A thread about some of the worst takes on Covid, from UK pundits.

Herd immunity is the strategy: https://twitter.com/Peston/status/1238030855584526336">https://twitter.com/Peston/st...
It& #39;s vital to stop Coronavirus: https://twitter.com/Peston/status/1238038497052762113">https://twitter.com/Peston/st...
But wait - maybe herd immunity isn& #39;t such a good idea after all? https://twitter.com/Peston/status/1243081185485557761">https://twitter.com/Peston/st...
If only somebody could have foreseen: https://twitter.com/Peston/status/1251633885252902914">https://twitter.com/Peston/st...
Oh, wait - they did: https://twitter.com/Peston/status/1251633883650678786">https://twitter.com/Peston/st...
Thankfully, the government eschewed the populist measures, of trying to stop people catching Covid. https://twitter.com/BethRigby/status/1238258292167761921">https://twitter.com/BethRigby...
Nobody wants to be populist, like Italy, and impose a lockdown. https://twitter.com/Peston/status/1236739529303830530">https://twitter.com/Peston/st...
The PM was ignoring public opinion, and listening to experts. https://twitter.com/tnewtondunn/status/1238155947526283265">https://twitter.com/tnewtondu...
Experts who thought we didn& #39;t need to act decisively. https://twitter.com/Channel4News/status/1238573667002523648">https://twitter.com/Channel4N...
Along with experts who thought we should carry on as normal: https://twitter.com/10DowningStreet/status/1237760980450451456">https://twitter.com/10Downing...
And they were scientists - not people with humanities degrees: https://twitter.com/JenWilliamsMEN/status/1238460251508297733">https://twitter.com/JenWillia...
Let alone hipsters: https://twitter.com/ayeshahazarika/status/1238460692614844416">https://twitter.com/ayeshahaz...
Or Daves from Wigan: https://twitter.com/haveigotnews/status/1238435204160684034">https://twitter.com/haveigotn...
There& #39;s always one person who insists on being different, of course.

Naturally, the responses in the thread under that tweet are a haven of critical thought. https://twitter.com/BBCPolitics/status/1239257257466122247">https://twitter.com/BBCPoliti...
But what is herd immunity?

A helpful explainer: https://twitter.com/DPJHodges/status/1238788830389510144">https://twitter.com/DPJHodges...
Just in case that& #39;s not clear enough: https://twitter.com/mrjamesob/status/1238384706984579072">https://twitter.com/mrjamesob...
Oh wait. https://twitter.com/mrjamesob/status/1242023901808525312">https://twitter.com/mrjamesob...
Up until that point, the government were hamstrung by their own simple love of freedom. https://twitter.com/jimwaterson/status/1241307428693643266">https://twitter.com/jimwaters...
Better late than never, I suppose.

And besides, who could have predicted where ignoring a pandemic might lead? https://twitter.com/BBCNewsnight/status/1245107871362224132">https://twitter.com/BBCNewsni...
Alright, well, people did predict it. https://twitter.com/amateuradam/status/1236733713129639940">https://twitter.com/amateurad...
But in a way, can it not be said that the government are blameless, and we, the people, are really at fault? https://twitter.com/Freedland/status/1241705298668240896">https://twitter.com/Freedland...
Surprisingly, it also transpired that chronic underfunding of the health service wasn& #39;t such a good idea, after all. https://twitter.com/paulwaugh/status/1241135446756921346">https://twitter.com/paulwaugh...
There was no shortage of rigorous journalism, however, to ensure that the government would be held to account: https://twitter.com/JenWilliamsMEN/status/1238181488971206657">https://twitter.com/JenWillia...
Completely missed it: https://twitter.com/KevinASchofield/status/1244186031752175616">https://twitter.com/KevinASch...
Even though he tweeted about watching it: https://twitter.com/KevinASchofield/status/1238497938617307136">https://twitter.com/KevinASch...
I, too, would only wish to be kept alive as long as nobody says anything good about Cuba. https://twitter.com/jamesrbuk/status/1242011143499059201">https://twitter.com/jamesrbuk...
Yes, it was undoubtedly Johnson being too liberal, rather than too incompetent, which was at issue here. https://twitter.com/youngvulgarian/status/1241776147744141318">https://twitter.com/youngvulg...
Still, even if journalists were unwilling to be critical of the government, at least Opposition MPs were robust: https://twitter.com/LucyMPowell/status/1239125208742662145">https://twitter.com/LucyMPowe...
A government MP, fearlessly holding the Opposition to account: https://twitter.com/JEGullis/status/1239298847999954945">https://twitter.com/JEGullis/...
On the one hand: https://twitter.com/DPJHodges/status/1237015466754916358">https://twitter.com/DPJHodges...
On the other: https://twitter.com/dpjhodges/status/1248239870478344192?lang=en">https://twitter.com/dpjhodges...
If memory serves, this had been posted in response to Matt Hancock giving a GMB interview, and blaming doctors/nurses for their own shortages of PPE. https://twitter.com/mrjamesob/status/1242008040146157568">https://twitter.com/mrjamesob...
The real heroes of the Covid crisis?

Doctors https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="❌" title="Kreuzzeichen" aria-label="Emoji: Kreuzzeichen">
Nurses https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="❌" title="Kreuzzeichen" aria-label="Emoji: Kreuzzeichen">
Carers https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="❌" title="Kreuzzeichen" aria-label="Emoji: Kreuzzeichen">
Retail staff https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="❌" title="Kreuzzeichen" aria-label="Emoji: Kreuzzeichen">
Journalists https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="✅" title="Fettes weißes Häkchen" aria-label="Emoji: Fettes weißes Häkchen"> https://twitter.com/fleetstreetfox/status/1248883484807942144">https://twitter.com/fleetstre...
Multiply it by 10, and it would still fall short. https://twitter.com/FraserNelson/status/1243266492063461376">https://twitter.com/FraserNel...
People who suggested this assessment might be wide of the mark were & #39;whitesplaining& #39;. https://twitter.com/sunny_hundal/status/1238799198293803010">https://twitter.com/sunny_hun...
NHS staff were asking for PPE, an end to the ongoing pay-freeze, and where applicable, not to be deported; but okay. https://twitter.com/BBCNews/status/1256205212248870913">https://twitter.com/BBCNews/s...
The Daily Mail - caring about some students, slightly more than others: https://twitter.com/ianvisits/status/1261189008358625286">https://twitter.com/ianvisits...
The last thing anyone wants is the government being held to account, for leaving thousands of people to die needlessly.

I mean, suggest there& #39;s room for improvement, sure - but let& #39;s not go too far. https://twitter.com/JohnRentoul/status/1247565360431280140">https://twitter.com/JohnRento...
Sadness in his eyes: https://twitter.com/KayBurley/status/1254714254638399488">https://twitter.com/KayBurley...
That wasn& #39;t even the most gauche bit of sycophancy: https://twitter.com/MattChorley/status/1254687034381344769">https://twitter.com/MattChorl...
Various people claiming they couldn& #39;t comprehend why the government-supporting media were not highlighting the death-toll.

I don& #39;t understand. https://twitter.com/jamesrbuk/status/1248713400588304384">https://twitter.com/jamesrbuk...
I don& #39;t understand. https://twitter.com/mrjamesob/status/1248878684670431232">https://twitter.com/mrjamesob...
I cannot understand. https://twitter.com/Sathnam/status/1248645532488216576">https://twitter.com/Sathnam/s...
Difficult to understand. https://twitter.com/IanDunt/status/1248507528322977792">https://twitter.com/IanDunt/s...
I mean, really, this stuff is just twitter. It& #39;s not even including all the terrible articles: https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/corbyn-should-be-ashamed-of-his-coronavirus-point-scoring">https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/c...
Corbyn should be ashamed of his coronavirus point scoring | The Spectator

So there I was being non-partisan by praising the Labour party for its generally mature response to the coronavirus crisis when clearly I should have been putting this down to Jeremy Corbyn’s erratic...

https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/corbyn-should-be-ashamed-of-his-coronavirus-point-scoring
If there was one person responsible for the actions and failures of Boris Johnson, it was Jeremy Corbyn. https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/health/2020/03/labour-jeremy-corbyn-response-coronavirus-criticised">https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/...
How should opposition parties respond to the coronavirus crisis?

The tug-and-pull between opposition and government must serve its purest democratic aim: to genuinely improve government policy, rather than simply undermining it. 

https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/health/2020/03/labour-jeremy-corbyn-response-coronavirus-criticised
You can still go to the park. https://twitter.com/10DowningStreet/status/1246779210410143746">https://twitter.com/10Downing...
Don& #39;t go to the park.

(These were posted the same day). https://twitter.com/10DowningStreet/status/1246807303975620609">https://twitter.com/10Downing...
That worked out well.

Thank goodness there& #39;s simply no downside to uncritically-regurgitated press briefings. https://twitter.com/tnewtondunn/status/1237066180126486529">https://twitter.com/tnewtondu...
One from the US.

28th February - no need to worry, folks. https://www.bloombergquint.com/gadfly/coronavirus-panic-caused-by-probability-neglect">https://www.bloombergquint.com/gadfly/co...
The Cognitive Bias That Makes Us Panic About Coronavirus

The Cognitive Bias That Makes Us Panic About Coronavirus

https://www.bloombergquint.com/gadfly/coronavirus-panic-caused-by-probability-neglect
26th March - same author/outlet: https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2020-03-26/coronavirus-lockdowns-look-smart-under-cost-benefit-scrutiny">https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/a...
This Time the Numbers Show We Can’t Be Too Careful

Hard-headed cost-benefit analysis usually confirms that it’s dangerous to be overcautious. The coronavirus is different.

https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2020-03-26/coronavirus-lockdowns-look-smart-under-cost-benefit-scrutiny
I& #39;m going to leave this overlong thread there.

But it& #39;s maybe worth bearing in mind how the relationship between journalists and politicians played out, in the midst of a pandemic. And whether lives might have been lost avoidably, in consequence.
Bloody Corbyn - trying to keep people alive, the bastard. https://twitter.com/mattchorley/status/1238436625782276097?lang=en">https://twitter.com/mattchorl...
Bold prediction. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-51858987">https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-5...
Three reasons why the UK might not look like Italy

Boris Johnson's chief scientific adviser says the UK is four weeks behind Italy, What does that mean?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-51858987
Perhaps the REAL virus was social media? https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/11162290/coronavirus-social-media-cheap-shots-boris-johnson/">https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/1116...
The Coronavirus crisis is NOT the time for cheap shots at Boris Johnson

TRUST. It’s all we have in the middle of the type of international crisis we are currently facing. Trust in our leaders. Trust in our medical professionals. Trust in our scientists. Trust in our me…

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/11162290/coronavirus-social-media-cheap-shots-boris-johnson/
The URL was more accurate than the article. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/03/13/questioning-governments-coronavirus-strategy-not-wrong-danger/">https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020...
Those questioning the government's coronavirus strategy are not only wrong, they're a danger to the...

In 2019 – before the outbreak of coronavirus began – a global survey found that around 20 per cent of people believed that vaccination against disease not only didn’t work, but in fact was actively...

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/03/13/questioning-governments-coronavirus-strategy-not-wrong-danger/
Thank goodness journalists worked tirelessly to hold the worried public, and a critical opposition, to account.

People not abiding by confusing, contradictory, and badly publicised instructions? The electorate must resign at once.
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