Despite the clear evidence from America of states without restrictions experiencing no worse (and often better) outcomes than states with restrictions, the case for lockdowns continues to be pressed, with proponents pointing to the surges in France (which has just entered another lockdown) and across Europe, as well as in Brazil. But are things actually as bad as they’re claimed by the lockdown zealots?
Europe’s spring surge, which appears to be easing off now, has been driven in part by an increase in testing. France, for instance, has been spiking in positive cases.
But it is also ramping up testing.
The positive rate is therefore largely flat.
Covid deaths follow a similar pattern to positive cases, including the recent spike due to increased testing.
However, overall deaths (from all causes) are currently below average, suggesting the Covid deaths are mostly expected deaths and France is currently experiencing a pseudo-epidemic created by over-testing (though no doubt there is real Covid in the hospitals putting pressure on ICUs, especially in Paris).
In Sweden, positive cases have been rising sharply since February.
However, so has testing, and the positive rate is flat.
ICU admissions had a bit of an upswing during the same period, but seem to be settling now.
However, deaths are flat.
Furthermore, excess deaths (from all causes) are through the floor, hitting -18% in early March, and -8% as of March 14th.
‘Cases’ spiking but positivity flat, ICU admissions high but excess deaths negative. Smells like another pseudo-epidemic to me.
Brazil, on the other hand, is definitely suffering from a real outbreak, with both high Covid deaths and excess deaths. However, it’s a big country and it’s worth bearing in mind that its Covid mortality rate is still behind the UK’s.
Positive cases also appear to have levelled off in the last couple of weeks, suggesting it may not get much worse.
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Modern technology eh?
Are those blue/black solar voltaic installations virtuously hanging from the rear of the roof?
I think they are what we used to call, ‘lean to’s’. I know the inverted comma is wrong but it does look right.
I bloody hate those things
Most people who use them seem like lazy inconsiderate prats. No offence!
I saw one the other day go through a red light then go the wrong way round a roundabout. Insane.
Where I live they tend to be used by teenagers, mainly male ones, and they are all over the shop – roads, paths, pavements, usually looking at their phones. Ride a bloody bike you lazy sods! I’ve also seen people in London use them to walk their dogs. The dog should go on strike – if you own a dog, put the bloody miles in you lazy sod!
I use one to get to the gym and train station. Not fat, not lazy, not a prat. Just more efficient and less costly vs station parking.
Fair enough! There has to be at least one person using them who isn’t a prat – and that person would be a DS reader.
Plenty use electric bikes over here too, but it tends to be people with a longer commute and elderly people. Standard bikes are still the most commonly used. What has really surged in popularity of late are fat bikes. All the kids/teenagers seem to have them and you’d think they’re selling them off cheap or something but I suspect they’re expensive. Also the food delivery courier peeps use electric bikes, which figures, really.
*Oops, just realised the article’s about scooters and I’m on about bikes.
These flipping fat bikes are often in the news here. They’re on about bringing in a min age of 16yrs to use them and making people wear helmets. This is the age you must be to ride a moped so surely the same should apply for these things. So many accidents and kids not riding them responsibly. The thing is they don’t appeal to adults because the seats don’t adjust and they’re too low for anyone tall to ride comfortably, hence it’s always kids you see on them;
”A 4-year-old child was injured Friday evening in a collision with a fat bike. The fast electric bicycle with fat tires was ridden by a 14-year-old boy. The accident happened on Veestraat in the city center of Helmond. The victim was injured and taken to hospital.
The boy was cycling through a pedestrian area with the fat bike. His parents are held liable for the accident. The 14-year-old also receives a report for cycling in the city center. The fat bike was taken to the police station for investigation.”
https://www.omroepbrabant.nl/nieuws/4493916/kindje-4-gewond-bij-aanrijding-door-fatbike-bestuurder-is-jongen-van-14
But if you WALKED to the railway station, perhaps you wouldn’t need to visit the gym.
Sorry to have to tell you this old chap but in the UK e-scooters are illegal to use outside private land, they are motorised but do not have pedals and so cannot be insured for use as all motor vehicles must. If not used under a legal scheme agreed by a local council then the police are entitled to seize them and destroy them.
“To get to the gym” ? Seriously?
To be fair I sometimes drive to and from the station when I’m going skating – in my defence I have usually skated for several hours so at this point I’m absolutely done in and the last thing I want to do is trudge up the hill
Why don’t they just walk? It’s better for them all round!
https://off-guardian.org/2024/06/20/bird-flu-again-a-little-i-told-you-so-a-sign-of-things-to-come/
Meanwhile, it’s H5N1 again. The problem is that it is out there but nobody is getting poorly. We must increase the testing. How else can covid Mark ll be found if we don’t test?
$cience eh? It never sleeps.
B & B for those people for a while, that’s if they’re not full of dinghy divers.
Seven homes are nothing, an acceptable sacrifice to save the Planet.
I know, a row of demolished family homes is nothing compared to the blazing hellscape inferno we’ll be faced with when the climate starts to boil. E-scooters are the solution. They’ll save us.
What do you mean “when the climate starts to boil”? It has already started, you heretic.
‘The era of global warming has ended and “the era of global boiling has arrived”, the UN secretary general, António Guterres, has said after scientists confirmed July was on track to be the world’s hottest month on record.’
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/jul/27/scientists-july-world-hottest-month-record-climate-temperatures
Thankyou for that link. Had a look, and I have to say if not for the fact these words were actually uttered by a human being, it would be a brilliant parody for dramatic climate alarmism… All those pictures of burning landscapes, a road going through Death Valley, where, apparently, it’s a bit hot (who knew!), and an insistence that the air is “unbreathable”! This would be the kind of screenwriting flagged for Oscar nomination.
Climate nut jobs will tell you that petrol cars sometimes go on fire.——–These people make me sick.
Naughty German song. Foreigners Out.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8cP5wMLbzk
I don’t suppose any Just Stop Oil, Extinction Rebellion, climate catastrophists, or Chris Packham lives in any the houses. No such luck.
Perhaps they’ve got shares in the manufacturers of the batteries!
The LI battery makers fought like hell to prevent bulk transportation from being required to have and pay for hazardous material designations (US/DOT) because of the severe fire hazard.
Here ya go Tesla owners.
https://worldyturnings.com/2023/10/05/teslas/
Turned out to be quite an expensive bit of kit, then.
I wonder how long it will be before Insurance Companies are asking if you own/charge an E-Scooter, E-bike or EV from your home and ramping up the premiums if you do?
I’m no fire expert but, from the photo, doesn’t the damage seem too wide a spread for a single or even a cluster of electric batteries.
There doesn’t seem enough charing either. Why would tiles be missing but the rafters no charged or burnt.
Is the photo and the story the same incident?
Just being sceptical!
If you had to fix one of those houses you would realise how bad, but starting again would probably be cheaper.
I agree but the picture does not suggest for damage.
The joys of net zero
The main problem with electric vehicles are the batteries. This technology has not changed much in over 100 years. Improvements have been made, of course, but the whole concept of using a chemical reaction to store energy has hit a brick wall in any major development breakthrough. The electric vehicle today is an engineering marvel that is powered by 100 year old toxic technology. It is only this limitation in energy storage that has prevented electric vehicle’s natural popularity. It is the political interference in the natural system that is pushing the whole concept before the technology is actually ready. These battery fires are just one result of pushing the technology before it is ready. There will be many other downsides with outcomes much worse than fires. Hopefully Toyota’s so called solid state battery will actually work as they claim. I, for one, doubt it.