‘Rishi-the-rebel’? Not really …

 

Once again the Tory backbench MPs, after having made a great show in their online utterings about how they’d vote against that ‘Rule of Six’ and the 10pm ’curfew’ showed they were paper tigers. Well, I concede that the Covid government removed the debate and vote for that ‘curfew’, postponing it to next week. More on that and on the vote below.

Firstly though, we ought to take note of the social media giants again censoring  the permitted Covid discourse:

“Facebook has removed a post by President Donald Trump that claimed Covid-19 is “far less lethal” than the flu less than 24 hours after being discharged from hospital with the disease. The social media giant said Mr Trump had broken its rules against dangerous misinformation by wrongly playing down the “severity” of coronavirus.” (paywalled link)

Well, it’s good to know that those faceless facebook moderators are watching out for us dumb peasants. After all, how dare the President of the USA have an opinion about Covid which isn’t toeing the WHO ‘party line’!

I wonder if those social media giants will now shut down the accounts of those thousands of international scientists who have written what is called the ‘Great Barrington Declaration’. It came out yesterday, just in time to be disregarded by our Covid Government and the Covid Cabinet:

“An international group of scientists have signed an open letter supported by 44,000 members of the general public calling for lockdown to be ended in favour of a herd immunity strategy. Titled the Great Barrington Declaration after the US town where it was written, it says that those who are not vulnerable “should immediately be allowed to resume life as normal” and that maintaining any lockdown policies would cause irreparable harm. The authors, including the Oxford epidemiologist Sunetra Gupta, wrote: “The most compassionate approach that balances the risks and benefits of reaching herd immunity is to allow those who are at minimal risk of death to live their lives normally to build up immunity to the virus through natural infection, while better protecting those who are at highest risk.” (link, paywalled)

Oooh – ‘herd immunity’! How very dare they! Here’s the background for this declaration, relating to the UK:

“It follows warnings that 75,000 people could die from non-Covid-19 causes as a result of lockdown – almost twice the official death toll caused by coronavirus. On Tuesday, scientists said too little attention was being paid to the effect of lockdown on short and long-term public health. They warned that “irreparable damage” would be caused by policies aiming to suppress the virus until a vaccine becomes available, with excess deaths in years to come as a result of worsening mental health and reduced access to healthcare.” (paywalled link)

This declaration, this Open Letter was available to the MPs, but when I looked at their votes I was aghast:

“14 Conservative MPs voted against the “rule of six” restriction last night and at least a dozen abstained as they called the measure a “massive intrusion into the liberty and private lives” of Britons.” (link, paywalled)

Fourteen Tory MPs voted against that measure? Some ‘rebellion’! Here’s the actual count:

“The motion on the regulations was approved by 287 votes to 17, a majority of 270, with Labour abstaining. The rebel MPs in effect put the government on notice of a much bigger revolt over the 10pm curfew, which is due to come before the Commons for a vote next week.” (link, paywalled)

No, they haven’t – especially not when you see how many Tories actually bothered to vote. Also, note well that Labour abstained. Are they ok with the Covid government measures but don’t want to sully their ‘opposition image’ by voting with the government? Or is this yet another sign that Labour is utilising the whole Covid shambles as political playball? The demands for ‘moar money and moar lockdown’ from the Labour Mayors in the North of England would indicate this:

“The elected leaders of Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds and Newcastle wrote to Mr Hancock to call for more funding and a better local approach to avert economic collapse. They told him: “The existing restrictions are not working, confusing for the public, and some, like the 10pm rule, are counter-productive.” (paywalled link)

I’m puzzled: what do they want? More restrictions because, according to reports in ‘Our MSM’, ‘infections are soaring’? Or just more money? Does nobody in the newsrooms even ask how come infections are ‘soaring’ given that restrictions have been in place for some time, given that infections are also ‘soaring’ in countries where much harsher restrictions have been in place for longer? Our Covid Cabinet minister do know that restrictions ain’t working:

“A Cabinet row has thrown a major overhaul of local lockdown rules into disarray as the leaders of the worst-affected cities warned that the current measures are “not working”. (paywalled link)

At the end of this article, there’s one sentence smuggled in which ought to have been the headline for that article – and indeed ought to have been the top news item. Instead it’s used as argument that new measures are needed:

“The need for a new approach was highlighted by Public Health England data which showed that case rates in cities under the strictest local lockdowns are spiralling out of control despite the measures.” (paywalled link)

If something is patently ‘not working’, does it make sense to say that “we” need more of the same? Are they ignorant of this quote attributed to Einstein: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.”? No – the Covid Cabinet is more concerned with imposing ‘more of the same’!

One of the ‘measures’ being debates shows that again we ordinary people are going to be treated like imbeciles who cannot possibly understand the oh-so difficult situation:

“A “traffic light” system of different levels of restrictions was due to be announced on Wednesday – but an intervention by Rishi Sunak, the Chancellor, is threatening to delay the plans.” (paywalled link)

Before you applaud Dishi Rishi for showing some vestiges of common sense, note well that he’s not against that infantile ‘traffic light system’:

“ Mr Sunak is understood to be insisting that decisions about which towns should be put in the “red” zone of the “traffic light” system should be made by a new committee of himself, Mr Johnson and Matt Hancock, the Health Secretary. […] Mr Sunak is spearheading calls from Cabinet “hawks” for ministers to be given the final say over when an area is required to enter the top tier of restrictions. The Chancellor is said to have accepted the need for the new system but is concerned about the mechanism by which the most severe restrictions are imposed.” (paywalled link)

According to the DT, Sunak is worried because some in that Covid cabinet prefer to leave things as they are:

“Some ministers believe decision-making powers should remain with Mr Hancock and health officials who make up “gold command” .[…] Mr Sunak, however, believes no one will be arguing in favour of the economy if that happens and wants the decisions to be made by a triumvirate of himself, Mr Hancock and Mr Johnson.” (paywalled link)

What I’d like to know is why nobody in that Covid Cabinet is ‘arguing in favour’ of restoring our civil liberties! What I’d like to know is why nobody in the Covid Cabinet is arguing for taking on board the points made in that Open Letter by thousands of international scientists and clinicians. What I’d like to know is why nobody in the Covid Cabinet is questioning the whole SAGE-’science’ nor the patently incorrect (I’m being kind!) ‘case numbers’ – now being labelled ‘infections’ in’ Our MSM’. What I’d like to know is why nobody in that Covid cabinet is arguing about the questionable tests on which these ‘case numbers’ or ‘infections’  are based. What I’d like to know is why this Covid Cabinet seems to be in thrall to Hancock. 

Meanwhile, we’re informed that the ‘curfew vote’ in the ghostly (should that be ‘ghastly’?) HoC will be delayed until next week:

“A Parliamentary vote on the curfew – which had been expected by MPs on Wednesday – has been delayed until next week after dozens of Conservatives threatened to rebel and Labour refused to publicly back the measure. […] The 10pm curfew will now be debated in a Commons committee on Monday – a move that could infuriate Tory backbenchers who thought they had been promised the chance to debate national measures in the Commons by Mr Hancock last week.” (paywalled link)

Given the paper-tigerishness of the Tory backbenchers I doubt that they will be doing much to express their ‘fury’ except posturing in ‘Our MSM’ and social media – provided their accounts won’t be cancelled or censured by faceless, unelected, unaccountable ‘moderators’.

I leave you with ‘news’ that BJ has held a speech at that virtual Tory Party conference where he’s promising sunny heights and more jam for tomorrow and the day after tomorrow. He would promise that, wouldn’t he! His posturing as a later-day Churchill is grating and shows that he’s understood nothing about our Nation fighting, living and sacrificing during WWII. 

The final straw for today, as far as I’m concerned, is a Hancock ‘warning’ that cancer patients can only be ‘guaranteed’ treatment if that virus ‘stays under control’ (link). So we’re not only ‘granny killers’ if we don’t follow ‘teh rulz’, we’re now also denying cancer patients their much needed treatments. Can Hancock sink much lower?  Don’t forget to check out LockdownSceptics and

 

KBO!

 

Photo by UK Prime Minister

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