IntenseDebate - garden_of

3 years ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Auto-rant, bullshit an... · 3 replies · +1 points

There is a difference between being sceptical of lockdowns, masks etc. and the fact that COVID is real, serious and deadly.

It is extremely unfortunate that the two groups with these views at blurred together.

3 years ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Auto-rant, bullshit an... · 0 replies · +1 points

There was a great deal of time for issues to be brought to court and evidence of problems submitted. More than 60 cases were heard, and pretty much everything was rejected as baseless, or worse. As Paul writes, even the Supreme Court, stuffed with Trumps appointees, could not find any merit in the cases put to them.

The time for objections was not at a ceremonial sitting of congress.

It's over. Trump lost, albeit in a closely fought election.

3 years ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Johnson's position is ... · 0 replies · +1 points

The substance of my argument was absolutely true, and it is you bending over to accuse me of dishonesty.

Regarding your two substantive points:
1) Data is from All cause mortality and Hospital capacity, as stated, see the euromomo data for example - for mortality data comparisons
2) If 87% of your population is in urban areas then I would say what is happening in the cities is a pretty good approximation of what is happening in the country

3 years ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Johnson's position is ... · 2 replies · +1 points

If you consider the entire country this would seem so, but the majority of Sweden's population is in urban areas. I believe that Stockholm has a population density even greater than that of London.

>> 87% of the population live in urban areas, which cover 1.5% of the entire land area.[16] 63% of Swedes are in large urban areas.[16]

It would seem that your opinions are premature.

3 years ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Johnson's position is ... · 12 replies · +1 points

Some points:

* Sweden has been written off here, but it's not doing any worse or better than the UK, despite having similar population densities. And yet we have instituted crippling lockdowns for months, where they have not. There is still very poor evidence that lockdowns work at all.
* All-cause excess mortality and Hospital capacity are the only measures worth noting (in consideration with previous years) and yet these are always ignored or glossed over during any presentation of figures that are nearly universally misleading and presented without context.
* Excess mortality data in the UK shows little difference (<10% increase) to an average winter, although there was a spike in the Spring, and current massive hysteria.
* Pictures of ambulances queuing outside of hospitals is old news - what has the government done to increase NHS capacity over the last 5 years to prepare for something like this pandemic? The population of clinically vulnerable older people has been increasing significantly in this period, and yet we are now surprised to be hit hard by this virus?

3 years ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Neil Shastri-Hurst: Li... · 0 replies · +1 points

Unfortunately they are soon to discover that not all things are, in fact, their choice. Freedom in a functioning society is at best illusory. Laws can and will be made to reallocate resources, and wealth. Rules are ultimately backed up by force, on pain of imprisonment or worse.

The Baby Boomers will soon reap what they have long sewn, when their tyranny-of-the-majority comes to an end and many of their supposed choices are removed from them.

3 years ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Neil Shastri-Hurst: Li... · 2 replies · +1 points

Unfortunately, those three things are the exact things that the current crop of elderly desperately avoid at all costs. The wealth they do have will ultimately be spent on extreme care fees to preserve life for the last 3 or 4 years.

In the words of a disgraced Mr Steve Bannon: (Boomers are the) "most spoiled, most self-centered, most narcissistic generation". They talk a good game, but when it comes to putting their hands in their pockets, they suddenly find themselves paralysed.

3 years ago @ http://www.conservativ... - The seasonal story has... · 1 reply · +1 points

John is a strange gospel. Even the quoted prologue seems strained.

4 years ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Down with equality, up... · 2 replies · +1 points

Equality of opportunity means the same decent learning setting regardless of socioeconomic class - as you suggest. Problem is that you can't achieve this without actively mixing different classes of pupils, which would be an electoral disaster. Comprehensives are a start, but they are heavily dependent on location. Grammar schools and faith schools are mostly proxies for socio-economic status.

>> "What the person does with the benefit of their education is their choice and will naturally affect their life outcomes (and those of their children."

The point about the scrapheap is that if you believe in equality of opportunity, you must also necessarily believe in a moment when opportunity ceases and outcome begins - an absurdity in its own terms.

4 years ago @ http://www.conservativ... - Down with equality, up... · 0 replies · +1 points

That's a fair point, tubby2. I suppose the problem is: what happens if your parents don't give a monkeys about you? No equality of opportunity for them?

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