love* in the time of plague (and by love* i mean brexit* and other dreary matters of uk politics)

graph on p17 of this - the yellow line has a pretty severe uptick this week
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/888254/COVID19_Epidemiological_Summary_w22_Final.pdf

Scotland's minor relaxation of contact rules...
― BRAVE THE AFRIAD (onimo), Friday, May 29, 2020 6:21 PM (three hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

cycled through pollok park earlier - lots of young team out cradling empty bottles of MD2020, plus several groups > 8 having BBQs, and one group playing touch (!) rugby

But they were fucked up in their turn
By fools looking for some 2020 vision

lol we're all gonna die pt. 94

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/may/30/boris-johnsons-test-and-tracing-system-britain-lockdown

Never discount local laziness from local mps! xxp

That London uptick in the graph Stevie talked about is worrying, let's see it it continues. I guess it might be a correction of the data as well?

Test and trace article would be terrifying if anyone was actually using the app and I'm not seeing much evidence that anyone has actually downloaded it.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/amp/uk-52858392

Judging by this, some of the scientists are very nervous and in mutinous mood. We haven't seen a high profile resignation on scientific/political grounds yet and one has to be coming.

the FBPEs were all having a massive pop at Edmunds last week after a misleadingly edited clip of his appearance against Pueyo on C4 did the rounds. They've shut up now, weirdly.

Delightful final para in this otherwise deeply depressing article https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/coronavirus-teflon-dom-sets-his-sights-on-one-thing-only-brexit-bw6cbf8cs

May be paywalled so:
“He is the person who pushed for a £20,000 fine if you broke the border quarantine, who himself drove up to Durham. It’s like The Wizard of Oz — everyone has just pulled back the curtain and it’s like some bald bloke in shit clothes.”

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/may/30/boris-johnsons-test-and-tracing-system-britain-lockdown?utm_term=Autofeed&CMP=twt_gu&utm_medium&utm_source=Twitter#Echobox=1590816367

Wednesday came (day four) and we got a message assuring us that we were getting paid – and to please wait. The comments came in “LOL getting paid by the government for this”, and “they’ll be clapping for us on Thursday”. It went downhill from there, and people started writing derogatory remarks. Others suggested we use the company phone system to practise calling each other on our computers. Again, supervisors didn’t interject or offer any guidance. One person set up a Facebook group (for the people in out chat) and called it Panic Room.

inside the ‘world-beating' track and trace system that is going to be a big success for the rona.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2009/jun/23/daniel-sturridge-chelsea-manchester-city

Rona FC just signed Mo Salah

Tonight’s Opinium/Observer poll: 😯

— James Endersby (@JamesEnders) May 30, 2020

I get the feeling the melt knight of the realm will have some happier reading than boris tonight.

can we start polling how many people want BoJo's head on a spike, the only poll that matters?

gnna need a bigger spike

Oh it's coming.

by the time Starmer loses to Johnson

― Matt DC, Wednesday, 6 May 2020 10:28 (three weeks ago) bookmarkflaglink

;)

The next United Kingdom general election is scheduled to be held on Thursday 2 May 2024.

three short years and eleven shorter months away!

how does the festering corpse of the tory party pick itself up here. some sort of war?

At some point in the coming couple of weeks they're going to clock that the honest-to-god last chance for a Brexit extension expires at the end of June. That has the potential to get spicy, even if they all promised to be rabid Brexiteers in the Before.

Eh, they got rid of everyone who believes anything other than "Johnny Foreigner doesn't like it up 'em" last year.

Tears for Dominic Grieve rn

I know, and they all signed their little pledge too. But I wonder how much that will count for when push comes to shove with Dom's Hard Brexit. (I mean, if the govt wants it then it will happen, but I reckon there'll be a row, it won't be all flags and bulldogs)

Starmer won't beat Johnson because Boris is highly unlikely to contest the next election. Why would he when he could fuck off to the most lucrative after dinner speech market of all time? (Assuming he doesn't become Neville Chamberlain in the meantime that is).

Eden liked taking a Caribbean vacation while his reputation and standing went down the pisser as well, although in completely different circumstances.

Tory lead down to 4 points. The fact that they have a lead at all is shocking.

Have the Lib Dems just given up?

I just read John Smith had a 20 point lead post black wednesday and all the other shit, the last time the Tories were probably even more competent than they are now!

xp

the LibDems still haven't got a new leader, they are probably doing much soul searching about flanking fucking lame-melt Starmer Labour from a few microns to the the left.

was sure Ed Davey was their leader, or is that interim

Have the Lib Dems just given up?

no the leadership LibDem race is still a going concern, even more riveting than a amateur riders' selling hurdle at Towcester

Pretty sure Ed Davey has been LibDem leader for longer than Jo Swinson who actually beat him in the contest.

that light that burns twice as shite...

just let their MPs take turns imo, a month each

UBI this month... and erm.. oh dear kill the disabled + the poor month again next i'm afraid .. it'll all balance out in the end though!

realistic simulation of LD policy imo

was gonna do a riff on Chuka running and then i remembered why that won't be happening

Im kinda hoping Layla Moran becomes leader and takes some points off the Cons in the south, She seems the best of a bad bunch as well, though no doubt I'll be swiftly disabused of that notion by someone

as ever, comes down to voting record

https://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/25689/layla_moran/oxford_west_and_abingdon/votes

def not a monster and well to the left of swinson, but alas still a lib dem mp. if she becomes leader, should amalgamate the party with keir starmer's labour (from which her viewpoints appear fairly indistinguishable) to become the supermelt double-cheese pizza of a political party ('neoliberalism's last hurrah!') we all dream of

Rosie Duffield giving the whatabouters a hernia, I see

I have a to say I'd been wondering which Labour MP was going to get this treatment today.

Rank amateurism in allowing her to resign as opposed to letting Starmer publically sack her.

Really good summary of where we are at.

The UK government has 'launched' a test and trace system this week, which is being used as the justification to re-open non-essential shops and send reception, year 1 and year 6 children back to school. It's also relaxed some curfew restrictions at the same time.

— libcom.org (@libcomorg) May 31, 2020

I know some people in this thread have had covid but reading it you just think we've barely begun with this disease and it's response.

it does look to the untrained eye as if the UK gov has spent the last 3 months doing fuck all about Covid

and most of the public statements of scientific advisers has been some real "Profiles in Courage" stuff

I feel lucky to have had it, and scared shitless on behalf of everyone who hasn't. This is such a flaming bag of shit. I only hope enough people survive it to demand an inquiry that puts heads on spikes.