All borders to reopen.
Borders are open, there is flying, because pax numbers are down and pilots are not rostered max hrs is not cause for stand downs. If they do use use this and unions allow them to, what happens in 2028 if this is over and the usual February quiet is on?! It almost would make the work force casuals allowing stand downs all the time. It’s just the cost of doing business and QF must wear the wage bill.
A couple of days ago they were crowing at GT's prowess as the best aviation journalist / guru on the face of the planet.
short flights long nights
It’s on total display at the checkout of every grocery store, newsagent, bakery etc…… all day, in every town in WA, calling him an “abject failure”. If he doesn’t care, he’s not much of a politician.
It’s going to be a long 3 years for him. With only the support of an unknown percentage (my guess would be for less than 50%) of the WA population (and that will diminish over time) and what now seems to be none of the media, he’s cooked.
It’s going to be a long 3 years for him. With only the support of an unknown percentage (my guess would be for less than 50%) of the WA population (and that will diminish over time) and what now seems to be none of the media, he’s cooked.
Just to provide a glimmer of slightly more positive news.
The secret CHO health advice has been published.
Benefits of COVID-19 booster shots in WA would start to wane after March: Chief Health Officer
Important points:
Reading that WA Health have openly admitted that opening up much later beyond early March could cause significant problems. So maybe, just maybe, there's a hope it may only be a delay of 4 weeks. Or enough that the peak doesn't hit the same time as the flu and other viruses, so potentially no later than April.
And I think what stuffed McGowan yesterday was not so much the delay but the new lack of a plan and subsequent date. Even the AMA that had previously been calling for a 4 week delay have come out very strongly against this indefinite plan:
AMA WA president Mark Duncan-Smith calls for urgent border reopen date to be announced
So there's three previous Pro McGowan or strong borders groups, the WA AMA, the Chamber of Minerals and Energy and the West Australian, that have really savaged McG over yesterday's announcement and the lack of a definite date.
The secret CHO health advice has been published.
Benefits of COVID-19 booster shots in WA would start to wane after March: Chief Health Officer
Important points:
- WA could reach 75 per cent booster coverage by March 2.
- Beyond that date, the waning of protection from boosters is anticipated to offset this gain, particularly among the elderly and healthcare workers who were boosted early, and decisions on future [opening] dates would require further modelling
- “Any decision on opening dates should consider the potential for twin outbreaks if the peak or post-peak period is expected to fall in the winter influenza season.”
Reading that WA Health have openly admitted that opening up much later beyond early March could cause significant problems. So maybe, just maybe, there's a hope it may only be a delay of 4 weeks. Or enough that the peak doesn't hit the same time as the flu and other viruses, so potentially no later than April.
And I think what stuffed McGowan yesterday was not so much the delay but the new lack of a plan and subsequent date. Even the AMA that had previously been calling for a 4 week delay have come out very strongly against this indefinite plan:
AMA WA president Mark Duncan-Smith calls for urgent border reopen date to be announced
So there's three previous Pro McGowan or strong borders groups, the WA AMA, the Chamber of Minerals and Energy and the West Australian, that have really savaged McG over yesterday's announcement and the lack of a definite date.
Last edited by dr dre; 21st Jan 2022 at 08:12.
Borders are open, there is flying, because pax numbers are down and pilots are not rostered max hrs is not cause for stand downs. If they do use use this and unions allow them to, what happens in 2028 if this is over and the usual February quiet is on?! It almost would make the work force casuals allowing stand downs all the time. It’s just the cost of doing business and QF must wear the wage bill.
They can probably use the continued WA closure to justify more stand downs across all bases as a result of overall domestic capacity reduction.
But hopefully the info in the last post I made can give hope that this delay will be short lived, as even they know that the effect of waning immunity on the elderly is more serious than not as many kids vaxxed.
short flights long nights
Leaving aside arguments about an opening date, that Health Department release is interesting. If booster shots start wane….can we expect to need a shot every 6 months from now on.?
Is that the first time we’ve ever seen any of the health advice? I can’t remember ever seeing any over the last 2 years. That they feel the need to release it is interesting in itself.
Maybe to cool off speculation it would be a longer term closure? Maybe they think they can get away with a 4 week delay but want to remain vague about the exact date until closer, seeing they've already broken one promise.
There is a chance McGowan won’t have a particularly difficult decision in a month or so. Testing rates in WA are dismally low with the current outbreak and his border decision has very much split the state in half. This is on top of increasing opposition to his heavy handed vaccine mandates and smugness over other states and countries. A huge number of WA residents are 1st generation interstate or overseas immigrants and are fed up with him. His latest stunt could well be a tipping point.
Never before have I seen local social media posts wishing COVID to start spreading in WA, today I have seen plenty. Plenty of comments on the radio too about no longer being so compliant with checking in, vaccine status or booster shots. There is a real growing sense of anger and increasing numbers actively willing to let COVID rip, don’t check in, ignore exposure site info and don’t get tested. Four cases today that can’t be linked, this could explode very quickly and the borders become meaningless.
Never before have I seen local social media posts wishing COVID to start spreading in WA, today I have seen plenty. Plenty of comments on the radio too about no longer being so compliant with checking in, vaccine status or booster shots. There is a real growing sense of anger and increasing numbers actively willing to let COVID rip, don’t check in, ignore exposure site info and don’t get tested. Four cases today that can’t be linked, this could explode very quickly and the borders become meaningless.
One would've assumed they were asymptomatic and not linked to any known cases. So they rocked up at the airport thinking there was no reason that they could potentially be infected. So there must be more quiet spread going on in the city unawares. So Covid zero won't come back, and even in hot weather and masks it must be ready to go exponential.
Again it links in with my theory that McG just doesn't have the balls to own a reopening date and take the blame for letting the virus in. So hopefully it takes off and he has an excuse to deflect criticism.
More weight to that theory:
Dr Robertson recommended health workers moving to WA from interstate after February 5 should have their quarantine time reduced to seven days of home isolation and they should be able to work in their second week after arriving to boost staffing levels.
So ordinary people have to do 14 days at home, but healthcare workers can go to work after 7 days straight into the middle of hospitals and aged care homes? McGowan surely must want an outbreak
Last edited by dr dre; 21st Jan 2022 at 09:29.
You don't need to be in any rush to let the virus in, it will happen all by itself. when it does happen if you think life is going back to normal you are seriously deluded. We in SA would never have agreed to this if we knew what was going to happen. like us as it was, you are not experiencing any inconvenience at all at the moment, that's all about to change, Supply shortages, business closed, can't do much because nothing is open at least the way you expect it to be and for what, so we can travel, well that's not going to plan either. I deeply regret supporting opening the borders, but you guys don't take our advice and experience for it, you just jump straight in there and do it, don't say you weren't warned. I don't want to hear your whining after the event.
You don't need to be in any rush to let the virus in, it will happen all by itself. when it does happen if you think life is going back to normal you are seriously deluded. We in SA would never have agreed to this if we knew what was going to happen. like us as it was, you are not experiencing any inconvenience at all at the moment, that's all about to change, Supply shortages, business closed, can't do much because nothing is open at least the way you expect it to be and for what, so we can travel, well that's not going to plan either. I deeply regret supporting opening the borders, but you guys don't take our advice and experience for it, you just jump straight in there and do it, don't say you weren't warned. I don't want to hear your whining after the event.
I don't know, all I know is that we are shutting down all operations at the end of the month, anyone who drills holes in the ground will shut down soon afterwards, like us we are all falling over like a row of dominoes, I don't have the answers, except that it wasn't like this when the borders were closed.
You don't need to be in any rush to let the virus in, it will happen all by itself. when it does happen if you think life is going back to normal you are seriously deluded. We in SA would never have agreed to this if we knew what was going to happen. like us as it was, you are not experiencing any inconvenience at all at the moment, that's all about to change, Supply shortages, business closed, can't do much because nothing is open at least the way you expect it to be and for what, so we can travel, well that's not going to plan either. I deeply regret supporting opening the borders, but you guys don't take our advice and experience for it, you just jump straight in there and do it, don't say you weren't warned. I don't want to hear your whining after the event.
1, there will always be a reopening wave, whether you open up at 90% double vaxxed or 99% triple vaxxed. The case rise will be exponential and the media will fearmonger about it. This is inevitable. The only option is to never reopen and use "crush and kill" full lockdowns if there's an outbreak permanently.
2, people react to what the media feeds them. Fearmonger non stop about cases, people will be too afraid to step outside. Ambulance services and Emergency Departments are reporting most Covid cases using rushing to use those services have mild symptoms and have overreacted.
3, rules designed to stop the original version or Delta aren't appropriate for Omicron. Most are reporting a day or two needed off work, but rules dictate a full 7 days off work. This affects staff shortages considerably.
4, the Omicron wave is having a lower effect on health systems than even the most optimistic predictions. SA has about 200-400 ICU beds, currently 33 occupied with those tested positive to Covid, this has peaked or is very close to.
5, not sure about SA but Victoria definitely isn't hiding away from the AO tennis crowds I can see. WA broadcaster admits Sydney isn't locking itself away despite popular WA opinion.
As someone in WA I've noticed the mask wearing and slight cases in the community has caused a noticeable decrease in public movement already. Until the wave passes it will remain.
The expectation was to let the virus do its thing, that's what we understood, we are vaxxed we are ready, that's not what is happening, we are required to isolate, get tested, what for. This is madness, everything and I mean everything is going to stop within a month at this rate if the government or health advise continues on this path.
Nunc est bibendum
The next couple of months are still going to be hard work. After that we’ll likely be through the worst and coming out the other side.
Well, those of us outside of WA will be. WA will still have that storm ahead of them. It’s coming. They’re just delaying the inevitable.
Well, those of us outside of WA will be. WA will still have that storm ahead of them. It’s coming. They’re just delaying the inevitable.
Except that there is no way to know that. There is more likely to be yet another variant. Personally I believe that WA has made the right decision for now, 20% productivity for the rest of us is not sustainable for much longer. We can't recover from the economic domino effect all that quickly, which means things will get worse before they get better. We must either live with the virus or don't, there is no half way measure. I think your couple of months is ambitious.
MM is a terrible leader he gloats about his surplus budget he has had over two yrs now to prepare, he has definitely proven he is not a critical or forward thinker. WA has made a bad choice, WA will slow the country down when they decide it’s safe because they will have the same mess that East states have now. NSW is showing signs of stabilization with hospital numbers and ICU (numbers irrelevant who bloody cares how many have it).
im from WA have family and friends there still and looking at social media post they are well over it, they were happy it was a zero case state but continuing to miss family, friends, weddings, births you all get it the list goes on. MM better organize his ducks for the next pandemic. I think the mental impact on residents over there will come forth very quickly.
Next steps that really need to happen is media control (yeah I wish) if anyone has watched 17:00 news reporter UH spends a good 5 minutes scaremongering ppl on cases. That’s not what needs to be reported. The breakdown of cases, death etc is not relative to what actually is happening. If it were to be stripped back to actual deaths from COVID and in hospital because of COVID the numbers will be much much less.
im from WA have family and friends there still and looking at social media post they are well over it, they were happy it was a zero case state but continuing to miss family, friends, weddings, births you all get it the list goes on. MM better organize his ducks for the next pandemic. I think the mental impact on residents over there will come forth very quickly.
Next steps that really need to happen is media control (yeah I wish) if anyone has watched 17:00 news reporter UH spends a good 5 minutes scaremongering ppl on cases. That’s not what needs to be reported. The breakdown of cases, death etc is not relative to what actually is happening. If it were to be stripped back to actual deaths from COVID and in hospital because of COVID the numbers will be much much less.
We are ALL over it, regardless of where you come from. Just don't go believing that with the borders open things will get better and you'll be able to travel, because that's not what's going to happen. Ask any business in SA, the border has only been open 8 weeks and it's an economic catastrophe already.