This is an urgent message, so lets not waste time with introductions.
The Government of Ireland must mandate a Complete Shutdown of all non-essential and non-medical business immediately.
This means closing all non-essential manufacturing, factories, construction sites, call centers and non-essential warehouse work (excepting medical device, food services for humans and animals, pharmaceuticals and other essentials) - Private and Multinational firms that are still continuing business as usual in Ireland MUST BE CLOSED - They must not be allowed to continue work as they dictate until they chose to close. WE ARE IN A NATIONAL CRISIS AND THEY MUST BE MANDATED TO CLOSE.
I RECOMMEND THAT AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE USE THIS POST AS A PLATFORM TO NAME AND SHAME PRIVATE COMPANIES IN THE REPUBLIC OF IRELAND THAT ARE REFUSING TO CLOSE AND PUTTING THE LIVES OF OUR CITIZENRY AT RISK AND ARE MORTGAGING THE FUTURE OF LIFE AS WE KNOW IT FOR SHORT-TERM PROFIT.
The numbers of people out on the streets, parks, beaches and other public environs is also alarming. In the UK it is now illegal to be out during a nationwide lockdown while in Ireland we have still not made measures to ENFORCE SOCIAL DISTANCING THAT CAN SAVE HUNDREDS IF NOT THOUSANDS OF LIVES.
Despite many euphemisms and mitigating measures the government has taken they have been half-measures at best and will do nothing to FLATTEN THE INFECTION CURVE. WE MUST MOVE PAST HALF-ASSED MITIGATION AND HAVE A FULL LOCKDOWN, APPLY "THE HAMMER" - Only then can we move onto "THE DANCE" AND CAREFULLY RESTART OUR COUNTRY AGAIN.
The key word here is MITIGATING MEASURES. the government refuse to take any hardline measures to, in-effect, flatted the infection from an exponential rate to a linear rate and eventually reaching a level that will not overwhelm our already beleaguered healthcare system.
We have healthcare workers who can only be considered superheroes at this point who are quickly becoming so overwhelmed that they are, in-effect, samurai in nurses and doctors clothing. They are risking their own lives and also having to take the extra burden and risk because, again PRIVATE BUSINESSES REFUSE TO CLOSE ON THEIR OWN! THEY MUST BE FORCED RIGHT NOW!
TIME IS KEY IN ALL OF THIS. WE MUST GET OUR COUNTRY FROM AN EXPONENTIAL STAGE OF INFECTION RATE TO A LINEAR STAGE AND FLATTEN THE CURVE. WE CAN ONLY DO THIS WITH A FULL LOCKDOWN FOR AT LEAST 2 WEEKS!
To citizens I recommend you STAY INDOORS AS LONG AS POSSIBLE, we can only fight this virus and stop it becoming a permanent part of the microbial ecosystem in this country if we band together on this and most importantly HOLD BUSINESS AND GOVERNMENT TO ACCOUNT! DON'T FORGET THAT THEY SHOULD HAVE HAD A WUHAN OR RUSSIAN STYLE LOCKDOWN AT LEAST A WEEK AGO IF NOT TWO!
THE DATA DOES NOT LIE - The John's Hopkins Website has been providing more up to date information than any of the highly funded and subsidized quangos and institutions in IRELAND. The most important detail is to read the shape of the graph, not merely quote numbers.
This is Our Status (March 26th 2020):
WE ARE HEADING INTO EXPONENTIAL GROWTH. WE MUST ACT NOW!
Compare this to Italy, the Worst Country Hit in Europe:
EXPONENTIAL INFECTION RATE HAS CAUSED THE VAST NUMBER OF DEATHS WITHIN ITALY.
SEE John's Hopkins COVID 19 Updates live here: reading the curve is far more essential than the individual numbers: https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html
The Ideal is to APPLY THE HAMMER, initiate a 2 week controlled lockdown and flatten the infection rate, as CHINA and most East Asian Countries have done:
WE HAVE BEEN TOLD CONSTANTLY BY THE IRISH GOVERNMENT AND THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA (RTE Are most culpable) THAT THE WORD "LOCKDOWN" IS A SCARE TACTIC. WELL, IN TIMES LIKE THIS FEAR WORKS TO GET THE JOB DONE. WE DON'T HAVE TO BE AFRAID FOREVER BUT THIS CRISIS REQUIRES US TO REALLY BE AFRAID FOR OUR LOVED ONES AND FOR OURSELVES.
Morever, it has not been the word "lockdown" that the citizenry have had a hard time understanding: The term "Social distancing" has been apparently interpreted by the public with a mixture of confusion and reckless abandon, maybe because it was written by the same second-rate advertising gurus that write the script our politicians read.
As the Comedian George Carlin once said "Euphemisms are bullshit, people need direct honest language" - So, my fellows, please STAY INDOORS FOR AS LONG AS YOU HAVE FOOD AND MEDICINE!
Again, to the Government, INITIATE A CLOSURE OF NON-ESSENTIAL PRIVATE BUSINESSES TO ENSURE THAT WE FLATTEN THE INFECTION RATE! YOU WILL BE HELD ACCOUNT FOR THIS NEGLIGENCE!
We can hopefully look back on this moment and perhaps laugh and have a kind of "I was there" moment with the kids in the future. Perhaps. But if we do not act now we are going to plunge this country into loss and sorrow that will take generations to heal. Please do what is in the common good.
IMPORTANT NOTE:
As I write this America has overtaken every other country as the most heavily infected. this was not unexpected given the delayed response there however they are due to get much worse due to the high level of exponential growth leading to a great strain on their healthcare system:
Friday MARCH 27TH 2020 - 21:30. It is with great relief that I announce that our Government, for all of its faults, has initiated Lockdown.
ReplyDeleteGovernment is the one institution that is responsible for the will for the people and they have now, finally, acted.
Thank you everyone for reading and spreading this article. If this has had any effect on decision making at all, rest assured you have helped save lives.