I think everyone's pretty angry, scared and frustrated at the moment. People have concerns, for their family, friends and themselves. Aside from health risks, which absolutely is the most serious, we are also dealing with the biggest change to our way of life since the second World War. It's an ever changing situation that we're still all coming to terms with and that brings with it separate challenges to mental and physical well-being.
During the summer it felt like there was light at the end of the tunnel, but things have got a little darker again recently and it's really worrying now to think about what the winter might look like.
There have been severe failings in decision making and communication throughout the pandemic. Which now leads people to question all the decisions being made. When you hear that the SAGE advice for a circuit break lockdown was ignored after everything else we've been through, its pretty hard not to worry about the decisions the government are making on our behalf.
I suspect the truth is that if things have got this bad this quickly, they are reluctant to bring in the strongest possible measures until its very much a last resort, not as a preemptive measure and that's the balance they talk about with the economy and other factors (just my take on it).
There's anger and frustration everywhere at the moment; with the situation, with the government and with each other. It's shit no matter which way you look at it. Everyone just wants to get through this and get back to some semblance of normality, even with social distancing and necessary safety measures.
I think the most depressing thing for an awful lot of people is that they have no faith in anything the government are doing, or have done pretty much throughout the pandemic. As much as I dislike Boris Johnson, no one would be happier than me to be able to turn round and say I doubted him before, but he's more than proven me wrong etc. Instead he's actually been more useless than even I would have thought, its not just him though, its the whole lightweight cabinet, serco track and trace and the billions of pounds of dodgy contracts handed out to tory contact etc. A cluster fuck of epic proportions throughout.
I would love to be positive, but the way the numbers are going and the way things have been handled so far just don't suggest things are getting any better. I sincerely hope the new tier system works and we start to see improvements in the next few weeks.
As ever a big thanks to
@Healdplace @ayrshire_blue and the others that put so much time in to this thread and for all the information they provide on a daily basis. It isn't always pleasant reading, but it does help give an indication of how we're doing and where we might be headed. I just hope the numbers start to go back down and there's positive news on a vaccine soon.
