Covid 19 Part XXXV-956,720 ROI (5,952 deaths) 452,946 NI (3,002 deaths) (08/01) Read OP

23,281 cases today, 656 in hospital which is down 26 from yesterday, 85 in ICU which is 1 down on yesterday...steady as she goes.

Great article, thanks for sharing here or I wouldn't have seen it. In fairness to Daniel he's one of a very few journalists here who's not afraid to question the government/NPHET narrative. He always seems a reasonable voice when on radio shows here.

Looks like they’re clearing the decks in hospitals just in case.

and of course the inevitable staff shortage.

Just on your last point. There does seem to be a rewriting of history going on. It's made out like all unvaccinated are at risk of severe disease. Let's not forget before vaccines of you were under 30 and no under lying issues your chances of ending up in hospital was something like 1 in 10,000, that has not changed. Younger people were being pushed the vaccine under the premise that you'll be less likely to pass it to vulnerable people which doesn't seem to help now anyway.

My parents are boosted (60s) and I'm delighted they are and I'm double vaccinated but I'm in absolutely no rush to get a third, I just don't see what advantage it'll make. Apart from telling us to get a booster vaccine, have the government told us why under 40s should get it? Have they said what difference it'll make to our chances of ending up in hospital or ICU? Have they said how less likely a boosted person is to get and pass on Omnicrom as a double vaccinated person?

As far as I know in SA and the UK they were significantly lower

You can lose taste and smell with omicron, it’s just not as prolonged and not always a symptom.

Yip exactly. I remember listening to UK Radio when euros were on and hearing NHS adds that 1 in 3 won't know they have it.

For under 50s Covid was always mild illness , Omicron variant now even more so, yet people who have got omicron proclaim it's the vaccine that has saved them. I would wager they may have been same without it.

I got the booster and regretted it. Don't see the benefit to me under 40. Omicron is spreading like mad anyway and everyone I speak to describes a cold.

Anyone that questions the vaccine is "Anti-Vax" but this is nonsense. It's really getting to stage there is no clear policy from government largely as they are playing wait and see I guess. The vaccine efficacy itself is very short lived if top ups are needed after 10-12 weeks.

I'd wind up this whole booster camping now and get ready to reopen everything. Doomsdaying about long Covid is just keeping it in news cycles.

The vaccines have helped us greatly, but nature has taken over now and created a variant akin to a flu.

My children are under 5 , if they weren't I wouldn't be vaccinating them as I can't see the benefit - adults get boosters , RNA vaccine wanes and omicron infection is like cold to kids. Unless something like Novavax shows long term efficacy I don't see point of continually jabbing younger age groups.

That was the most “extreme” symptom I had, it was very minimal and taste etc all returned in a day or 2.

What’s the point in catching it to be immune to it?