Relaxation of Restrictions, Part XII *Read OP For Mod Warnings*

Penfailed

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117972783#Comment_117972783

Control? Spitefully punish? Nah.

is_that_so

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117971479#Comment_117971479

Not something I spend my 2m thinking about, I just go in and out with my mask without the intermittent bouts of rage. The answer at present from a public health perspective is the level of control, via numbers and pubs and gyms have a way to track anyone using them. Shops also have a whole lot more throughflow. We'll see what happens after 22 October, especially with distancing going. My guess is the only advice that may remain is optional/personal responsibility for masks for transport.

is_that_so

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117972783#Comment_117972783

They will go. Other countries are using them to force up vaccination rates, something we've already achieved, so their continued use here makes no sense.

seamus

Covid passes will be gone one way or another. Went to a restaurant a month ago. They scanned the covid passes, checked ID, whole shebang. Went to a pub and a restaurant this weekend, and both asked everyone if they had a pass and then just waved us on in without any serious check.

At this stage, vaccination is so ubiquitous that I'd say businesses are browned off checking for certs when they virtually never encounter anyone without one.

So even in the very unlikely event that they keep covid passes, they will effectively go away because nobody will be checking for them. Enforcement is not a Garda matter, and the HSE are not going to be sending inspectors on sorties around the country when 90%+ of eligible people are fully vaxxed.

leahyl

Went out for dinner last night - never asked for the cert. went to the same restaurant about a month and a half ago and they asked me. I’d say most places have given up at this stage, only 3 weeks to go!

Nyero

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117971589#Comment_117971589

Lol!

Somebody said something that was incorrect.

Somebody corrected them.

About 3 days later you are still in meltdown over it deflecting like a lunatic and throwing tantrums instead of admitting your error and moving on.

Nobody agrees with you.

Fascinating to watch.

bear1

I'd honestly rather have my covid pass checked than have to wear the mask.

Given the choice of the two, the pass is my least cared about.

The amount of times I've gone to the shop thinking the mask was either in my jacket pocket or the car to find I've neither and end up heading back home to get it. Gets on my tits.

But with 18 days to go, I really can't see masks making it passed December. If they at least said "get winter passed and they are gone" then you could stick at it another few months.

jackal

Went to the pub a few days ago and weren’t asked for passes, where as several weeks ago they were not doing indoor seating at all. Now it’s ‘Just grab a table lads’. It’s nice to be getting back to normality.

Agreed with the above it is a gigantic waste of time now checking passes with such a high uptake. Saw some poor lad in Mc Donald’s having to do the passes at a busy Saturday lunchtime with a queue out the door and you do just wonder what’s the point at this stage.

I don’t have a major problem with masks but it’s mostly theatre now in certain settings. Stand up, put on a mask for 10 seconds while you walk out the door of the pub/coffee shop … will be glad to see that rubbish dropped. At least with the shops and bus you wear it for the duration and it makes some kind of sense.

Given how cautious the govt are I expect to see the mask bits persist into next spring. Wonder how long they will remain for international travel/airports/planes.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117970656#Comment_117970656

That's interesting. I never thought I'd be looking to emigrate because of masks. But masks will be high on my list of considerations when it comes to choosing a country to emigrate to and live in. I think they're the worst thing in the world. I know a lot of people don't mind them, but I just can't stand them.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117972783#Comment_117972783

I think you're right. Or if they go there will be the constant threat of their being reintroduced (like in Israel). France want to extend their use until next summer: French government to give itself powers to extend COVID health pass to summer 2022 | Euronews

Every day I pinch myself wondering is all this actually happening. I read this article the other day: Pubs, travel and masks: The freedoms we may NEVER get back after Covid-19 | Daily Mail Online

I was just horrified at and by what I was reading. Imagine an unelected scientist or professor deciding how millions of people live their lives. You don't have to imagine it because it's happening. Would the people of Australia be happy with years of restrictions, I wonder.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117973291#Comment_117973291

It still horrifies me how few people actually read what they link before forming a view on that.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117973317#Comment_117973317

I did read the article. Okay, it's a group of scientists from Melbourne, but my point is that they are unelected and yet they are coming out with statements about how they want millions of people to live their lives for years to come.

Mitch Connor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117973522#Comment_117973522

You are unelected and you are giving your opinion on how people should live their lives.

is_that_so

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117973291#Comment_117973291

What Israel, France Australia do has no bearing on us. Not sure why you're getting so fussed about the French thing. It's more a case of planning for a scenario they hope they don't encounter and no harm to have it on the books. As a measure it has been pretty successful for them and questions of civil liberties aside a far less onerous option than other restrictions. That said it may be a bit pointless if they get to this stage where they do have over 80% vaccinated.

Our own SI is a temporary measure and IIRC is due to expire fairly soon. even if it is extended you could quite easily see an outcome similar to MHQ where it's scrapped overnight.

charlie14

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117973110#Comment_117973110

Well at least it got you out of your doom and gloom moaning world. Even if I suspect it will only be very temporary.

Mention of doom and gloom moaning, the economy despite all such moaning predictions is doing extraordinarily well is it not ?

In fact it have been outperforming practically every other country throughout this pandemic at all stages has it not ?.

Red Silurian

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117973266#Comment_117973266

One thing to consider when choosing a country to emigrate to, masks weren't mandated anywhere on Earth in 2019 so just because they aren't mandated now doesn't mean they won't be in future

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117973554#Comment_117973554

I'm not in the media every other day talking about masks forever, or calling for vaccine passports, or indefinite social distancing. I haven't controlled the lives of millions of people for close to two years. I haven't banned people from restaurants, cafés etc. I'm not writing reports about years of restrictions.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117973629#Comment_117973629

I would feel a lot better if they made vaccine passports illegal. That's what many governors in the US did.

And the point about France is that it is just like 'two weeks to flatten the curve'. It was said to be temporary and now they're talking about summer 2022. And then it'll probably be 'just until spring 2022 so we can get through winter'.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117974330#Comment_117974330

That is a problem all right.

is_that_so

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117974404#Comment_117974404

Yeah, I can't say that referencing US politicians and what they do is necessarily any kind of good example! They won’t make them illegal anyway they'll just scrap them in due course.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117974290#Comment_117974290

Do you mean to say that shutting down society for a year or more resulted in no damage to the economy? It's actually a genuine question.

Red Silurian

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117974423#Comment_117974423

Still, you can't live your life wondering when the next thing that will make you want to emigrate rears it's head

Nyero

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117974290#Comment_117974290

There you go again "doom and gloom moaning"

The only one in a tantrum is you. All anybody has done is correct you in your error and your riposte is always "oh but the economy is doing so well" and "doom and gloom merchant"

You could just agree that we ere in recession, and move on.

charlie14

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117974555#Comment_117974555

In fairness you have been a bit of a doom and gloom merchant and whether you wish to acknowledge it or not. there have been a lot of doom and gloom moaning on the economy which has been wrong throughout all stages of this pandemic where it has outperformed all and sundry

charlie14

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117974432#Comment_117974432

During a pandemic economies are not going to continue unaffected no matter what approach you follow and ours under the measures we used performed better than practically everywhere throughout this pandemic and is now predicted to continue to do so. There may have been other ways to go that would have been resulted in an even better performance,, but to date I have seen none that used a different approach and achieved that.

PTH2009

https://theliberal.ie/early-christmas-gift-idea-you-can-now-buy-a-dr-tony-holohan-portrait-for-only-e130-00/

Why

bear1

I can't think of a better way to waste 130 euro.

Oh I know, 130 euro of cow excrement.

JP100

That's certainly one way to get case numbers down. Stop testing close contacts in schools and lo and behold we hit less that a 1000 case for the first time since (yep you guessed it! - since July when the schools were also closed!).

DebDynamite

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117973123#Comment_117973123

Yeah, competely agree with you there. I know the reason I was so keen to get the vaccine was so we could all get away from restrictions and start to live normally again. Pretty much got the vaccine to allow us to ditch the masks, but there’s no mention whatsoever of them in them going anywhere in retail settings.

A friend was up North at the weekend and said mask weren’t compulsory in shops there. I was actually surprised to hear that. Really what is the point in keeping them here? But yes, the vulnerability and the elderly, but we will always have vulnerable and elderly. They’re getting their boosters right now. Are they now more protected thank ever so? If we wait until next Spring of Summer, will their immunity from the vaccine have waned by then? Should we just wear masks forever so? Have to wear them every winter for the rest of our lives?

stephenjmcd

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117976047#Comment_117976047

Your friend was wrong by the way, in NI its still mandatory to wear masks in retail. What the enforcement is like I've no idea, not been up there in a while.