and the virus dies out in the community. For this virus, this is estimated to be 60%, and the current estimate for the % of the population who have the virus is 5%. We cannot possibly eliminate this virus, so driving cases down essentially means the pandemic will last longer as it will take longer for the virus to spread through the population before it achieves herd immunity.
On top of this, the damage to businesses that the lockdown is causing, the damage to mental health and the economy this is causing, and the deaths from other causes must be considered.
We cannot stay in a state of fear forever where a day out to the beach is declared a local emergency.
'Herd immunity' by letting the virus spread through the population is a fallacy. There's absolutely zero proof at the moment that people can't get the virus twice, or three, four, or five times. There have been numerous cases around the world of people testing positive for the virus twice, after initially recovering from it. Even if people get immunity initially, the level of immunity could vary from person to person, and no one knows how long immunity will last. And there's also the long term health implications for people who've recovered from the virus. Formerly super fit and healthy people are reporting suffering crippling fatigue and breathlessness months after being infected, and scarring of the lungs could last for life. Letting the virus run unchecked through the population is beyond irresponsible. Herd immunity will only truly be achieved by an strong and effective vaccine.
And people who say 'well the BLM protests happened, VE Day happened' these were all outdoor gatherings in hot and sunny weather. It's well known the virus is quickly destroyed by heat and light. My initial post about the beach gatherings today is about the fact that the UK/Westminster government is letting people use their 'common sense' from now on. The images from beaches today show the vast majority of the public do not possess common sense. It's when indoor gatherings are allowed that the virus will start spreading again, especially into the autumn and winter. The 1m+ rule (whatever that means) will quickly be forgotten, especially where alcohol is involved. Pubs will become virus hotspots.
So my answer to this thread is 'yes', the government does know how people behave, and it's ready to abdicate responsibility for it's decision making as soon as cases start rising again. Can anyone point out an example to me of when the UK government has admitted it's mistakes over the last 4 months? There's been plenty of them to choose from.