I know this post will bring me a lot of stick but I had an interesting skype conversation with my good ladyfriend Laura and her fiance Michiel last night.
We’ve all had plans that we’ve had to cancel haven't we?
Myself, Lau and Michiel are no exception. They were planning to get hitched on April 20th this year and I was honoured that they asked me to act as both best man for him and ‘man of honour’ to her. Initially, I thought man..maid...man of honour?? Will I have to wear some sort of half-suit, half-dress combination while standing in the middle of them both?? :?
Thankfully, that’s not the case... so I’ll be going with the full dress. :lol:
Sorry, I’m digressing already.
Anyway, their wedding plans are scuppered and now they’re both technically back at work. They both work for Dutch national airline KLM. He’s a pilot and she’s a pursor. Michiel just completed his final flight for the time being as KLM have paused using their Airbus fleet (he's not qualified to fly Boeing) but Lau is still expected to fly on her rostered flights on the Boeing planes and frankly I’m really concerned for her. She flies a quick turnaround to LA this coming Tuesday.
She has a wonderfully positive, loyal and dutiful approach to her job having worked for KLM for some 20 years and I know she’s perhaps subduing her own concerns from us. A lot of cabin crew (understandably) have called in sick to avoid flying as both the union and KLM have provided them with inadequate non-encompassing guidelines or training about how to interact with both outbound and incoming passengers on these flights. There are some measures in place like blocking the aisle seats from being used to maintain a distance, they have basic ‘virus spec’ masks and gloves but the rest is being interpreted on an individual basis and imo the level of protection is not on the same level as front-line medical staff in hospitals but the conditions are similar if not more risky due to being in such a confined space for a long time. Anyone who is a virus-carrier who is pre- or a-symptomatic on that flight will have a high liklihood of infecting others.
Lau will obviously be looked to for guidance by her crew and bless her she’s been doing all the research and fact-finding she can given the circumstances. I really hope she doesn’t contract this horrible virus. She's my best friend and I don't want to lose her.
I’m still not onto my main subject, sorry, but here goes at last, lol.
Our skype conversation got onto how and what kind of people are most susceptible to the virus once it infects and develops into disease/illness and we all more or less concluded that Darwin was indeed right about natural selection and only the strongest of the species surviving etc. Nature is wielding a heavy fist at the moment. (Religious people who believe this is God's or Allah's or whoevers 'way', you are free to leave this thread now, there's the door at the back...)
Anyone who doesn't understand or accept the Darwin theory just look at any David Attenborough wildlife documentary where herd-migration is covered and you will see a graphic display of Darwinian theory in action! The weakest, smallest or compromised wildebeest gets picked off by the crocs and tigers first!
But let’s consider the cause of why various echelons of human society are more susceptible before we start looking at the effects of a previously unknown virus and how it can ravage a particular species. Of course we know people with a compromised immune system are more susceptible - cancer patients, people who have had organ-replacements, those with hereditary diseases or otherwise. Those people sadly have an unavoidable and lower liklihood of surving Covid19-induced illness and that's tragic of course.
!Warning! Here's the contentious bit I was alluding to at the beginning....
I understand (from more than one unofficial source) that in some countries and maybe also in the UK ventilators are now being prioritised to be given to young people with emerging but serious symptoms rather than over-70's with prolonged symptoms. Maybe someone in the know can clarify that fact (?)
If that's indeed true then it's particularly galling and tragic that smokers with smoking-related diseases and eating-related obese people will be prioritised over others. This is the bit where I will probably come in for some stick but you know, so be it! Sorry if you have an eating-related obesity condition after you've been stuffing your face with BigMacs and other poison everyday for the last 10 years and your BMI is in triple figures or you are an emphysemic wreck from smoking 40 a day but you people are not worthy! You made a conscious decision to compromise your own health as well as creating a risk for frontline healthworkers and therefore, you should be justifiably de-prioritised.
I'm just speaking my mind and being honest here. I and others I know resent these people from causing others to be prevented or de-prioritised from receiving medical help from covid in a time where other more-deserving people need help.
Just to clarify - I have absolutely NOTHING against people classified as obese due to non-food related health issues - those people have just as much right to receive help as the rest of us. But people who live on doughnuts and people who smoke; you fkrs can get right to the back of the line!
It seems I'm not the only one to highlight this fact as here in NL a doctor reported that his IC unit was dominated by obese people. You'd never see this reported in the politically over-correct UK media but here, you can get away with speaking freely about such things it would seem.
https://www.dutchnews.nl/news/2020/03/coronavirus-death-toll-rises-obese-corona-patients-dominate-in-intensive-care/
I was taking a breather at the side of the road on my bike the other day while 2 large... fk it, let's call a spade a spade... 2 fat b@stards walking away from the serving window of a snackbar laden with bags of fastfood came walking passed me.
One of them coughed without covering his mouth - both hands were otherwise occupied you see.
I as well as others around me who saw him went ballistic. His response; 'yeah yeah, whatever'.
I totally regret not getting off my bike and lamping him! I hope he gets covid and dies. I sincerely do. I have no regrets about thinking that at all I'm afraid.
14 years ago I was laid up in ICU for 3 months with Pericarditis, assumed to have been contracted virally - probably by someone openly coughing their germs into my space. I'll never get that time back and I was lucky to survive it.
Am I on my own here or does anyone agree with my derision about these entitled fkrs?
I'm not trying to whip up any form of hatred or discrimination and I'm sorry if anyone takes offence at this post - that's genuinely not my intention.
I'm just angry that 1000's of healthcare workers are being put at undue risk of infection by people who have made a conscious decision to compromise their own health and ergo their immune systems.
We’ve all had plans that we’ve had to cancel haven't we?
Myself, Lau and Michiel are no exception. They were planning to get hitched on April 20th this year and I was honoured that they asked me to act as both best man for him and ‘man of honour’ to her. Initially, I thought man..maid...man of honour?? Will I have to wear some sort of half-suit, half-dress combination while standing in the middle of them both?? :?
Thankfully, that’s not the case... so I’ll be going with the full dress. :lol:
Sorry, I’m digressing already.
Anyway, their wedding plans are scuppered and now they’re both technically back at work. They both work for Dutch national airline KLM. He’s a pilot and she’s a pursor. Michiel just completed his final flight for the time being as KLM have paused using their Airbus fleet (he's not qualified to fly Boeing) but Lau is still expected to fly on her rostered flights on the Boeing planes and frankly I’m really concerned for her. She flies a quick turnaround to LA this coming Tuesday.
She has a wonderfully positive, loyal and dutiful approach to her job having worked for KLM for some 20 years and I know she’s perhaps subduing her own concerns from us. A lot of cabin crew (understandably) have called in sick to avoid flying as both the union and KLM have provided them with inadequate non-encompassing guidelines or training about how to interact with both outbound and incoming passengers on these flights. There are some measures in place like blocking the aisle seats from being used to maintain a distance, they have basic ‘virus spec’ masks and gloves but the rest is being interpreted on an individual basis and imo the level of protection is not on the same level as front-line medical staff in hospitals but the conditions are similar if not more risky due to being in such a confined space for a long time. Anyone who is a virus-carrier who is pre- or a-symptomatic on that flight will have a high liklihood of infecting others.
Lau will obviously be looked to for guidance by her crew and bless her she’s been doing all the research and fact-finding she can given the circumstances. I really hope she doesn’t contract this horrible virus. She's my best friend and I don't want to lose her.
I’m still not onto my main subject, sorry, but here goes at last, lol.
Our skype conversation got onto how and what kind of people are most susceptible to the virus once it infects and develops into disease/illness and we all more or less concluded that Darwin was indeed right about natural selection and only the strongest of the species surviving etc. Nature is wielding a heavy fist at the moment. (Religious people who believe this is God's or Allah's or whoevers 'way', you are free to leave this thread now, there's the door at the back...)
Anyone who doesn't understand or accept the Darwin theory just look at any David Attenborough wildlife documentary where herd-migration is covered and you will see a graphic display of Darwinian theory in action! The weakest, smallest or compromised wildebeest gets picked off by the crocs and tigers first!
But let’s consider the cause of why various echelons of human society are more susceptible before we start looking at the effects of a previously unknown virus and how it can ravage a particular species. Of course we know people with a compromised immune system are more susceptible - cancer patients, people who have had organ-replacements, those with hereditary diseases or otherwise. Those people sadly have an unavoidable and lower liklihood of surving Covid19-induced illness and that's tragic of course.
!Warning! Here's the contentious bit I was alluding to at the beginning....
I understand (from more than one unofficial source) that in some countries and maybe also in the UK ventilators are now being prioritised to be given to young people with emerging but serious symptoms rather than over-70's with prolonged symptoms. Maybe someone in the know can clarify that fact (?)
If that's indeed true then it's particularly galling and tragic that smokers with smoking-related diseases and eating-related obese people will be prioritised over others. This is the bit where I will probably come in for some stick but you know, so be it! Sorry if you have an eating-related obesity condition after you've been stuffing your face with BigMacs and other poison everyday for the last 10 years and your BMI is in triple figures or you are an emphysemic wreck from smoking 40 a day but you people are not worthy! You made a conscious decision to compromise your own health as well as creating a risk for frontline healthworkers and therefore, you should be justifiably de-prioritised.
I'm just speaking my mind and being honest here. I and others I know resent these people from causing others to be prevented or de-prioritised from receiving medical help from covid in a time where other more-deserving people need help.
Just to clarify - I have absolutely NOTHING against people classified as obese due to non-food related health issues - those people have just as much right to receive help as the rest of us. But people who live on doughnuts and people who smoke; you fkrs can get right to the back of the line!
It seems I'm not the only one to highlight this fact as here in NL a doctor reported that his IC unit was dominated by obese people. You'd never see this reported in the politically over-correct UK media but here, you can get away with speaking freely about such things it would seem.
https://www.dutchnews.nl/news/2020/03/coronavirus-death-toll-rises-obese-corona-patients-dominate-in-intensive-care/
I was taking a breather at the side of the road on my bike the other day while 2 large... fk it, let's call a spade a spade... 2 fat b@stards walking away from the serving window of a snackbar laden with bags of fastfood came walking passed me.
One of them coughed without covering his mouth - both hands were otherwise occupied you see.
I as well as others around me who saw him went ballistic. His response; 'yeah yeah, whatever'.
I totally regret not getting off my bike and lamping him! I hope he gets covid and dies. I sincerely do. I have no regrets about thinking that at all I'm afraid.
14 years ago I was laid up in ICU for 3 months with Pericarditis, assumed to have been contracted virally - probably by someone openly coughing their germs into my space. I'll never get that time back and I was lucky to survive it.
Am I on my own here or does anyone agree with my derision about these entitled fkrs?
I'm not trying to whip up any form of hatred or discrimination and I'm sorry if anyone takes offence at this post - that's genuinely not my intention.
I'm just angry that 1000's of healthcare workers are being put at undue risk of infection by people who have made a conscious decision to compromise their own health and ergo their immune systems.
:roll:
Liverpool
